#Food4CabFranc 1: Shrimp Creole

It is tempting to assume that dishes that contain some spice and / or chilli are wine unfriendly. Cabernet Franc is one of the few varietals that can really pair well with a bit – I said a bit – of spice. Our opening recipe in our series of #Food4CabFranc comes from Troy Evans, aka Wine Girl (connect on Twitter at Twitter @WineGurl4u). Thank you Wine Girl – try her Shrimp Creole:-

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Shrimp Creole – Ingredients

2 lbs (900g) medium shrimp, peeled and deveined

½ cup butter (1 stick) – will be added in 3 different increments

1 cup chopped onions

½ cup chopped bell pepper

1 cup chopped fresh curly parsley

½ cup dry red wine (blend) GSM or CabFranc would be great

1 Tbsp. chopped garlic

4 stalks sliced celery (do not chop)

2 large cans of tomato sauce (13 oz. / 350g)

2-3 tsp. sugar

1 tsp. garlic powder

½ tsp. Kosher salt

½ cup all-purpose white flour

1 -2 tsp Zatarain’s * Creole Seasoning

1 Tbsp. Zatarain’s * Concentrated Liquid Shrimp and Crab boil (pour only a cap full, taste before adding more) this is very spicy, be careful not to add too much. You can always add more if you like.

* Zatarain’s products can be purchased on Amazon, or you can use Cayenne Pepper to taste.

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Shrimp Creole – Cooking

1. In a large high walled skillet / frying pan, melt ¼ cup butter on medium heat; add onions, bell pepper, celery, and garlic.
2. Sauté 2 minutes before adding ¼ cup parsley and continue to sauté for 2 more minutes.
3. Add tomato sauce, garlic powder, salt, Creole Seasoning, and a cap full of Liquid Crab Boil. Cook on medium high for 5 minutes.
4. Add wine, and half of the remaining parsley, taste for flavor.
5. Add sugar, and again, taste for flavor. Continue to cook sauce on low heat.
6. Season shrimp with Creole Seasoning, or salt and cayenne pepper. Sprinkle the shrimp lightly with flour.
7. In a separate skillet / pan add 2 tsp. of butter and melt on medium heat. Add raw shrimp to the melted butter and cook on each side for 2 minutes. (Do not burn the butter)
8. Pour shrimp into the sauce directly from the skillet, and add tsp. parsley.
9. Continue to cook for 3 minutes; add all remaining butter.
10. Stir Shrimp Creole. Turn heat off and add all remaining parsley.
11. Serve Shrimp Creole over cooked white Jasmine rice; I usually add a bay leaf to my rice while cooking. You can also add turmeric to the rice to give it a yellow color which looks very nice with the Red Shrimp Creole poured over.

 

WineGirl’s extra notes: You can also add fresh tomatoes & bay leaves to this recipe. The sauce / dish will taste so much better the next day but it will taste a bit spicier, so be very careful not to make it too spicy on the first day! I usually add fresh shrimp the next day and prepare the same way before adding to the sauce. You can also substitute the shrimp with fish, or chicken.

The shrimp, fish, or chicken can be seasoned and refrigerated before preparing the sauce. Make sure to cook the rice before preparing the sauce.

And of course, serve with a glass of Cabernet Franc – Bon Appétit!

Do you have a great recipe that will pair well with Cabernet Franc? Please share it with us – hit the comment / reply button below; we would love to hear from you.[/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]