Baking A Sweet Life

I know this is a baking site.  This fact is not lost on me as I post this un-baked (savory, not sweet!) Thai coconut shrimp.  Charity and I are taking a hiatus from our SOB adventures and instead alternating picking ingredients and then making a recipe with that.  It can be sweet or savory, main feature or subtle flavor - the only rule is that the ingredient’s gotta be in there!

I was picking first, and I decided to go with coconut!  I love coconut - and ironically enough, that hasn’t always been the case!  I think its been in the last 2 years that I’ve come around.  I think it was helped along with Ina Garten’s Coconut cupcake recipe.  Hmm…

In the last 6 months, I’ve actually started hacking into my own coconuts.  I wouldn’t have even considered it in the past - I wouldn’t have known where to acquire them except the Caribbean.   When my interest was piqued by raw foods for a short while I was quickly acquainted with where to find them and how to break into them.  Let me clarify that I use young, white coconuts, not the brown fuzzy ones.  The difference being: maturity.  They are the same plant, the white ones are just younger, and the meat is more tender and less oily.  Whole foods carries both.  The young white ones already have their green husks whittled away, and that’s why they have a carved appearance.

Here’s pictures of me breaking into the coconut: All I suggest you use is a kitchen towel to stabilize and keep things tidy, and access to your husbands tool chest  :)

After shaving off some of the husk with a chef’s knife, I then drive a flathead screwdriver in the the tough part of the shell.  I wiggle it around until I get enough leverage that it finally cracks and that’s when I’m able to extract the coconut water out of it.  At that point, I carve of most of the narrowed opening of the top and then I have a much wider access to the rest of the meat.  The best way to get the coconut off of the shell is with the back of a spoon.  You can see that the flesh comes off in chunks and I’m left with a really clean shell that could be used to serve froo-froo drinks in :)

To make the coconut milk, I have to combine the coconut water with the coconut flesh in a blender and then sieve it to separate the solids from the milk.  Technically this “first press” is called coconut creme but I didn’t want to bother with blending and sieving again to get the proper “milk”.

In this last photo you can see the difference between the coconut water at the top right, and the sieved solids and the coconut milk/creme.

Whew. Now finally on to the recipe!

Thai Coconut Shrimp

(adapted from Essentials of Asian Cooking by Williams-Sonoma)

3 cardamom pods
2 teaspoons coriander seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/4 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
1 small cinnamon stick
2 tablespoons canola oil
4 shallots, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons peeled and grated fresh ginger
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 serrano chili, ribs and seeds removed, minced
1 cup coconut milk
1 lemongrass stalk, tender midsection only, smashed with side of chef’s knife
salt
1 1/2 lb prawns, peeled and deveined
1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Carefully split open the cardamom pods and remove the seeds.  In a small dry frying pan over medium heat, combine the cardamom, coriander, cumin and fenugreek seeds, and the cinnamon stick.  Cook, shaking the pan constantly to toast the spices evenly and prevent burning, until fragrant and turn a shade darker, about 2 minutes.  Transfer immediately to a plate to cool.

Once the spices are cooled, transfer to a spice grinder and grind into a fine powder. Set aside.

In a large frying pan or wok set over medium-high heat, warm the oil.  Add the shallots, ginger, garlic and chili and saute until fragrant and lightly browned, 1-2 minutes.  Stir in the entire spice power mixture, the coconut milk, and 1 cup of water, and bring to a gentle boil.  Add the lemongrass stalk and 1 teaspoon salt and reduce the heat to low and simmer until the curry thickens and coats the back of a spoon, 10-15 minutes. Discard the lemongrass stalk.

Just before serving, stir in the shrimp and lemon juice and simmer until the shrimp are opaque throughout, 3-4 minutes.  Transfer to a warmed bowl, garnish if desired, and serve at once!

Don’t forget to head over to Charity’s place to see what she’s crafted out of coconut!