Everyone has a favorite product that they use in their kitchens. My favorite product is a jar of tamarind concentrate. Tamarind is a pod-like legume that is used in Asian, Latin, and Caribbean cuisines. It can be used in a number of applications from desserts to savory entrees. It has a tartness to it and it will give a curry or a soup another depth of flavor. You can buy tamarind in different forms. You can buy it whole and separate the pulp yourself, you can buy it in bricks with the fibers and seeds still inside, or you can buy it in a concentrated form. For ease, I use the concentrate. One teaspoon will stretch pretty far. You can buy a jar online for $6-$8 dollars if you don't live near any stores that carry it.
Tamarind glazed shrimp
1 tsp. tamarind concentrate
1/4 cup. hot water
1 tsp. soy sauce
2 Tbs. honey
1/8 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. sesame oil
1 lb. shrimp, cleaned and deveined
1 C. + 2 tsp. Cornstarch
Oil for frying (vegetable or olive)
- In a small bowl, fully dissolve the tamarind concentrate in the hot water. Mix in the soy sauce, honey,pepper, sesame oil, and 2 tsp. cornstarch. Set aside.
- Heat a medium saute pan over high heat and add enough oil to coat the bottom of the pan. Dredge the shrimp in the cornstarch.I used a bowl with a cover and shook the shrimp in the cornstarch. It's much easier and kinda fun that way.
- Once the pan is hot, shake off excess cornstarch and lay the shrimp one by one in the pan. Shrimp doesn't take long to cook. It will take about 1 minute for each side. Basically, once it turns pink, it's done. Take the shrimp out of the pan and drain on a paper towel.
- In a medium saucepan, heat the tamarind sauce*. As soon as it starts to boil and get thick, add the shrimp,toss, and enjoy.
*If you prefer a lighter sauce, then don't heat up all of it. You can cover it and put it in the fridge for later use. It's great for other proteins such as chicken or fish as well.
What is your favorite product to use in the kitchen?
15 comments:
This tamarind glazed shrimp looks awesome! My favorite product right now is lecithin which means more foams coming on my blogs, but I've also been using it for other recipes :)
OOO Lecithin! Sounds like fun. I have xanthan gum and versawhip that I still have to play with.
i have never used tamarind before. i'd probably use that with tofu or tempeh. tempeh is a curdled soybean product taht has a unique texture compared to tofu. it is used in many vegan recipes, primarily for chicken-like salads, and tempeh bacon. the bacon doesn't resemble real bacon at all, but has a nice chewy (can be crispy if cooked longer) texture and rich smoky flavor. i personally think it absorbs flavors much better than tofu.
This sounds like it'd be good in a citrus glaze too...maybe an orange marmalade on salmon? We've never used tamarind, but there's never a better time to try something new.
I am all over yeast lately, breads and beers...the shrimp looks great and I have been looking for lecithin...
jen: i'll have to look into trying to get ahold of some tempeh. I see people use it all the time, but I've never had it.
duodishes: Tamarind is great. It is a bit tart and has a slight sweetness to it. It's a wonderful product to have in the kitchen.
doggybloggy: mmm beer and bread. Two products that I've been trying to avoid lately. I might have to give in this weekend tho.
The shrimp looks lip smacking good! I use tamarind in my chutneys as well! I loved your comment on Mrs L's post about the Food network! It attracted me to your site. I believe in order for the Food network to be able to compete in the international arena, they need to feature more cooks of a diverse culinary spectrum. This diversity shows here!
Beautiful shrimp really good photo, well done luv'd it xxx :D
The shrimp look awesome and I like the idea of using the tamarind sauce on tempeh. I'm really having fun with meringue/7 minute frosting with booze lately. After I made the mead cupcakes I've made other versions of the mead frosting. Today I made a black forest cake with a Grand Marnier yogurt cake layer frosted with Grand Marnier meringue.
BTW, I go to the Trader Joe's in Rochester because it's across the street from Whole Foods. There is also one in Grosse Pointe, here's a list of MI TJ's.
Fantastic photo! This shrimp looks really tasty. Unfortunately I'm totally unfamiliar with tamarind.
That shrimp look sgood!
to answer the question at the end...hard to narrow it down but I think I love my garlic press...I am missing my blender however.
we only had so much room to pack and this is what I grabbed our of my kitchen
cast iron frying pan
chefs knife
garlic press
small tin of cookie cutters
hand held citrus juicer
That shrimp looks AMAZING!
Just a heads up for people shopping, I have found tamarind in both Asian grocery stores and Mexican ones as well. I recently bought Goya brand frozen tamarind pulp at the Honeybee in SW Detroit.
This looks delish!!
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