Sauteed Shrimp with Creamy Red Chile Salsa

Serving size:4
Prep Time:
Total Time:
Sauteed Shrimp with Creamy Red Chile Salsa

Shrimp

  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • lime wedges, for serving
  • cooked rice, polenta, or grits, for serving
  • 1 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • 1 cup Chile Colorado sauce, recipe follows
  • 2 lb jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined
  • 4 garlic clove, thinly sliced

1. Combine the olive oil and garlic in a large skillet. Put it over medium heat and cook, stirring frequently, until the garlic turns light brown.
2. Turn the heat to high, add the shrimp (in batches if necessary), and cook them for 1 minute on each side. Return all the shrimp to the skillet, lower the heat to medium, and pour the Chile Colorado Sauce and heavy cream over them. Cook until the shrimp are just cooked through, about 5 minutes.
3. Scoop out the shrimp with a slotted spoon and set them aside. Simmer the sauce until it thickens, 3 to 4 minutes.
4. Add the cilantro and return the shrimp to the sauce. Turn down the heat and reheat the shrimp gently.
5. Spoon the shrimp and sauce into bowls over rice, polenta, or grits, and serve immediately with lime wedges.

    Chile Colorado Sauce

    • 3 medium Spanish or white onions, quartered
    • salt and freshly ground black pepper
    • 1 quart chicken stock (low-sodium store-bought is fine)
    • 2 guajilo chili (1/2 ounce), stemmed, seeded, and deveined
    • 1 ancho chili (1/2 ounce), stemmed, seeded, and deveined
    • olive oil, for drizzling
    • 8 whole garlic clove, peeled
    • 4 plum tomatoes, cored and quartered
    • 8 medium fresh tomatillos, husked and washed

    1. Preheat the broiler.
    2. Put the onions, tomatillos, tomatoes, and garlic on a baking sheet and drizzle them with olive oil. Put the baking sheet under the broiler and cook without turning until the vegetables start to get charred, about 7 minutes. Remove, set aside, and let cool to room temperature.
    3. In a large dry skillet over medium-low heat, toast the guajillos, turning them over halfway through, just until they smell great, about 1 minute. Transfer them to a bowl, cover them with hot water, and let them soak until they’re soft, about 30 minutes. Drain the chiles and discard the soaking water.
    4. Combine the vegetables and chiles in a blender with the chicken stock (you’ll have to work in batches) and puree until the mixture is very smooth. Transfer each batch to a bowl as it’s done, and stir the batches together well. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
    5. Store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week or in the freezer for up to a month.

     

    Recipe courtesy of Simple Food, Big Flavor by Aarón Sanchez/Atria Books, a division of Simon & Schuster, Inc.