Kosher Shrimp Scampi with Crispy Bacon

fish or vegetarian

To make the perfect kosher “shrimp scampi” I turned to the fabulous Lidia Bastianich. Her recipe calls for both olive oil and butter. ingThis is a technique that I also often use. They both bring important elements to a dish, and together they’re even better. You could go with all olive oil and the dish would still work, but the butter really adds an important layer of flavor. I suggest that if you need to make this dish dairy-free, use a good quality vegan butter.

I’m offering you two options here—this can be made with kosher surimi as a fish course, or with hearts of palm if you want to keep it vegetarian. The recipe is pretty much the same for both.

And while we’re raising a few kosher eyebrows with our shrimp, why not top it off with bacon?

Delving into the world of vegan cooking, I’ve tried eggplant bacon, mushroom bacon, and coconut bacon. They’re all very tasty. None of them taste like bacon, but … really … only bacon tastes like bacon. If you don’t eat the stuff, for whatever reason, using one of these vegetable substitutes will give you a sweet, salty, smoky, crispy, culinary creation that can be used to bring those elements to your dish.

But there’s one bacon substitute I hadn’t tried. It’s apparently gone viral, and it’s so weird that I had to try it … banana peel bacon. It was shocked at how great and easy to make it was.

And to think of all the banana peels I’ve tossed out over all these years …

I suggest you give it a try, and use it to top off your scampi. My one caveat is, don’t make the bacon in advance. It doesn’t re-heat well and it’s best eaten as soon as it’s made.

This is Lidia’s recipe for shrimp scampi, without actual shrimp. Her extra step of making a paste of the garlic and shallots is definitely worth the trouble.

Ingredients:

• ¼  cup shallots, peeled and chopped  

• 4 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed

• 2 sprigs fresh thyme

• 6 tablespoons single source Italian extra virgin olive oil, such as Kirkland

• 1 ¼  teaspoons kosher salt

• 1 cup dry white wine

• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter or vegan butter

• ¼ cup Italian flat-leaf parsley (fresh only)

• 2 teaspoons dry breadcrumbs (optional)

• 1 pound shrimp-style surimi (Dyna Sea brand can be found in many kosher markets) cut in half, lengthwise.

  —or—

• 2 cans hearts of palm, either pre-sliced, or sliced by you

   

Method:

• Combine the shallots, 3 garlic cloves, and 1 tablespoons of the oil in a mini-food processor and process to make a smooth paste.

• Pour 3 tablespoons of the olive oil into a large skillet and warm it over medium-high heat.

• Add the surimi or the hearts of palm, and the thyme sprigs, and season it with ¼ teaspoon salt. Cook undisturbed for 1-2 minutes, until the “shrimp” develop some color, then turn over the surimi or toss the hearts of palm in the pan, and cook another minute. Add the remaining clove of garlic and toss it with your “shrimp” for another minute.

• Transfer your “shrimp” and the thyme from the skillet to a plate.

• Add the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and the garlic-shallot paste to the same skillet set over medium heat. Cook, stirring constantly, until the paste has dried out and begins to stick to the bottom of the skillet, about 2 to 3 minutes.

• Return the thyme to the skillet, and pour in the white wine, lemon juice, the remaining teaspoon of salt, 4 tablespoons of the butter, and 1 cup water.

• Bring the sauce to a rapid boil, and cook until reduced by half, about 4 to 5 minutes. When the sauce has reduced, whisk in the remaining butter and return the “shrimp” to the pan. Cook and toss until the shrimp are coated with the sauce and just cooked through, about 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the parsley. If the sauce still seems too thin, stir in the bread crumbs and bring to a boil just to thicken.

• Top with the crumbled vegan bacon of your choice. I’m going with banana peels!

  Serve the scampi with pasta, rice, or crusty bread to soak up all the delicious sauce.