New Orleans BBQ Shrimp Dinner

It's another themed dinner tonight! This time, we headed down south to New Orleans for some lip smackin' BBQ Shrimp. It's one of the lesser known classic New Orleans staple. When you mention New Orleans cookin', Cajun food like Boiled Crawfish, Jambalaya, Gumbo and Blacken Catfish comes to mind. However, BBQ Shrimp New Orleans style is just as yummy. I think it's one of the best kept secrets of New Orleans (when it comes to food, that is).

So, how do we make BBQ Shrimp? Well, we would need shrimps (of course!), butter, spices, lemon as well corn and french bread for the sides. Notice that there is no BBQ sauce involved. BBQ Shrimp New Orleans style is totally different from the usual BBQ Shrimp. It's all about the spicy Creole sauce, dipped with crusty french loaves here!

First, melt two sticks of butter. It might seem a lot but that's the way to go about it. No substitutes, no margarine, nothing. Just butter.

Next, mix the seasoning with half a cup of water. I found this premixed sauce mix and it taste real good. If you really want to make the seasoning from scratch, it's a mix of onion powder, garlic powder, dried oregano leaves, dried sweet basil, dried thyme leaves, black pepper, white pepper, cayenne pepper, celery seeds, sweet paprika and some Cajun seasoning.

Once the butter has melted, pour the sauce mixture into the pan. Mix it well with the butter and let it cook until it bubbles. By now, you should be able to smell the super yummy smell of the sauce.

While waiting for the sauce to cook, arrange 2lbs of medium shrimp in a large baking tray. I bought the shrimps deveined. Leave the shell on the shrimp. It makes the sauce taste sweeter compared to cooking it without the shell.

When the sauce is done, pour it over the shrimps.

Slice up two lemons thinly and arrange it on top of the shrimps. Pop it in a preheated 375F oven for about half an hour, mixing it at 10 minute intervals.

I also bought a can of French Loaf dough from Pillsbury. You can always get ready made french loaves but we like the taste of a freshly baked french loaf. It's really easy to make. Just pop open the can and place the dough on a greased cookie sheet. Cut about 4 -5 slits at the top and pop it into the oven together with the shrimp.

While I was preparing the shrimp and french loaf, I also had a big pot of corn going on the stove. Just let it boil until its cooked. I added in a little bit of sugar and butter into the boiling water. It somehow taste better this way.

After 20 minutes, remove the bread from the oven. It sure smells good! Just let it sit for about 10 minutes to cool before cutting it with a serrated knife.

Once the BBQ Shrimps are done, it's ready to be served!

I served the New Orleans BBQ Shrimp (together with a side of corn and slices of French loaf) with some good old fashioned Southern Sweet Tea that I made earlier in the day. Dolly Parton's character in Steel Magnolia once said, "...it's the house wine of the South...". Mmm mmm you got that right. Of course if it was the weekend, then I would have served it up with a Hurricane. Nothing spells New Orleans more than getting a Hurricane from Pat O'Brien in the French Quarter. After all, that's where Hurricanes were invented! :D

We had a great time eating with our hands and dunking the freshly baked french loaf into the oh so yummy BBQ shrimp sauce. Noooo, we didn't finish all the 2lbs of shrimp :P We have leftovers for tomorrow! Yay! Now, let me leave you with the aftermath. Nothing is left on our plates except the middle part of the corn and shrimp shells that are sucked dry!!!

Now, it's time to sit back and relax. Gotta let the food digest while we dream of New Orleans...