30x30.3 (aka 30x30 Project, week three)

Week Three found me craving shrimp...

[Anyway, like I was sayin', shrimp is the fruit of the sea. You can barbecue it, boil it, broil it, bake it, saute it. Dey's uh, shrimp-kabobs, shrimp creole, shrimp gumbo. Pan fried, deep fried, stir-fried. There's pineapple shrimp, lemon shrimp, coconut shrimp, pepper shrimp, shrimp soup, shrimp stew, shrimp salad, shrimp and potatoes, shrimp burger, shrimp sandwich. That- that's about it.]

{Can you guess what movie this quote is from? }

In fact craving it so much that we have had two shrimp dishes this week; 

Shrimp Scampi on Monday evening and Shrimp Pad Thai last night.

Shrimp Scampi (over linguine) I have made many times in the past

.

But, true to the rules, I needed to make a brand new recipe for the 30x30 project.

I googled shrimp recipes and Shrimp Pad Thai popped up.

I love Thai food, but Jim is not a huge fan, so we don't eat it too often. 

But I was determined to find a recipe that was not only delicious, but healthy too. 

Thai food notoriously can be high in fat, esp. Pad Thai.

I found just the recipe I was looking for on a blog I occasionally visit called Skinny Scoopers.

In fact, the recipe is called:

'Skinny' Shrimp Pad Thai

I thought I would entice you with a picture of the finished product 

before we begin the recipe...

How yummy (and NOT low fat) does that look?
But it is!

 

 Begin with raw, peeled and deveined shrimp.

One thing I always forget to do is to thaw my frozen shrimp ahead of time.

One way to thaw shrimp quickly and safely is to plunge them into cold water, making sure water is constantly moving, for about 15 minutes.

You can read more detail about thawing here.

 After about 15 min, the shrimp will be thawed. Drain in a colander.

You will need about 2-3 cups of cooked noodles for this recipe.

I happened to have had leftover thin spaghetti in my frig which

I am using, but you can substitute rice noodles if you prefer, 

which is closer to a traditional Pad Thai.

 

 Meanwhile, measure into a bowl, 1/3 cup of rice vinegar,

1/4 cup brown sugar,

1/4 cup reduced fat (I am using regular, chunky) peanut butter,

 

 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes 

(I used just a pinch for the person in 

my family who doesn't like 'hot' foods)

Add 2 TBLS of Fish Sauce, 

(don't be afraid of the title, it adds delicious flavor to your dish)

 And 1 TBLS of ketchup.

 Whisk ingredients until smooth,

Lay shrimp onto paper towels to thoroughly dry.

 Heat saute pan (or wok) on stove to med/med high heat.

While pan is heating, mince 3 lg cloves of garlic,

And measure out 1 cup of fresh bean sprouts.

I like to rinse bean sprouts before using.

I also decided to increase the fiber, lower the calorie count per serving,
and give the dish more color by adding more vegetables to the recipe. 

Costco sells frozen stir fry veggies that are so good (I use them in lots of stir fries as well as fried rice) so I measured out about 2 cups full and popped them into the microwave for a couple minutes to start the cooking process.

 I also sliced and set aside one cup of green onions (scallions).

The pan was ready, so I added 2 tsp of peanut oil,

and quickly added the shrimp.

 After about 3 min they were practically all pink and just about ready to remove from the pan.

 Remove shrimp to platter or bowl and set aside.

(cooking shrimp too long toughens them)

Add the chopped garlic to the hot pan. 

(I also added about 1/2 tsp of oil here)

Saute garlic for ~3 min or until just golden.

Add the vinegar/peanut butter mixture to the pan,

 And simmer for 3-4 minutes.

Next, add in the chopped green onions,

And the drained bean sprouts,

And the cooked pasta to the pan.

 Stir gently to mix all ingredients.

 Add in the two cups of the stir fry veggies (which were thawed, but not cooked).

Mix gently.

Now, add back in the cooked shrimp,

And mix one last time.

Chop 2 TBLS of fresh cilantro,

As well as 2-3 TBLS of dry roasted peanuts.

 Remove Shrimp Pad Thai from stove and arrange on platter, and 

garnish with chopped cilantro and peanuts.

Add a squeeze of fresh lime juice.

 The/verdict? Delicious. 

Jim loved it too.

I personally would prefer a bit more heat in my recipe, 

but we will save that for another time and place.

Enjoy!

[For the complete, original recipe from Skinny Scoopers, click here.]