What to cook for dinner to surprise your beloved? What to do if chicken and meat are already bored? It is worth paying attention to the rich world of seafood, namely to a wonderful dish - prawns in sweet and sour sauce. They perfectly diversify the diet and become an exquisite treat on the table. Ease of preparation, minimum time, available ingredients are the main advantages of this Asian dish. The article will offer several options for preparing a dish and serving it on the table.
A bit of geography
Shrimp won the hearts of culinary experts for a long time. These seafood are distributed throughout the oceans and are used in the cuisines of many countries of the world. Shrimp fried, boiled, pickled. On the Asian continent, they are so loved that they are consumed even raw. But shrimp in sweet and sour sauce is most often found in the menu of cafes and restaurants. And although each chef has his own secrets and features of the recipe, cooking them is simple. Do not be afraid to experiment, add something new, replace the ingredients to get your own unique taste.
Ingredients
What will be required to prepare this dish? Ingredients can be found in any supermarket:
- medium-sized shrimp - 350-400 g;
- sweet red pepper - 100-150 g;
- bright red tomatoes - 2 pcs.;
- cloves of garlic - 2 pcs.;
- a can of canned pineapple or half fresh;
- soy sauce - 30 ml;
- lemon - 80 g;
- fresh herbs (dill, parsley, cilantro) - to taste.
If there is a dislike for any components, they can be replaced with similar ones.
Shrimps in sweet and sour sauce
First you need to decide which shrimp is more to your taste: small, medium-sized or king. The price rises along with the size, so it is recommended to use just the middle ones to get maximum authenticity. By the way, in the countries of Asia just such are used.
Boil the shrimp for 3-5 minutes, cool and separate from the shell. If there is an opportunity to clean unbroken - wonderful. For novice cooks, this is difficult.
Next is the preparation of pepper. Any sweet, preferably bright red, will do. It’s important not to confuse with chili! Otherwise, the sauce will turn sour-spicy. Pepper needs to be cleaned of seeds and cut into small strips. Seeds, as a rule, are bitter: they should not be in the dish.
Cook tomatoes recommend that you pre-peel the skin so that unpleasant pieces do not come across in the finished dish. To do this, you can put them in boiling water for several minutes, and then easily remove the shell. Tomatoes need to be cut into small cubes.
Peel the garlic cloves and chop them into tiny pieces. To do this is quite simple: first cut them randomly, and then chop them with a large knife. You can grate on a fine grater, but then garlic will give juice and will be bitter.
If you use fresh pineapple, the price will certainly increase, but the taste will be more natural. Not a can of pineapple will need to be peeled off the skin and core, cut into small cubes and sprinkled with sugar a little.
Now that the ingredients for the sauce are ready, you can start frying.
Heat the pan, pre-lubricating it with olive or sunflower oil. Pour tomatoes, pineapples and pepper at the same time and fry for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. You do not need to salt, add only soy sauce.
Squeeze juice out of half a lemon, discard the rest or use at your own discretion. Simmer for 10 minutes, covering the pan with a lid.
While everything is preparing, cut the greens. You can choose it for your own taste: dill or parsley is usually used, but lovers of harsh aromas add cilantro or even celery. The main thing is to grind well.
In a second frying pan, also oiled, place the peeled shrimps and fry over medium heat for 1.5–2 minutes. Add herbs, garlic and remove from heat. In general, it is better to fall asleep garlic at the last moment: so its aroma will be brighter.
Put the entire contents out of the pan with stewed vegetables and crush a little with a crush. Strain the resulting liquid through a medium sieve: a little pulp will be perfect.
Put the main ingredient on a plate and pour plenty of sweet and sour sauce. Decorate the shrimps in a plate and can be served. Enjoy your meal!
Variety of recipes
There are many recipes adapted to the most different corners of the world: these are shrimps in sweet and sour sauce in Thai, Sicilian and even in little-known villages you can find your own zest! Shrimp goes well with various sauces, vegetables and spices. Do not be afraid to show imagination and courage. Who knows, maybe this will be the first step to opening a new dish!