We returned to our old friend Great Bowls of Fire for this spicy shrimp and rice dish. This is another one of the “huge portion” recipes that we love. Made it hotter by adding hot sauce just before serving.

Firecracker Shrimp Jambalaya
—————————–
1 1/4 cups long-grain white rice
1 tbsp canola oil
1 large yellow onion, diced
1 green bell pepper, seeded, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 fresh cayenne chili, seeded and minced
1 lb medium shrimp, peeled
1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
2 tbsp fresh chopped parsley
2 tsp oregano
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp salt
2-3 tsp bottled red hot sauce

Cook rice with 2 1/2 cups water until all liquid is absorbed. Fluff and set aside.
Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large saucepan. Add the onion, bell pepper, celery, garlic, and chili pepper and cook for five minutes over medium heat. Stir in the shrimp and cook an additional 4 minutes. Add the crushed tomatoes, 1/2 cup water, and the remaining ingredients and bring to a simmer. Cook 15-20 minutes over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and stir in the rice. Let sit for 5 minutes, then serve.

4 Servings

There’s been a mini-bottle of bubbly sitting unopened in our fridge for a while, so when we saw that Great Bowls of Fire had a recipe for a spicy risotto that used champagne and was chock full of mushrooms, we had to try it. Neither one of us have risotto very often, so I’m not sure how this one rates when compared to others, but we both really enjoyed the creamy texture and the bite from the spice — the champagne was subtle, but you definitely could taste it. (In case you’re wondering, the risotto is that color due to the turmeric that’s in the recipe.)

We shouldn’t have to remind anyone that we’re big fans of Jay Solomon’s Great Bowls of Fire — most are one-pot meals, totally bursting with flavor, and low-fat, to boot. The recipe Lisa made tonight is a perfect example. Shiitake mushrooms, tofu, chicken, carrots, and spinach in a broth made with chicken stock, hot peppers, and soy sauce. All served over some wide rice noodles. Smells, looks, and tastes fantastic. This could just as easily be made using shrimp, or by ditching the meat altogether.

Lisa made this posole tonight, the only one of the four we hadn’t yet tried from the Great Bowls of Fire cookbook. Note that the posole recipes in GBOF have a thick tomato base, whereas most recipes are broth-based. This is a vegetarian version, with black beans and cayenne peppers. We discovered that some Chipotle Tabasco really enhanced the flavor.

Lisa sez, “This needs meat”.

See also:
Poblano Chicken Posole
Green Posole Stew

Tonight’s posole is pretty similar to this one from a few weeks ago, but instead of pork and tomatillos, this one uses chicken and roasted poblano peppers, which add a really nice smoky flavor. Great Bowls of Fire contains one more posole recipe that we haven’t tried yet, but I’m sure we’ll get to it at some point!