I think I’ve actually blogged about both of these before… Ah, the sign of old age for a blog. Do I repost the recipes or just include links? I think I’ll repost them and save you a few clicks. These are from Mark Bittman’s The Minimalist Cooks Dinner
Shrimp, I’m discovering, is (are?) one of those great weeknight menu items. They cook up fast. They can stay in the freezer until you need them. And they’re a treat, at least in my household. This is NOT CheapCooking in a monetary sense; but it makes a nice weeknight meal in a short time.
Worcestershire Shrimp
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1 pound shrimp peeled
- 2 Tbs Worcestershire
- juice of one lemon
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a small frying pan and turn to high. Add the shrimp. Cook for 5 minutes or so, until done, stirring occasionally.
- Add the Worcestershire, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Stir everything together and serve.
My eldest wanted this over pasta because the last time we had shrimp I served it/them with pasta. But tonight, I cooked up the coconut rice from the same book (although there is a mistake in the ratio of liquid to rice!). I remember this early blog entry in particular because it was one of my first that got a comment and I was thrilled! (And it was a positive comment!) But I just and went and looked for the comment and realized it was from before Blogger supported comments, so it’s gone, alas. It was from someone from the islands (Jamaica if memory serves) who said they made this all the time!
I always mark variations I’ve done in my cookbooks so had noted the incorrect proportions the first time. Saved me some thinking time tonight.
Red Beans and Coconut Rice
Ingredients
- 1 15-ounce can of kidney beans undrained
- 1 cup rice
- 1 15-ounce can of coconut milk
- 1/4 cup or so of water
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat the kidney beans in a saucepan over high, stirring, until most of the liquid has evaporated. I left at least 1/4 cup in there because I was in a hurry to get the rice cooking.
- Add the coconut milk and rice and water (basically at a 2:1 ratio, but the cans keep shrinking!). Bring to a boil, stir, then cover, and lower to a simmer for 20-25 minutes. Add the salt and pepper now or at the table.
The combination of the shrimp and this rice is just perfect to me. I pour some extra shrimp “sauce” over the rice, put some fresh ground pepper on it, and could eat way more than I should!
You know, I’m really liking your experimental altitude with the whole cooking process. I also like how you explain some of your thought-processes during the cooking process. When you’re wanting to tap into Indian spices, let me know… 🙂