Shrimp Po’Boys with Quick Remoulade

About the recipe

A staple of Louisiana cuisine, a po’boy can take on a variety of fillings, from simple ham and cheese to more decadent fried seafood. You can use any combination of seafood — shrimp, crawfish or oysters — but a classic shrimp po’boy is hard to beat.

When buying shrimp, the size of the shrimp will be noted with a corresponding number (such as 21/25), which refers to the approximate number of shrimp of that size needed to make one pound. The smaller the number, the larger the shrimp. For these po’boys, look for either 26/30 or 31/40 shrimp.

Serves: 4

Hands On Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients

Remoulade

1 1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup Creole mustard

Juice of 2 lemons

3 tablespoons Sriracha sauce

3 tablespoons capers, chopped

3 tablespoons sweet pickle relish

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Po’Boys

Vegetable oil, for frying

1 1/2 pounds medium shrimp, peeled and deveined

2 cups half and half

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cups yellow cornmeal

2 tablespoons kosher salt

1 1/2 tablespoons Old Bay Seasoning

2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

1 large head romaine lettuce, shredded

2 large beefsteak tomatoes, sliced

4 (6-inch) soft, crusty French rolls or 1 baguette, cut into fourths, halved, buttered and toasted

Instructions

To make the remoulade: In a small bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, mustard, lemon juice, Sriracha, capers and relish. Taste the aioli and season with the salt and pepper.

To make the po’boys: In a large, heavy-bottomed pot, begin heating 2 inches of vegetable oil to 350 degrees over medium-high heat. Alternatively, heat the vegetable oil to 350 degrees in a deep fryer following the manufacturer’s directions. Line a large plate with paper towels.

While the oil is heating, combine the shrimp and half and half in a large bowl. In a second large bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, salt, Old Bay and pepper.

Remove the shrimp from the half and half, shaking off excess, and place in the bowl with the flour mixture. Toss to coat thoroughly.

When the oil is hot, remove one third of the shrimp from the flour mixture, shaking off any excess, and carefully add to the hot oil. Fry until the shrimp are crisp and cooked through, about 3 minutes. Using a wire strainer or slotted spoon, remove the shrimp from the oil and transfer to the prepared plate. Repeat with the remaining shrimp in two more batches.

To assemble the po’boys, split the rolls in half and spread both sides with the remoulade. Add lettuce and tomato to one half of the bread, then top with the shrimp. Serve hot.