Stir-Fry Shrimp Scramble

Whip Up an Easy Dinner

For a hurry-up evening meal, it's hard to find a food that's faster to fix than eggs. Making dinner in a flash is especially easy when you put a skillet scramble on the menu. To make one, simply cook up your family's favorite flavoring foods, then pour on eggs and scramble.

In Stir-Fry Shrimp Scramble, green onions, garlic and ginger add Asian flair to egg-enrobed shrimp dotted with pea pods and water chestnuts. Interesting contrasts are the highlight of the dish's appeal. The texture contrasts of the crunchy pea pods and water chestnuts and softer scrambled eggs and shrimp are enhanced by the contrasting colors and flavors of the ingredients, too. Making this special dish more economical, the eggs stretch the protein of the more expensive shrimp. Along with their high-quality protein, nutrient-dense eggs also provide an assortment of other essential nutrients, all for a relatively low calorie count.

Stir-frying itself is a cooking method that requires little fat. For this scramble, you need only one tablespoon of oil to cook enough food for a family. The end result is a dish supplying needed nutrients without a lot of calories. In addition to good nutrition and speedy preparation, clean-up is quick, too, because stir-frying requires only one pan. 

Stir-Fry Shrimp Scramble (4 to 6 servings)

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon cooking oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 package (8 oz.) frozen pea pods, thawed
• 4 ounces medium to large fresh or frozen raw shrimp
• 1 can (8 oz.) sliced water chestnuts, drained
• 1/4 cup chopped green onions with tops
• 6 eggs
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, optional
• Green onion fan, optional

Instructions:

1. In 10-inch omelet pan or skillet over medium-high heat, cook garlic and ginger in hot oil until garlic is lightly browned, about 1 to 2 minutes.
2. Add pea pods, shrimp, water chestnuts and onions. Cook, stirring occasionally, until shrimp turns pink, about 5 to 6 minutes.
3. Beat together eggs and salt, if desired, until blended. Pour over vegetables and shrimp. With pancake turner, gently lift and turn mixture until eggs are thickened and no visible liquid egg remains.
4. Garnish with onion fan, if desired.

Nutrition information per serving of 1/6 recipe using corn oil and fresh shrimp without optional salt and onion garnish: 145 calories, 8 gm total fat, 241 mg cholesterol, 96 mg sodium, 186 mg potassium, 7 gm carbohydrate, 12 gm protein and 10% or more of the RDI for vitamins B12 and C, riboflavin, iron, phosphorus.

3 Great Coconut Shrimp Recipes

If you love coconut shrimp, here are three different, but very good coconut shrimp recipes to try.

Coconut Beer Batter Fried Shrimp with Pineapple Salsa

Ingredients:

• 2 eggs 
• 1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour 
• 3/4 cup beer 
• 1 tablespoon baking powder 
• 2 lb. medium shrimp, peeled and deveined 
• coconut oil 
• 3 cups grated coconut 

Seasoning mix: 

• 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper 
• 2-1/4 teaspoons salt 
• 1-1/2 teaspoons sweet paprika 
• 1-1/2 teaspoons black pepper 
• 1-1/4 teaspoons garlic powder
• 3/4 teaspoon onion powder 
• 3/4 teaspoon dried thyme 
• 3/4 teaspoon dried oregano

Instructions:

1. Thoroughly combine the ingredients for the seasoning mix in a small bowl and set aside.
2. Mix 1-1/4 cups of the flour, 2 teaspoons of the seasoning mix, baking powder, eggs, and beer together in a bowl, breaking up all lumps until it is smooth. 
3. Combine the remaining flour with 1-1/2 teaspoons of the seasoning mix and set aside. Place the coconut in a separate bowl. 
4. Sprinkle both sides of the shrimps with the remaining seasoning mix. Then hold each shrimp by the tail, dredge in the flour mixture, shake off excess, dip in batter and allow excess to drip off. Coat each shrimp with the coconut and place on a baking sheet.
5. Heat deep fryer to 350 degF. Drop each shrimp into the hot oil and cook until golden brown, approximately 1/2 to 1 minute on each side. Do not crowd the fryer. 
6. Drain on paper towels and serve immediately.
7. Lay shrimp on large lettuce leaves and serve with Pineapple Salsa dip. 
8. Garnish with lemon, orange, or lime wedges.

Pineapple Salsa Dip

• 1 cup finely chopped fresh pineapple 
• 1/3 cup chopped red onion
• 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro 
• 1/4 cup pineapple preserves (or apricot-pineapple preserves) 
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped seeded fresh jalapeno chili 
• 1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lime juice 
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper 

Combine ingredients and gently toss.

Coconut Shrimp Kabobs with Island Coconut Salsa

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. shell-on shrimp, uncooked 
• 1/3 cup coconut milk, canned and sweetened
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 1 teaspoon red chili peppers, seeded and minced 
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
• 12 to 18 fresh pineapple chunks 

Island Coconut Salsa

• 1 cup flaked coconut
• 1 cup chopped cilantro
• 1 cup chopped green onion
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger
• 1 to 2 teaspoons minced garlic clove
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 cup olive oil or macadamia nut oil

Combine ingredients and gently toss.

Instructions:

1. Peel and devein shrimp retaining tails; set aside.
2. Combine coconut milk, lime juice, garlic, red peppers, cumin, coriander and pepper; pour over shrimp.
3. Marinate no more than 1 hour. Thread shrimp and pineapple chunks on skewers. 
4. Broil or grill, 3 minutes per side, or until shrimp are done.
5. Arrange coconut shrimp on large lettuce leaves.
6. Serve with Island Coconut Salsa on the side. 

Caribbean Shrimp Run Down

Ingredients:

• 1 lb shell-on shrimp, uncooked 
• 3 tablespoons lime or lemon juice
• 3 cups coconut milk 
• 1 large onion 
• 3 cloves garlic 
• Finely chopped hot pepper to taste 
• 1 lb. tomatoes, peeled and chopped 
• 1 Tbsp. vinegar 
• 1 t. fresh chopped thyme 
• Sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper

Instructions:

1. Peel and devein shrimp retaining tails.
2. Pour the lime juice over the shrimp and set aside.
3. Cook the coconut milk in a heavy frying pan until it is oily.
4. Add the onion, garlic and cook until the onion is tender.
5. Add the hot pepper, tomatoes, salt and pepper, thyme and vinegar. Stir and cook very gently for 10 minutes.
6. Drain the shrimp, add the other ingredients and cook until the shrimp is tender, about 10 minutes.Serve hot over rice. 

Preparation time: 30 minutes.