Ever been to P.F. Chang's China Bistro Restaurant? If not, treat yourself sometime--great food! In the meantime, here's a recipe based on their Lemon Pepper Shrimp, which is fabulous.
The green onions & bean sprouts make for a crunchy complement to the tender shrimp and the spicy-sweet sauce. Serve over hot brown rice, if desired.
My family loved this dish--give it a try--I think you will, too! And by the way, I think it would be delicious with chicken, too.
This recipe looks long and complicated, but it's really not. As with most Asian dishes, it helps to chop and measure everything in advance, as the cooking process moves along quickly.
Sauce:
1 tsp sesame oil (or oil of your choice)
2 tbls minced garlic
1/2 tsp minced ginger*
2 tsp cornstarch
3/4 cup water
1/3 cup reduced-sodium soy sauce
1/4 cup dark brown sugar, packed
2 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp coarse black pepper
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes (more or less to taste for heat)
Heat oil in saucepan over medium heat. Mix water into cornstarch. Saute garlic and ginger in oil for 15-30 seconds, being careful not to burn garlic. Add cornstarch mix and all remaining sauce ingredients, and bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside. Sauce may be made ahead of time; keep covered until ready to use.
*Note on mincing ginger root: A really easy way to keep ginger root handy is to freeze it in a ziploc bag. When needed, simply grate it, still frozen, on a microplane zester. No need to peel; just grate the amount needed, then replace ginger root, tightly wrapped, in freezer until next use.
About 5 to 10 minutes before ready to serve, cook the shrimp & veggies at the same time.
Shrimp:
1 lb medium or large raw shrimp, shelled and de-veined*
2-3 tbls cornstarch
2 tbls olive oil
4 thin lemon slices,quartered
Rinse and drain shrimp; shrimp should be damp but not wet. Place shrimp in shallow bowl. Sprinkle cornstarch over shrimp & toss well. Allow to sit for 5 minutes to better absorb cornstarch. Meanwhile, heat oil in wok or skillet over medium-high heat until oil is hot & shimmers but does not smoke. Add shrimp to skillet, shaking off excess cornstarch. Discard any remaining cornstarch. Stir-fry 3 to 4 minutes, until shrimp begins to brown. Add lemon slices, and cook 1 minute more. Add sauce to pan. Toss gently to coat shrimp with sauce. Cook for 1-2 minutes, or until sauce begins to thicken. (If sauce thickens too much, remove shrimp, and thin with a bit of water.)
*HyVee now sells 1 lb. bags of frozen shrimp that are raw but already peeled and de-veined. It's a huge time-saver, and the price is quite reasonable--around $6 or $7 when I bought it. Simply thaw & cook!
Veggies:
1 tsp olive oil
6 green onions
11/2 cups bean sprouts*
salt & pepper, to taste
Heat oil in skillet over medium heat. Cut just the bottom white parts off the green onions. Leave about the next 4 inches intact. Chop the remaining green tips into 1 inch strips. In addition to these small green onion pieces, you should have 6 strips of green onions that each have about 3 stems sprouting from the base. Rinse, drain, and pat bean sprouts dry. When oil is hot, add green onions and bean sprouts to skillet. Season with a dash of salt and pepper. Stir fry for 2-3 minutes, or until green onions begin to soften.
*If you've never used bean sprouts before, I found them sold in a bag, located by the bagged coleslaw, etc.
Final Assembly:
Arrange green onion/bean sprout mixture on serving plate. Pour shrimp and sauce over veggies. Serve over brown rice, if desired.
