I eat Chinese food once or twice a year and that's plenty. I like it but not that much. Imagine moving last year from a place that had several excellent Chinese restaurants that served my favorite Salt and Pepper Shrimp to a place where there is one Chinese restaurant and it pretty much sucks eggs (and don't even get me started on Mexican food up here)!
What was I going to do about my biannual Chinese food fix? Make my own.
I searched the internet for Salt and Pepper Shrimp recipes and found many, many variations, but none like the one I wanted.
So, here is my version of Imperial Valley Salt and Pepper Shrimp. There are so few ingredients that it's hard to mess up and it tasted excellent... right up there with what I could get in the Valley.
Start by slicing up some green onions and hot yellow peppers into rings. I imagine the Mexican influence in Southern California is how this dish came to be prepared with chiles. Put them in a hot pan with some vegetable oil for just a few minutes. Thaw a pound of shrimp and toss them in a little cornstarch laced with lots of freshly ground black pepper. Add the shrimp to the pan and cook for 3 to 4 minutes until the shrimp are cooked.
Serve over white rice with soy or teriyaki sauce. Because of the black pepper and sliced chiles (don't remove the seeds) this is a very spicy dish... just the way I like it!
I love spicy, too...this sounds so good!
ReplyDeleteI love salt & pepper shrimp when ordering Chinese, however, I like my shells on!
ReplyDeleteThis looks incredibly good.
ReplyDeleteOooh, I love spicy shrimp recipes. This one's definitely going in my to-try file.
ReplyDeleteBTW, thanks for the tip about cutting brownies with a plastic knife!
Love your header, by the way.
ReplyDeleteHave never heard of salt & pepper shrimp but this sounds fabulous, the spicier the better here too :)
ReplyDeleteI don't think I've ever had a salt and pepper shrimp and it sounds really excellent!
ReplyDeleteI haven't had salt and pepper shrimp before, but it sure looks delicious, Karen! And it's so easy, perfect for busy days, or when you just don't want to spend much time in the kitchen :) !
ReplyDeleteI've never had salt and pepper shrimp, but it sounds fantastic. I'm so glad you came up with your own recipe. I bet it's a ton healthier than the Chinese restaurant around the corner. Love your blog! Can't wait to keep reading more.
ReplyDeleteYou know I live here in southern California, so of course I have heard of this. I see people write about it at different places on Yelp! from time to time. And I still haven't tried it! For shame. I had no idea it could be so spicy and wonderful. Must have it. And nice effort to recreate your own for lack of being able to find it nearby.
ReplyDeleteLove the idea of spicy shrimp and with these peppers, delicious, Karen!
ReplyDeleteI've never heard of this dish. It looks really good and simple. I have to try this, taking the seeds out of the pppers makes them milder right?? I'm thinking about the kids not liking it real hot!
ReplyDeleteMy fave Chinese restaurant of years has suddenly changed drastically-must be a new cook but the food is really bad. I'm sad! This is a delicious rendition and I'm sure better than any takeout!
ReplyDeleteWhoa this is spciy. Sometimes when you want good food you have to make your own. It is hard to find good Chinese food by me too!
ReplyDeletelooks good, like the blog, oh how you can not love chinese, need to go to a city with a China Town then you will change your mind lol
ReplyDeleteLooks good. I'm not a big chinese food fan either- maybe i just never went anywhere good enough? I like salt and pepper beef tho which I guess is similar though the place i have it there seems to be very light batter on it too - maybe a shrimp and beef mix would make a twist on surf and turf :)
ReplyDeleteMmmm. Looks delicious Karen.
ReplyDeleteYUM! I can't wait to try this!
ReplyDeleteReally? Only once or twice a year? I have this "thing" for Chinese Restaurants.
ReplyDeleteThe thing is: I love them.
I have a picture or two on my picture blog from last week. LOL
I love shrimp and I think I'll try your dish at home this week sometime. It' hard to catch up.
My son and I love this dish and yes, this is how they cook it here in imperial Valley.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much, for posting it Karen.
I will cook it tomorrow :-)
GOD bless you all