Korean bbq shrimp. Think cajun bbq shrimp but with big Korean flavours. Classic Louisiana meets Asia in a mess of buttery goodness.
I’ve been a fan of cajun bbq shrimp for most of my life. It was my favourite ways to eat shrimp. Until now.
Now it’s tied with Korean BBQ shrimp. I knew Korean BBQ shrimp was going to be good. Just wasn’t quite ready for how good.
I had all sorts of words running through my head when I tasted it for the first time. Words like ridiculous. Unbelievable. Stupid delicious. Crazy talk. I know. But still…
Butter and spice and everything nice
There’s really not a lot to this recipe. Which is why it amazes me. Although I really shouldn’t be surprised.
It’s shrimp. And butter. Garlic. Lots of garlic. And gochugaru. Those wonderful Korean chili flakes. Fish sauce. Lemon. And cilantro.
How could that not be good? It’s everything good in one pan. And then you serve it up with good, crusty bread to sop up the sauce. That’s just seriously good living.
It’s rich. Don’t plan on having this for dinner. Unless you are trying hard to gain weight. And you can handle a ton of butter.
It’s meant as an appetizer. One with serious flash. Perfect for when you want to show off. When you want to wow your friends. And it’s easy. I mean really easy. I won’t tell if you don’t.
Korean BBQ shrimp isn’t a thing. It’s not even Korean. Fusion maybe. Although I really don’t like that term. Korean inspired is more accurate.
This is one hundred percent glebekitchen. And I’m pretty pleased with myself. Can you tell?
No grill required for this Korean BBQ shrimp
I’m not sure why cajun BBQ shrimp are called BBQ. There’s no BBQ. No grill. There isn’t even BBQ sauce.
Legend has it a New Orleans restaurant came up with the dish in the 1950s. Because it was kind of red they decided to call it BBQ shrimp. Doesn’t make a lot of sense to me. But that’s the story.
So I’m calling this Korean BBQ shrimp. Not because it has anything to do with barbecue. Or grilling. But because it’s a whole lot of butter and spice. Just like the original.
Don’t overcook your shrimp
There’s only one way I can think of to screw this dish up. Overcooked shrimp.
If you cook the shrimp to death this isn’t going to be good. You want juicy. You always want juicy. When was the last time you heard someone say “I wish these shrimp were dry and rubbery.”
There’s enough butter to cover up mistakes here. That’s true. But why not go for gold. Perfect shrimp. In a perfect sauce.
Be gentle. As soon as the shrimp are pink you are good to go. It’s easy to overcook shrimp. So watch them closely.
And leave the shrimp in the shell. Shells add flavour. Not a ton. But a little something. This is a messy dish. Have fun with it.
Korean BBQ shrimp in a little over 10 minutes
This is whip it up while your friends are having drinks food. 10 minutes. Maybe 15 on the outside.
Melt a stick of butter in a pan big enough to hold the shrimp in a single layer.
Add the garlic, gochugaru, fish sauce and lemon. Let it simmer gently for a few minutes.
Toss in the shrimp. In one layer. That’s important. One layer. Poach them in the sauce for about 3 minutes.
Flip the shrimp. Poach for another 3 minutes. Garnish with cilantro and serve with crusty bread.
That’s it. Crazy delicious Korean BBQ shrimp in no time flat. Try it. If you like shrimp and you like Korean flavours you are going to love Korean BBQ shrimp.
And so will your friends. Make this for them. They’ll think you’re an absolute kitchen rockstar. This could be the tastiest thing you’ve never heard of.
korean bbq shrimp
Ingredients
- 12 shrimp 16-20 per pound
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 2 cloves garlic crushed
- 1 1/2 tsp fish sauce
- 1 1/2 tbsp gochugaru – korean chili flakes (not powder)
- 1/4 lemon juiced
- cilantro to garnish
Instructions
- Melt the butter over medium low heat in a skillet large enough to hold the shrimp in a single layer. If you aren’t doubling the recipe you don’t need a very large pan.
- Add the garlic and gochugaru. Cook gently for about 2 minutes. You don’t want the garlic to take on any colour here. Think garlic butter.
