Coconut Shrimp

 I have a confession - I am a terrible cook! For the most part, my meals suck, I cannot wing a meal. Now that we have a beautiful kitchen, its about time I learned to cook. I can however follow a recipe - my hope is that if I follow/ learn enough recipes - I can then "wing" some meals that will not taste awful.

OK, This recipe is from AllRecipes.com, you can find the original by clicking here.
I added some ingredients and I have some notes for next time - and there will be a next time!

Ingredients

• 4 cloves garlic, peeled
• 1 (1 inch) piece fresh ginger root
• 1 fresh jalapeno pepper, seeded
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
•  
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1 pound medium shrimp - peeled and deveined
• 2 tomatoes, seeded and diced
• 1 cup coconut milk
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil leaves
• added:
• 1/2 cup green onion, chopped
• 1 cup pre-cooked asparagus (from yesterdays post - I had too much for the salad)
• 1/2 cup snow peas - cut in half
• 
  

Directions

1. Combine the garlic, ginger, jalapeno, salt and turmeric in the container of a food processor or blender. Process to a smooth paste. Set aside.
2. Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add onion, and cook until translucent, stirring frequently. Mix in the spice paste, and cook for a few minutes to release the oils.
3. Add shrimp, and cook for a few minutes until pink, then add the tomatoes **(I added the green onion at this time) and coconut milk. Cover, and simmer for about 5 minutes, then remove the lid and simmer an additional 5 minutes to thicken the sauce. Stir in the fresh basil during the last minute of cooking. **(The asparagus and snow peas were put in at the same time as the basil.)

Nutritional Information 

Amount Per Serving  Calories: 289 | Total Fat: 20.1g | Cholesterol: 173mg

Notes for next time: I did not find that this recipe had any heat - I served it on coconut rice - which was delicious, but when I make this again, I need to try doubling the first ingredients to get more flavor other then coconut. I did not get the paste that the recipe creator describes in step one, but it didn't matter, still cooked up great. I also did not get the thickening as described in step three, but again, with the rice - didn't really matter, still was great.

Anyone else have a recipe like this? Got any tips for me?
Cheers,
Carolyn

***I took the left overs for this to work today - and it was gross. The snow peas were too soft and the flavor was overwhelming. I ended up eating just enough to not be hungry and tossed the rest (terrible I know, but I just could not stomach it). So sad. =(  Note to self - no snow peas!!!