This salt & pepper shrimps meal is my absolute favorite whenever I dine at an authentic Asian restaurant. It’s always on my list when I place event orders from Peking Garden. The shrimp’s head may not look so appealing, especially with the large beady eyes, but the taste it brings surely is worth it. I think my favorite aspect of this dish is the crispy, crunchy taste. Unlike many other recipes, this one uses the bare minimum yet delivers when it comes to savory and satisfying flavors. So save your $20+ spent at a restaurant serving a fraction of this dish and get in the kitchen to cook it yourself!
I do like to deep fry the shrimps separately before I add it to a large skillet simply because I feel this gives you more control of the fried/oily aspect of this meal. As I mentioned before, I try to be conscious of the health aspect in every meal (even when it’s not always possible). If you’re a big fan of shrimps, I would recommend trying my Shrimp Rolls recipe- also another fave!
Salt & Pepper Shrimps (with head on)
Course: Main, AppetizersCuisine: AsianDifficulty: Easy4
servings20
minutes40
minutesIngredients
1 lb of shrimps with head on
12 oz tempura batter mix
2 bell peppers, sliced
2 stalks of green onions, chopped
Kosher Salt
Coarse black pepper
Vegetable oil
Directions
- If shrimps are frozen, thaw out in bowl of cold water.
- Prep veggies by slicing bell peppers into thinner strips and chopping green onions.
- Once shrimps are thawed, remove the legs and antennas with kitchen scissors then rinse with cold water.
- Sprinkle the shrimps with a bit of salt and pepper to taste, not too much since we’ll be sprinkling at the very end. Mix the seasoning in carefully as to not detach head from body.
- Preheat a large pot with vegetable oil over medium-high heat for 10 mins or until water sizzles when it touches oil.
- Pour batter mix into large bowl then slowly add shrimps making sure to evenly coat.
- Once the oil is hot enough, add the batter coated shrimps to the pot of oil and occasionally stir for 5-6 mins.
- While the shrimps are cooking, preheat a large skillet with 2 tbsp of oil over medium heat for 2 mins then add in the bell peppers, stirring well.
- Cook the shrimps until golden brown then remove from pot and let it sit in a basket layered with paper towels (necessary to remove excess oil). Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste.
- Add the shrimps to the skillet of bell peppers then sprinkle the green onions on top and stir carefully.
- Remove from skillet and serve with rice, enjoy!
