It might look fancy but this is really quite easy to make. If you can get fully peeled and deveined shrimps, the prep time becomes much shorter and you’ll have less washing and clean-up to do afterwards.
What does fully peeled and deveined shrimps mean? It means that the heads and the shells have peen removed, and the backs slit open to remove the black thread that is actually the shrimp’s digestive tract. If what you have are whole shrimps with the heads and shells still intact, just follow the instructions on how to peel and devein shrimps and prawns. The guide is fully illustrated.
And the broccoli means just the florets? Well, there is no reason why you cannot add the stem too (yes, broccoli stem is both edible and nutritious) but if you do, you will have to cook the peeled and sliced stem a bit longer than the florets.
Once you have your broccoli head cut into florets and your shrimps peeled and deveined, here are the next steps.
Heat water in a pot, stir in a bit of salt and a little olive oil. When the water boils, drop in the broccoli florets, allow the water to boil again then leave the florets to cook for a minute or so. You just want to soften them so that they retain a bit of crunch. Scoop them out and dump in a bowl of icy water so that they they don’t continue cooking in the residual heat. When the broccoli florets are cool, pour into a strainer and set aside.
Line a plate with paper towels and spread the shrimps in a single layer. Cover with more paper towels and weigh down with a plate to remove surface moisture. Don’t skip this part so that the shrimps cook faster in butter.
Heat butter in frying pan, spread the shrimps in the hot butter, sprinkle in salt and pepper, and cook for half a minute. Flip them over and cook for another half a minute or just until they turn pink. Scoop out and set aside.
Drop in more butter, add minced garlic and, optionally, a piece of finely sliced chili. The chili is not a requirement but if you want a punchy sauce, go for it. Stir the garlic and chili in the hot butter until starting to brown, pour in lemon juice and allow to simmer.
Add the shrimps nd broccoli to the sauce and toss around for a minute. Now give your dish a taste. The broccoli and shrimps had already been seasoned but you might want to add a bit more salt. When you’re happy with the flavor balance, add sliced scallions, toss for a few seconds and serve.
Shrimps and broccoli with lemon butter garlic sauce
Ingredients
- 2 to 3 cups broccoli florets
- salt
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 20 medium to large shrimps peeled and deveined
- 4 tablespoons butter divided
- ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 bird's eye chili finely sliced
- ¼ cup lemon juice
- ½ cup finely sliced scallions
- lemon wedges to serve
Instructions
- Boil about four cups of water in a pan with half a teaspoon of salt and all of the olive oil.
- Drop the broccoli florets into the boiling water and, once the water reaches boiling point once more, cook the florets for a minute.
- Scoop out the florets, dump into a bowl of icy water, leave to cool for a few minutes then strain in a colander.
- Press the shrimps between stacks of paper towels to remove surface moisture.
- Over high heat, melt two tablespoons of butter in a frying pan and spread the shrimps in the hot butter. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Cook the shrimps for half a minute, flip over, sprinkle with a little more salt and pepper, and cook for another half a minute. Scoop out and set aside.
- Lower the heat to medium and add the remaining butter to the pan.
- Stir in the garlic and chili, and cook until the garlic bits are just starting to brown.
- Pour in the lemon juice, stir and simmer for a minute.
- Add the broccoli florets and shrimps, toss to coat each piece with sauce and cook until heated through.
- Taste and adjust the seasonings if needed.
- Toss in the scallions and serve with lemon wedges.
Discover more from Umami Days
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
