Coconut Shrimp

Mark absolutely loves coconut shrimp. Specifically Red Lobster's coconut shrimp. But in looking for a recipe for it online, I discovered that they use pina colada mix, and rum. Neither of which I stock in my kitchen. So I combined a couple different recipes and added my own touches. Voila!

1 lb shrimp, deveined and tails on

1 egg
1/2 cup flour
about 1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp white or black pepper
2 T vegetable oil, I used canola
Enough milk to make it a thinnish batter
A couple splashes tobasco
bag of coconut

lots of oil - heated to 375 on a candy thermometer, or really really hot.

Butterfly the shrimp. Take a sharp paring knife, and cut through the shrimp along the curve, almost all the way through. Open it up and kind of push it against the counter to help it stay flatter.

Mix dry ingredients except coconut. Add egg, milk, and tobasco sauce. Beat well, and let sit for a few minutes. Spread about 1 cup of coconut on a sheet. Dip the shrimp in the batter and then roll it around in the coconut.

Drop it into the oil. It will fry to a deep golden brown in 3-4 minutes. No more than 8 shrimp at a time, but I did 3 or 4 shrimp because it was a smaller pan. Drain on either paper towels, or a rack over a baking sheet. After each bigger batch, or every couple smaller batches, scoop out the coconut that falls off so it doesn't burn and smoke.

I found that after a little while the batter drippings clumped up the coconut. So I only put out about 1 cup at a time, and replaced as needed. A couple times I had to through out the clumpy coconut because it was far too clumpy and wet to stick to the shrimp. But it didn't waste that much coconut because there was only a little on the sheet at once.

Dipping Sauce:

We like sweet and hot, and wanted that coconut taste that Red Lobster has. So I used what I had.

A random can of Cream of Coconut - from the hispanic section I believe.
Peach jam from my mom last year
Dijon Country Style mustard
Tobasco sauce

Sounds wierd, but was sooooo yummy!

I dropped about 1/4 cup jam in a small saucepan. 1/4 cup -ish cream of coconut, about 1 heaping tbsp mustard, and generous splashes of tobasco sauce. Bring to boil, wisking occasionally, and let simmer for a while to reduce to about 1/2 of what it was. Gets a little thicker and concentrates the flavors.

Let cool to desired temperature, serve to husband, and watch his eyes get all big when you tell him you made it up yourself. Smile when he says he'll just eat yours instead of going out next time. And make sure to get your half of the plate!