Cajun-inspired Shrimp Fried Rice
From the side, this Cajun-inspired shrimp fried rice bids you to take a bite while some hot sauce stands at the ready. Stay hungry, my friends [Photo credit: Alex Paternostro]
by Seth Paternostro
October 31, 2021
On Our American Cuisine, you never know what you are going to get. The term “cajun” reminds me of my high school orchestra trip to New Orleans. Big brass, beignets, and a night of zydeco (plus dancing!) come to mind, along with alligator sausage, a very cold hot-tub-sized pool, and dinner with Bubba Gump. Here, shrimp and rice go together like…shrimp and rice. Magic.
Carrots.
Serves 4
Total time
30 minutes
Equipment:
cutting board, chef’s knife or cleaver, small mixing bowls, large mixing bowl, tasting spoon, wok shovel, clean towels, measuring cups and spoons, large well-seasoned carbon steel wok, wok stand (if needed), “grease gutter” (small pan to pour off used oil), squirt bottle (for fresh oil)
Tableware:
serving dish, bowls, and utensils
Ingredients
1 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined
½ cup all-purpose flour
Slap Ya Mama Cajun Seasoning, as needed
½ large shallot
3 cloves garlic
1 tomato
1 stalk celery
1 medium carrot
2 Korean green peppers or ½ green bell pepper
3 cups cold rice
4 squirts Tabasco, plus as desired
1 small pinch filé powder
1 lemon
1 sprig basil
Salt, as needed
Peanut oil, as needed
Instructions
Set out all equipment, tableware, and ingredients. Rinse the vegetables.
Peel the shallot, garlic, carrot, and celery. Cut the shallot half in half, then slice ¼-inch thick pieces. Thinly slice the garlic. De-stem, de-seed, and roughly chop the peppers. Hull, halve, and de-seed the tomato. Medium dice the tomato, carrot, and celery. Cut the lemon into wedges, removing any seeds, and julienne the basil.
Combine the flour with 1 tsp Slap Ya Mama in the large mixing bowl.
Break the rice into individual grains with your fingers.
Preheat the wok over high heat until smoking, swirl in a small amount of peanut oil to coat, and pour out excess in the “grease-gutter,” which can be placed at the center-back region of the stove.
When beginning to smoke again, pour in 3 tbsp peanut oil, and swirl to heat.
Add the shallots and a pinch of salt, then cook until beginning to brown.
When the shallots have softened and begun to brown, add the garlic slices, and cook until just beginning to brown. Keep them moving constantly. Move to the next step if the shallots are getting too dark.
Mix the diced tomato into the aromatics. The oil will likely splatter a little.
When the tomato has softened slightly, stir in the carrot and celery pieces.
Immediately add the rice, breaking it up if needed, and stir-fry until very hot. If the rice sticks to the sides of the wok, add a little more oil, and make sure the heat is as high as possible. The rice should sizzle and crackle when hot enough.
Add about 1 tsp Slap Ya Mama, along with the Tabasco sauce. Taste, and adjust as desired.
Toss in the green peppers, stir-fry briefly, then turn off the heat, sprinkle over the filé powder, and remove to the serving dish.
Wipe out the wok, reheat over high heat until smoking, swirl in a small amount of peanut oil to coat, and pour out excess.
When beginning to smoke again, pour in 3 tbsps peanut oil, and swirl to heat.
Combine the shrimp with the seasoned flour mixture, making sure to coat them completely.
When the oil is shimmering, shake off any excess flour from the shrimp, then add them to the wok, spread out into a single layer.
Swirl the shrimp in the oil, adding more oil if necessary, until the bottom side is golden brown. Flip, and repeat. Remove to the serving dish.
Garnish with the basil leaves, and serve with lemon slices and more Tabasco, if desired.
Shrimp pile onto their bed in this Cajun-inspired fried rice [Photo credit: Alex Paternostro]
NUTRITION FACTS:
Calories 686 Total Fat 4.6g (6%) Saturated Fat 0.8g (4%) Cholesterol 122mg (41%) Sodium 377mg (16%) Total Carbohydrate 128g (47%) Dietary Fiber 3.2g (11%) Total Sugars 2.2g Protein 30.5g Vitamin D 0mcg (0%) Calcium 99mg (8%) Iron 7mg (41%) Potassium 331mg (7%) - Note: Please read our Nutrition Disclaimer.
Seth Paternostro is a writer and recipe developer based in Chicago. He is a co-founder of Our American Cuisine and graduated summa cum laude from Princeton University with an A.B. in East Asian Studies. You can learn more about him here.
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