Shrimp in Spicy Tomato Garlic Sauce

Shrimp in Spicy Tomato Garlic Sauce

Lee Kum Kee makes a great tomato-garlic sauce, but when that's not available it's quite easy to assemble similar ingredients. Shrimp takes such a short time to cook that it's perfect when dinner needs hurrying up. 

I used half a pound of large shrimp (20-30 shrimp per pound) that were already peeled and cleaned. The base of the sauce is tomato puree that was made spicy with the help of Gochujang (Korean chili paste) which has a hint of sweetness. For a more tomato-ey taste, tomato ketchup added both colour and served to thicken the sauce. Minced garlic and Thai red chili peppers along with a sliced onion rounded out the flavours.

This shrimp dish is best served over a mound of steamed, long-grain rice.

Ingredients:

1/2 lb. large shrimp, peeled and de-veined

1/2 tsp. Ajinomoto (optional)

4 Thai red chilies, de-seeded if necessary

1 medium onion, sliced

4 Tbsp. white oil

salt to taste

Sauce:

1/4 cup tomato puree

2 Tbsp. tomato ketchup

1 tsp. minced garlic

1 Tbsp. gochujang (Korean chili paste) or other chili paste

Description:

1. Mix sauce ingredients together and toss shrimp with Ajinomoto.
2. Heat oil over medium-high heat.
3. Stir-fry shrimp, chilies and onion until shrimp turns pink.
4. Pour sauce over the shrimp and toss.
5. Cover and simmer over medium-low heat for 2 minutes.
6. Transfer to a serving dish and serve with steamed, long-grain rice.