- Add the fish sauce and lemon juice. Keep cooking over low heat for 2-3 minutes. You want a gentle simmer.
- Add the shrimp and continue cooking over low to medium low heat. GIve them 3 minutes. Again, gentle simmer. Little bubbles.
- Flip the shrimp. If they are uniformly pink you are good. If you still see a bit of grey turn the heat up a smidge.
- Cook the shrimp for another 3 minutes. If they were still a little grey when you turned them flip them and cook a minute more. You want just pink. Don’t overcook your shrimp. Please don’t overcook your shrimp.
- Garnish with a little cilantro and serve with crusty bread to sop up the spicy garlic butter.
Nutrition
korean bbq shrimp
Ingredients
- 12 shrimp 16-20 per pound
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 2 cloves garlic crushed
- 1 1/2 tsp fish sauce
- 1 1/2 tbsp gochugaru - korean chili flakes (not powder)
- 1/4 lemon juiced
- cilantro to garnish
Instructions
- Melt the butter over medium low heat in a skillet large enough to hold the shrimp in a single layer. If you aren’t doubling the recipe you don’t need a very large pan.
- Add the garlic and gochugaru. Cook gently for about 2 minutes. You don’t want the garlic to take on any colour here. Think garlic butter.
- Add the fish sauce and lemon juice. Keep cooking over low heat for 2-3 minutes. You want a gentle simmer.
- Add the shrimp and continue cooking over low to medium low heat. GIve them 3 minutes. Again, gentle simmer. Little bubbles.
- Flip the shrimp. If they are uniformly pink you are good. If you still see a bit of grey turn the heat up a smidge.
- Cook the shrimp for another 3 minutes. If they were still a little grey when you turned them flip them and cook a minute more. You want just pink. Don’t overcook your shrimp. Please don’t overcook your shrimp.
- Garnish with a little cilantro and serve with crusty bread to sop up the spicy garlic butter.
Nutrition
Lamb vindaloo is on every menu of every Indian restaurant in the world. And it’s there because it is one of the greats. Like madras. Or jalfrezi. It’s just really, really good.
OK. Maybe not every Indian restaurant. But almost all of them. Not easy to find one that doesn’t have it.
I’m biased, mind you. Lamb vindaloo is one of my favourites. Right up there with lamb madras.
There’s just something about lamb and spicy curries that works. The richness and depth of the lamb plays beautifully against assertive flavours. Balance.
This is not traditional style lamb vindaloo
The title says it. This is restaurant style lamb vindaloo. This is not the classic Goan dish.
It’s not pork. There isn’t even that much vinegar here. No description of vinha d’alvos. No romantic story about the Portuguese coming to India. Sorry.
This is what you get when you go out for dinner. Pretty much anywhere in the world. Except maybe India.
If you want authentic vindaloo like you ate in Goa, this is not it. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.
What it is is tasty. Really tasty. Lick your plate clean tasty. At least for me.
Vindaloo paste makes this dish
I struggled with restaurant style vindaloo for a long time. Just couldn’t get it right. Because I followed conventional wisdom.
Took charming my way into an Indian restaurant kitchen to figure it out. I can’t remember what I was asking about.
Maybe their paratha technique. Or their butter chicken base. Who knows? But when I saw a line cook tossing a paste into a pan it all came together for me.
And now I use a paste. For vindaloo. Always.
Don’t fear Kashmiri chilies
There are 10 kashmiri chilies in the recipe. And a tsp of kashmiri chili power. It sounds like a lot. You’d think it would be incendiary.
But it isn’t. Kashmiri chilies aren’t all that hot. They are a nice balance of spice and chili flavour. I love them because I can add a lot without things getting crazy.
Don’t get me wrong though. This is not butter chicken. As written it’s fairly spicy. If you’ve cooked other curries from glebekitchen you’ll know I spice to medium hot.
Flavour first. Fire second. That’s how I roll. This one is a little spicier than usual though. But not crazy hot. Still lots of flavour here.
If you like a spicier vindaloo just add some hot chili powder in with the dry spices. You know what you like. If you want pretty hot add a teaspoon.
If you want a blazing hot go for two teaspoons. It starts to be hot for the sake of being hot at that point.
