The California Seafood Book (Kung Pao Shrimp Recipe)

The California Seafood Cookbook: A Cook’s Guide to the Fish and Shellfish of California, the Pacific Coast, and Beyond by Isaac Cronin, Jay Harlow and Paul Johnson is a cookbook filled with recipes that “tend toward simple approaches to a limited number of ingredients rather than elaborate creations; they are intended to show off the food, not the cook.”

After an introduction to the tools and basic prep of fish and seafood, the fish are listed alphabetically by species and offer an illustration, description and basic identification. Some fish have recipes included. Because of this, the cookbook’s second part, A Cook’s Encyclopedia of Seafood, is true to name. The recipes included are all quick to put together using fresh ingredients. A Fishmonger’s Day in part

The recipe below is credited to Bruce Cost in the book, an authority on Asian cuisine. It’s simple in design but hot/sweet/tangy in flavor. Serve with rice.

Kung Pao Shrimp

 

Ingredients

  

• 1 pound shrimp 20/24 shelled and deveined
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• Salt
• 2 tablespoons reduced sodium soy sauce
• 5 teaspoons sugar
• 1 cup oil
• 6-12 each dried hot red peppers
• 1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh ginger
• 4-6 cloves garlic minced
• 3 tablespoons green onions finely sliced

Instructions

 

• Rinse and dry the shrimp. Dust them with the cornstarch and set aside.
• Combine the vinegar, salt, soy sauce, and sugar. Set aside.
• Heat the oil in a large heavy skillet until hot. Add in the shrimp and stir fry until done, about 1 1/2 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon to a paper towel lined plate, and pour off all but 1 1/2 tablespoons of oil in the pan. Fry the dried peppers until black in the remaining hot oil. Add in the ginger, garlic, and green onions, and the vinegar mixture. Bring to a boil and add the shrimp, stirring until they are well coated and hot.
• Serve with rice.

Notes

Notes: Recipe adapted from The California Seafood Cookbook

Book Info

• (Amazon link) The California Seafood Cookbook: A Cook’s Guide to the Fish and Shellfish of California, The Pacific Coast and Beyond.
• By Isaac Cronin, Jay Harlow, and Paul Johnson. Illustrations by Amy Pertschuk.
• ISBN: 0943186048
• Aris Books; 1983.
• Hardcover.

This book is in my personal collection.

Enjoy,
Renee Shelton
Succotash Book Reviews
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