(Photo: Carlos Sarmiento)
Creole is a style of cooking originating in Louisiana, United States with blends of French cuisine creole), Spanish (cocina criolla), West African and Native American influences, utilizing spices and rich sauces.
This melange of styles combined produce extraordinary flavors that bring out the best of all worlds. Ingredients typically include grains like rice and corn, meats, seafood, fruits and especially vegetables.
One of the most well-known staple ingredients are the holy trinity of Creole cuisine: bell pepper, onion and celery.
There are many variations on how to prepare shrimp creole, certainly with way more ingredients, including the holy trinity but for this particular dish, I am taking more of a basic and less piquant approach to its preparation.
My version is more Caribbean-inspired featuring jasmati rice and yuca fries.
(Photo: Alison Joslyn)
Let‘s get cooking!
Menu: Carlos’ shrimp creole with jasmati rice & yuca fries.
Wine pairing: 2020 St. Francis Winery & Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc (Sonoma County, California)
Serves 2-3
Ingredients
Shrimp:
1 pound of fresh jumbo shrimp, peeled, deveined but with tail on
1 1/2 cup of crushed tomatoes (from a can)
1/2 cup of onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup of fresh tomatoes, diced
1/4 cup of fresh cilantro, finely chopped
3 small garlic cloves, finely minced
1 cup of vegetable stock
2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 teaspoon of dried red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon of cornstarch diluted with 1 tablespoon of water
Rice:
1 cup of white Jasmati rice
1 1/2 cup of water
2 tablespoons of butter
Yuca fries:
Frozen yuca fries (approximately 3 per serving, total of 9)
Olive oil for cooking
Garnishes:
2 limes, quartered in wedges
Fresh cilantro leafs
Directions
Shrimp:
In a medium sized skillet over medium high heat add the olive oil. Add garlic and cook for 2 minutes. Add red pepper flakes and stir for one minute.
Add in diced tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, vegetable stock and Worcestershire sauce. Stir.
Add shrimp and cover. Simmer for about 5-7 minutes until the shrimp are cooked through. Mix together the cornstarch and water and stir into the sauce and cook for an additional 1-2 minutes to let the sauce thicken.
Add fresh cilantro, stir and remove skillet from heat.
Rice:
In a medium pot, bring water to a boil.
Add rice and butter, stir well. Cover pot with lid, reduce heat to to low and simmer for 15 minutes.
Remove pot from heat and fluff rice with fork.
Yuca fries:
Cook yuca fries according to package. *I highly recommend cooking yuca fries with a little olive oil in an air fryer at 400 degrees F for about 15-20 minutes (turning fries over halfway through cooking).
Serve it up! On each individual plate, serve a generous amount of Jasmati rice in the middle of the plate.
Next, add about five to six shrimp on top of the rice and top with plenty of creole sauce.
Arrange a few yuca fries next to the rice and place a little nest of fresh cilantro next to the fries and place a few lime wedges on top of the cilantro.
Bon appetit! Enjoy!
(Photo: Carlos Sarmiento)
(Photo: Carlos Sarmiento)
About the wine…
Sauvignon Blanc grows well throughout many parts of Sonoma County. Sauvignon Blanc is planted in Sonoma Valley Wild Oak Vineyard and Russian River Valley Lagomarsino Vineyard.
The fruit is sourced from Alexander Valley and Bennett Valley. The warmer areas produce full flavors and aromas while fruit from the cooler areas brings refreshing crispness.
These characteristics are thoughtfully blended for a balanced and lively wine. To retain the bright flavors and crisp acidity of this varietal, the grapes were picked at dawn and arrived at the winery cold.
The grapes were pressed and a majority of the juice was sent directly to stainless steel tank while a small portion went to barrel for fermentation.
The wine was fermented slowly at 55º for over 30 days, preserving the wonderful aromas of Sauvignon Blanc. Malolactic fermentation was prevented to preserve the wine’s clean, crisp texture. It was then aged for five months before bottling.
2020 St. Francis Winery & Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc (Sonoma County, California)
(Photo: Carlos Sarmiento)
Tasting notes: Crisp and refreshing, this Sauvignon Blanc offers delicate aromas of lychee, melon and tangerine zest.
Flavors of fresh-picked white peach, kiwi and key lime lead to a bright and smooth finish backed by a hint of minerality.
Grapes:
100% Sauvignon Blanc
Food pairing: Excellent as an aperitif or paired with salads, sushi, seafood and fresh, young cheeses.
Accolades:
90 Points
Gold Medal
Press Democrat
2X Gold Medal
San Francisco International Wine Competition
For more information, visit:
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Special thanks to my friends at Kobrand Wine and Spirits for this delightful wine pairing collaboration.
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Decorative wine drip collar by: https://dripstosips.com
(Special discount promo code: CFW15)
(Photo: Alison Joslyn)
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