Shrimp Satay – Grilling with Almond Satay Sauce

for Hay Hay it’s Donna Day !

My Daughter has a love affair with Shrimp. I have too, but her intensity far surpasses mine. She is the reason I am always trying out different things with Shrimp. I happen to grill shrimps quite often, and this Satay Shrimp had been a pleasure every time. How nice does it feel, when you see that twinkling eyes shine so bright when she comes back from school & asks, “Whats for dinner, Mama?” & I kid around with her saying all the things that she does not like… see her groan & whine, and then I say… “It’s Shrimp Day for you!” , I say… It is a special treat for her every single time.

So when I saw “Satay”, for Hay Hay it’s Donna Day, I knew I had to share this recipe.

Allow me to call it the  Almond Satay Sauce.

I did make a Peanut dipping Sauce this time, but the Almond Satay Sauce scored higher as always. I am sharing the recipe for the peanut sauce too.

Ingredients: 

1. 15-20 Extra Large or Jumbo Raw Deviened Shrimp

For the Almond Satay Sauce:

1. 1/2 Cup Coconut milk
2. 1 Teaspoon Lemon Juice
3. 1/4 Cup Almonds
4. 2 Tablespoons chopped Fresh Cilantro/Coriander
5. A pinch of Turmeric
6. Salt
7. 2 Dry Red Chillies (Use to your Taste)
8. 3 Cloves of Garlic
9. 1/2 Teaspoon Cumin
10. 1/2 Teaspoon Sesame Seeds
11. 2″ Piece of Ginger – peeled & sliced thin
12. Soy Sauce
13. Oil
14. 1/4 Teaspoon of Brown Sugar
15. Toothpicks ( You can use Skewers, but My Little one likes them on a Stick.. one a time so I use Toothpicks)

For the Peanut Dip:

1. 1/2 Cup Roasted peanuts ( OR 3 Tablespoons of Ready made Crunchy Peanut Butter)
2. 2 Red Dry Chillies
3. 1 Teaspoon Light Soy Sauce OR 1/2 teaspoon of dark soy sauce
4. 1″ piece of Fresh Peeled Ginger (cut into small pieces)
5. 2 Cloves of Garlic
6. Salt
7. A pinch of Sugar
8. 1 Teaspoon Vinegar
9. 2 -3 Teaspoons oil

Preparation:

Preparing the Shrimps:

Devein the Shrimps. Shell them fully or whatever way you want it. I have left half the shell on, with the tail… Wash & pat dry. Set aside.

Preparing the Marinade/Sauce:

Heat 1/2 teaspoon oil. Add the Ginger, Garlic, Sesame Seeds, Cumin & Red Dry Chilli peppers. Fry till the pepper turns a darker shade, & the Garlic starts to turn brown. By this time the ginger will be very fragrant too.

Switch off the heat & keep aside.

Combine Coconut Milk, Almonds, Salt, Soy Sauce, Turmeric, Sugar, & the above ingredients that you fried in a blender/processor & process till smooth. You might have to pulse it for sometime to get the whole nuts smoothed out.

Add the Chopped Coriander/Cilantro to this paste.  This is how it looked.

Coat the Shrimps in this paste and set aside for an hour or two. 

The best thing about this marinade is this could serve as a wonderful dip or a sauce too. Most of the times, I do not make any extra dip for the Satay… just make more of these and use it as a sauce.

Cooking them:

I have not grilled the shrimps on a grill. Most of the times I just cook them on a skillet.

Coat a skillet with oil & heat. Add the shrimps flat on one side and cook on medium heat for about 3-4 minutes. By this they will start turning pink.

Drizzle with little bit of oil & quickly turn them over on the other side and cook for another few minutes. At this point increase the heat till you hear a sizzle. The marinade on the shrimp will soon start to brown.

Remove them as soon as the Shrimps have brown spots on them… Do not overcook, a few minutes is all it takes. If left in the pan for too long, the marinade will burn on them and the Shrimps will get dry.

Serve with your Favorite dip/Sauce.

Alternatively the shrimps may be skewered & cooked on a grill. I just stick toothpicks in the individual Shrimps as they are almost bite size and can be popped in the mouth one at a time.

Here is the Peanut sauce that I made with it… 

Preparing the Peanut Dip:

Heat oil in a pan. Add the Ginger, Garlic & the Red Dry chilli. Fry till they all start to get darker and the Ginger fragrant. Switch off the heat.

Add all the required ingredients along with the above (ginger, garlic & red dry chilli pepper), & blend/process. Add few spoons of  water to the mix to make it a consistency of the dip. Allow it to be a little bit coarse as the crunchy bit taste good.

I used 1 teaspoon of dark soy sauce the taste was a bit overwhelming… I have changed the qunatity in the ingredient.. or you could use 1 teaspoon of LIGHT soy sauce.

Below is the the Peanut Sauce Served with Satay Shrimp.

 First she snacked on these when she came back from school. Then had some more for dinner:-)

I usually serve the Grilled Shrimp on a bed of rice,  add some butter to the hot rice for my daughter & grill some vegetables on the side. This time I grilled some Zucchinis & Scallions…

This Almond Satay Sauce is just perfect with anything… You can use any meat, or any fish, or even Tofu for the vegetarian version of the Satay. I have to say that this Satay Marinade does work better with meat & tofu, since they have a bigger surface & hence one would enjoy more flavors of the marinade.

 If you ever happen to try this out, I am sure you will Enjoy!

Sending this to :
Hay Hay it’s Donna Day, hosted my Meeta of What’s for Lunch. Honey? & facilitated by Bron.

Related Posts:

Chingri Maacher Malaikari (Shrimp in Cream of Coconut)