This spicy New Orleans shrimps is my new-found love and I can’t get over it. A classic shrimp recipe, this New Orleans style shrimp is a must for your recipe repertoire!
When I first discovered New Orleans shrimps, it really got me curious! After knowing the existence of an interesting story behind Buffalo chicken, my inquisitive mind of a cook could not rest but get to the bottom of New Orleans shrimps!
My quick research revealed quite a fascinating story – the inventor of this New Orleans shrimps is chef Jake Radosta of the Italian restaurant Pascal’s Manale in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Back in 1950’s, chef Jake Radosta tried his best to recreate a dish based on the description of a regular customer of theirs. What he presented to their regular visitor, Vincent Sutro, turned out to be even better than what he expected and pleased him more than ever.
Since then this signature dish of New Orleans Shrimps has won a permanent place in the restaurant’s menu and I can safely assume that it’s still one of their bestsellers!
Historical anecdotes behind classic recipes like these enchants me like nothing else! I feel that these are the real beauty of the world of food where history gets embedded with a classic recipe and cascades down the generations to come.
Don’t you feel it’s too fascinating? I found it even more fascinating after creating this dish and tasting it on my own. But yes, I agree that mine is not the super-authentic New Orleans shrimps.
After exploring various available versions of this recipe, I derived my own which worked like a charm for us. Our version of New Orleans shrimps has the right kick of spiciness along with the smooth richness of butter.
You cannot omit butter from New Orleans shrimps as butter is the heart of this dish; but you can definitely cut it down like we did; most of the authentic recipes of New Orleans shrimps calls for double or triple the amount butter than what we used.
I am not too sure how chef Jake served his authentic New Orleans shrimps to his favorite customer, but following many food bloggers, I served mine on a bed of warm white rice and it turned out to be the most comforting combination for us citizens of rice-loving nation!
The spicy sauce with all the aromatic herbs was best complimented by soothing white rice. The spiciness of the New Orleans shrimps’ sauce is all thanks to the flavorful Cajun seasoning which I prepared at home but you can use store-bought seasoning too.
It’s really easy to make the Cajun seasoning at home and I have the recipe for you below; you can make extra and keep it handy for future use.
Some of the New Orleans shrimp recipes also used white wine which I believe would add a nice mellowness to the dish; but I had to skip it since I didn’t have a bottle handy. But by all means you can add half a cup of dry white wine along with the shrimp stock.
I am happy with the fact that my list of shrimp recipes in gradually increasing with all the gorgeous recipes from around the world.
Shrimps are my favorite seafood and I keep on searching for new shrimp recipes to enrich my collection. If you have any suggestion for us, we will be more than happy to try and share it here, do let us know!
If you are a shrimp lover just like us, there is a plethora of shrimp recipes on offer for you; do check them out and let us know which one has turned out to be your favorite!
For today, it is New Orleans shrimp for you and I am sure you are gonna love it as much as we did! Enjoy!
- Large shrimps – 500 gms
- Olive oil – 2 tbsp
- Unsalted butter – 1 tbsp + 4 tbsp
- Garlic – 8 to 10 cloves, finely chopped
- Sweet chilli sauce – 2 tbsp
- Worcestershire sauce – 1 tbsp
- Red chili sauce – 1 tbsp
- Shrimp stock – 2 cups
- Cajun seasoning – 2 tsp
- Salt – ½ tsp
- Juice of half a lemon
- Fresh chopped parsley for garnishing
- Dried thyme – ¼ tsp
- Dried oregano – ¼ tsp
- Cayenne – ¼ tsp
- Garlic powder – ¼ tsp
- Onion powder – ¼ tsp
- White pepper – ¼ tsp
- Black pepper – ¼ tsp
- Paprika – ¾ tsp
- Mix all the ingredients listed under Cajun seasoning in a small bowl and give a good whisk. This will make a little more than 2 teaspoons of seasoning and I used the entire amount of it in this New Orleans shrimps recipe. If you want it little milder, add 1½ teaspoons of it.
- Peel and devein the shrimps keeping their tails intact. Set aside.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a non-stick skillet. Also add 1 tablespoon of unsalted butter to the skillet and let it melt.
- Then add chopped garlic and sauté them on medium heat for 1 minute making sure the garlics do not burn.
- Then add the shrimps to the skillet and sauté them for 2 minutes each side or until they turn opaque. Take them out in a bowl and set aside until needed.
- Add remaining tablespoon of olive oil to the same skillet.
- Once the oil is hot, add sweet chilli sauce, Worcestershire sauce and red chili sauce. Give them a quick mix using a wooden spoon.
- Then add the shrimp stock and let it come to a boil. Then add the sautéed shrimps to the boiling stock.
- Sprinkle the prepared Cajun seasoning over the shrimps and give a good stir. Add salt and mix everything well.
- Cut the remaining 4 tablespoons of unsalted butter into small pieces and add them to the skillet by sprinkling them all over. Chopping butter into smaller pieces will ensure even mixing with the sauce. Stir everything well.
- Switch the flame off and drizzle the juice of half a lemon and give a final mix.
- Sprinkle freshly chopped parsley and serve the warm New Orleans shrimps over a bed of white rice. Enjoy!
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