Recipe: Butter Garlic Chili Shrimps

This recipe is inspired by “Dampa” style of cooking shrimps, sauteed in butter and then spiced up with a bunch of garlic and chilies. For the record, I am allergic to shrimps or any kind of shellfish, but I love how my histamine receptor reacts depending on how they are cooked. Cooking seafood doesn’t have to be complicated. This is a very quick and easy recipe you can master in less than an hour on a busy weeknight. I also use the same sauce for crabs or lobsters. Yum yum! This is an ultimate cheat sheet. You will achieve almost the same taste as what you get from Dampa.

Preparation Time: 10 mins.

Serves: 2 (about 15 pcs. of prawns)

Cooking Time: 20 mins.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 tbsp. vegetable oil
• 3 tbsp. butter
• 6 cloves of garlic
• 2 tbsp. Chili Garlic Sauce (or you can make your own paste from fresh garlic and red bird’s eye chilies “siling labuyo”)
• 15-20 pcs. shrimps (suahe)
• 2 tsp. sugar
• salt and pepper to taste

I always use this sauce for this kind of recipe. It is usually available world wide in Asian Shops. I have been using this in Sydney to make my Butter Garlic Prawns. If you can’t find one, you can make your own from scratch. Just make a paste out of garlic and bird’s eye chilies with a food processor or a blender and you will get a similar result.

PROCEDURE:

I clean my shrimps by cutting the “whiskers” and by washing it with running cold water.

1. Since I am allergic to shellfish, I boil my shrimps first until they are cooked thoroughly before I cook them in the sauce. Another best way to clean them is by deveining (removing the black string at the back of the shrimp). But I like my shrimps with shells on, so I just boil them with a bit of water and salt and then throw away the water once they are cooked.
2. On the same pan, heat vegetable oil over medium fire. (This procedure is done to make sure the butter doesn’t burn easily while you cook it on open fire).
3. Melt the butter with the oil.
4. Add in garlic and cook it until aromatic.
5. Add in the shrimps and stir.
6. Add in the chili garlic sauce and stir, making sure the shrimps are not overcooked since they have been pre-cooked.
7. Add in the sugar, salt, and pepper. (The sauce is already a bit salty, so please make your necessary adjustments.)
8. If you want it a bit on the “saucy” side, add about 5 tbsp. of water and adjust the flavor with salt and pepper.
9. Remove from fire. Best served with a hot cup of rice.

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