Prawns/Shrimp in Black Bean Sauce

It’s been a little while since I cooked a regular dinner at home since I’ve been mostly spending my time childrearing and my mother in law has been doing most of the cooking (apart from baking). So when my father in law suggested I make dinner, I thought it was probably a good idea since I hadn’t blogged about something savory in a while too. I was also craving a couple of dishes that I grew up with that I hadn’t cooked in a while.

This recipe is from my mom. My in laws commented how they thought it was interesting that there were tomatoes in a black bean dish but this is the way that my mom has always made it. Unfortunately, I didn’t have any peppers on hand so I couldn’t include them. The dish seemed to be a hit since both hubby and my father In law commented that they liked it, which is always nice to hear especially since hubby barely ever comments on anything I make.

INGREDIENTS:

1 lb. Prawns/Shrimp
1 tbsp. Dried Black Beans
1 Tomato (chopped into small pieces)
1 Onion (chopped into small pieces)
1/2 Green Pepper (or any other colour Pepper – cut in strips)
1 clove Garlic (minced)
1 tsp. Sugar
1 tsp. Soy Sauce
1 tsp. Sesame Oil
1 tsp. Black Pepper
2 tsp. Oil
1 tbsp. Corn Starch
Corn Starch Slurry (1 tbsp. Corn Starch, 1 tbsp. Sugar, 1 tsp. Pepper and 2 tbsp. Water)

DIRECTIONS:

In a small bowl, marinate the prawns/shrimp with sugar, soy sauce, sesame oil and black pepper. Allow to chill in the refrigerator for at least half an hour as you prepare everything else (chopping veggies and mixing together corn starch slurry).

Wash the black beans and add a little hot water to allow them to soften. When they are softened, mash them with the back of a spoon, then set aside.

Heat up wok and add 1 tsp. oil. Once the oil is hot, add the onion. Stir fry until the onion is slightly softened and browned, then add the tomato and peppers. Once the tomato has softened and the pepper is slightly browned, remove ingredients from wok.

Remove prawns/shrimp from the refrigerator and coat with cornstarch.

Heat up wok again and add 1 tsp. oil and garlic. Stir fry until slightly browned, then add prawns/shrimp. Allow to cook for a minute before adding the cornstarch slurry and black beans. Add a little bit of water if it appears not to have enough sauce.

When the prawns/shrimp are cooked, return the vegetables to the wok and stir fry until all combined. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.

Remove from wok and serve!

Honey Walnut Shrimp

All of the festivities surrounding Chinese New Year were definitely exhausting this year. I guess we were trying to make it as festive as possible with our little boy experiencing his first Chinese New Year. Of course, as with any festivity, there were lots of dinners and food in general around. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to join in all of the cooking as I was on mommy duty but I managed to make a few things.

This was a dish I decided to make for one of the Chinese New Year family dinners that we hosted this year. We had ordered this dish at restaurants in the past and everyone always seemed to enjoy it so I thought I'd take a crack at it. I would say that it ended up being a crowd pleaser since there was nothing left afterwards.

INGREDIENTS:

1 lb. Shrimp
1/2 cup Walnuts
3 tbsp. Mayonnaise
1/2 tbsp. Honey
2 tbsp. Condensed Milk
1 tbsp Half and Half Cream
1 tsp. Lemon juice
1 Egg White
1/2 cup Corn Starch (for coating the shrimp)
Oil for frying

For the Walnuts:
1/3 cup Sugar
1/3 cup Honey
1/2 cup Water
Oil for frying

DIRECTIONS:

Peel and deveine the shrimp. Pat dry with paper towels, add the egg white, mix well with the shrimp and set aside.

In a small pot, bring about half a pot of water to a boil. Add the walnuts and allow to boil for a few minutes. This will remove the skin. Drain and set aside.

Bring the 1/2 cup of the water to a boil, then add in the sugar and 1/3 cup of honey. Keep stirring until it turns thick and golden color, then add the walnuts. Coat the walnuts in the mixture, then remove from pot.

Heat up oil for frying in a wok. Add the walnuts into the hot oil and briefly fry not allowing them to burn. Remove and place walnuts on parchment paper to dry.

Coat the shrimp with a thick layer of corn starch, then fry in the hot oil until golden brown. Remove shrimp from the wok and drain on paper towels.

In a bowl, stir together the mayonnaise, honey, condensed milk, half and half cream and lemon juice. Add shrimp and walnuts, then toss to combine in the mayonnaise sauce.

Transfer to a serving plate and serve!