That little phrase just flat out describes how much of this summer has been across the country. “Butt-stinkin’ hot!” Record temperatures. Humidity. Miserable for man and beast alike.
First time I heard that description, we were out and about with step-daughter Megan when she was about 16. It was a hot late summer day in SoCal—over 100. And she piped up that it was “butt-stinkin’ hot”. Now we’re not prudes and Meg wasn’t known to use coarse language but there was nothing we could do but let out one of those spittin’ and splutterin’ laughs and agree with her.
A lot of times when it’s that hot I just don’t want to heat up the kitchen. I’ll stoke up the grill and do something simple—even if it’s just turning a package of wieners into carbon coated tubes of mystery meat that we slap in a bun and slather with mustard.
But not too long ago, it was hot but I wanted to cook something nice for my wife for dinner. I had a bag of frozen shrimp that were already peeled, headed, de-veined and cooked that I could toss in the colander and thaw and I took it from there to come up with something quick and simple and light. And the sauce is fresh, light ingredients. Here’s what I came up with:
Recipe: Shrimp and Spaghetti
Summary: Try this shrimp and spaghetti recipe when it’s hot and humid. It’s quick and easy and it’ll cool you off.
Ingredients
- ½ lb shrimp 30-40 count
- 1 medium tomato
- ¾ cup orange or yellow bell pepper
- ½ cup onion
- 1 jalapeno
- 1 tsp minced garlic
- ½ cup chicken broth
- 1 lime—juice only
- 2 tbsp butter or margarine
- 1 tbsp Dried basil
- ½ tsp cumin
- Salt
- Cooking oil
- 12 oz. appx. Spaghetti
Instructions
- Get out a skillet and your spaghetti pot. Get out your cutting board and chef’s knife and a colander along with a couple of medium bowls.
- Fill pot half full of water, add 1-2 tbsp salt and turn burner on high.
- If using frozen, pre-cooked shrimp put into the colander and spray cold water over the shrimp to get them thawing. Then pinch the tail shell off.
- Cut the bell pepper, tomato, onion and jalapeno. (Put the tomato in a separate bowl)
- Put skillet on stove and turn heat to medium high (about 5 o’clock on the dial on an electric stove).
- When pasta water comes to a boil, add the pasta. Cook until nicely al dente and drain. Give it a quick squirt of oil (olive preferred for this) to separate it and add flavor.
- Squirt a 1-2 tbsp oil into skillet and add the bell peppers, onion and jalapeno. Let is cook for a couple of minutes and give it a couple shakes of salt and pepper.
- Add the garlic (I use minced, jarred because it’s cheap and easy to use).
- Add the chicken broth and cumin—why cumin? Because we like cumin! (We also like dried crushed red peppers which is good in this dish too if you want a bit of heat).
- Turn heat down to medium (6 o’clock).
- Add the tomatoes and the shrimp and stir everything up really good. Then add the butter/margarine. Let everything come together.
- Taste and add salt, pepper, cumin if needed.
- Let this simmer for a few minutes to thicken. If it’s not thickening you can make a cornstarch slurry of 1 tbsp cornstarch and 2 tbsp cold water, stir really good and pour into the sauce.
- Plate by putting about half the spaghetti down with the sauce and shrimp on top
Preparation time: 10 minute(s)
Cooking time: 15 minute(s)
Number of servings (yield): 2
My rating 5 stars: ★★★★★ 1 review(s)
Serve this with a garden salad and some garlic bread and it’s a terrific summer dinner. It’s got flavor and texture and a bit of acid from the tomato and lime juice. Add the shrimp and you’ve got the light flavors of theCaribbeangoing on in your mouth. It’ll fill you up, give you a special meal with a special lady (or gentleman) and put a smile on your face. It don’t get any better’n that.
The Cheap Bastid Test: How’d we do? This will cost more than many of my dishes because the shrimp runs $8 a pound. But I used ½ lb. for 2 of us for a cost of $4. Add the fresh vegetables at another $1 along with $.10 for the lime, $.25 worth of chicken broth and $1 for the pasta. Total cost: $6.35 for 2. (Double this up for feeding 4 and it would cost about $11). But for the 2 of us, it cost $3.18 each—a bit pricey by Cheap Bastid’s usual standard but this dish would cost about $15 apiece in a restaurant.
That’s the Cheap Bastid Way: Eat Good. Eat Cheap. Be Grateful!
This sounds delicious. I have made something similar but not with the jalapeno and cumin. That variation might be a great option. Thanks for a great idea!
Sheila–we use cumin in pretty much everything. I love the aroma it gives off as it cooks and it’s flavor. And, I’ve pretty much quit using green bell pepper using jalapeno instead–when you take the seeds and veins out, it’s really pretty mild. Thanks. I’m glad you enjoyed the post.
Hi! I’ve been reading your web site for a while now and finally got the courage to go ahead and give you a shout out from Austin Texas! Just wanted to tell you keep up the great work!