I like flavour so I don’t go past two teaspoons. That’s pushing the flavour towards just tasting like chili powder. I am all about balanced flavours.
But it’s your call. It’s your dinner. Do what makes you happy. Be true to yourself. I’m not the curry police.
Lamb vindaloo – the king of curries
King of curries is a pretty strong assertion. Maybe too strong. Everybody has their favourite.
But for me it’s up there. Lamb. Spice. Sweet. Sour. There’s complexity of flavour here. As long as you don’t stomp on it with tons of chili powder you’ll see. It may wind up at the top of your list too.
lamb vindaloo – restaurant style
Ingredients
Vindaloo paste
- 8 dried kashmiri chilies
- 1 large shallot chopped
- 2 tbsp garlic ginger paste
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp cumin powder
- 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
- 2 tsp malt vinegar
- 1 1/2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 tbsp water or a bit more – enough to get it to puree
Lamb vindaloo
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 dried kashmiri chilies
- 1 tsp Indian restaurant spice mix – recipe link below
- 1 tsp kashmiri chili powder
- 1 tsp kasoor methi – dried fenugreek leaves
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- all the vindaloo paste
- 1 tbsp tomato paste diluted in 2 tbsp water
- 15 oz curry base – recipe link in the notes
- 1 tsp tamarind paste
- 1 tsp jaggery sugar – can substitute brown sugar
- 1/2 tsp worcestershire sauce – seriously, it really adds a little something
- 12 oz lamb stew Cut into 1 inch cubes and pre-cooked (see note). I prefer shoulder for this if you can get it
Instructions
Make the vindaloo paste
- Stem and seed the kashmiri chilies (not the ones in the curry – just the ones in the paste).
- Soak your kashmiri chilies in hot, hot water for a few minutes. Drain and repeat. Repeat again. You may not need the third soak. You want them hydrated. Soft.
- Combine all the ingredients in a mini food processor or your blender.
- Puree. It will probably fight you. Scrape it down into the bowl try again. If that doesn’t work add a bit more water and try again. You don’t want a ton of water so add a bit at time. If it still doesn’t go, add a bit more. Until it does go. Super annoying. I know.
Make your lamb vindaloo
- Do your prep. The vindaloo paste is ready to go, right? You’ve pre-cooked your lamb? Combine the Indian restaurant spice mix, kashmiri chili powder, kasoor methi and salt in a small bowl. Preheat your curry base. Dilute the tomato paste. Now you’re good to go.
- Heat your frying pan (don’t use non-stick) briefly over medium heat. Add the oil. It’s ready when the oil just starts to shimmer. You may notice I’m using less oil that usual. That’s because there’s some in the paste as well.
- Add the Kashmiri chilies and cook for about 10 seconds. Flip them and cook another 10 seconds. You should see little bubbles form around the chili. You want it toasted. Not burned. Be careful.
- Turn down the heat and add the combined spice mix , kashmiri chili powder, kasoor methi and salt. This is the critical step. Stir it constantly for 30 seconds. If it starts to darken lift the pan off the heat. You want the spice mix to cook in the oil but not burn. If your spices burn start again. It can’t be saved.
- Add the vindaloo paste . Fry, stirring constantly, until it starts to darken. This should take about 2 to 3 minutes.
- Turn the heat up to medium high. This is important. The Maillard reaction makes this work. Google Maillard if you don’t know what I’m talking about. It gives curry it’s Indian restaurant flavour. Add the diluted tomato paste and stir until bubbles form. This takes around 30 seconds to one minute depending on the heat.
- Add 3 oz of curry base . Stir until bubbles form, around 60 seconds. It’s like a lively boil except the curry base is frying in the oil.
- Now add 6 oz of curry base and stir briefly. Let it cook until the bubbles form again. Let it cook about 2 minutes.
- Add the rest of the curry base and let cook until the bubbles form. Stir in the tamarind paste, sugar and worcestershire sauce. Turn the heat down to low and add the pre-cooked lamb.
- Let the curry simmer for about 5 minutes. If it gets too thick add a bit more curry base. Do not add water.
- Garnish with cilantro and serve with rice or Indian flat bread and a good dal on the side.
