The Sears Chef Challenge
The third of four events in the Sears Chef Challenge took place this weekend.
Sears Store, Orange, CA
I was cooking and teaching at the Sears store in Orange, California. Another terrific day, thanks to Linda Cooper and the Sears team. We were fortunate to have the vivacious Chef Rachelle Boucher in attendance. So good to finally meet her face to face as she definitely added her own special spice to things!
The Market Basket Surprise
This was a market basket event where the chefs were given three ingredients and asked to create their own unique recipe. The three ingredients were shrimp, jalapenos and hominy. I love working with shrimp and was thrilled that the shrimp basket won the vote on the Sears Chef Challenge website.
The Beauty of Shrimp
Shrimp are:
- Endlessly versatile – they can be prepared by many different cooking methods from grilled to broiled, pan roasted to sauteed, steamed, boiled, baked, fried or poached. Shrimp can be used as an appetizer or a main course, in soups, stews, salads, as fajitas, risotto, tossed with pasta, rolled into rice paper wrappers, and of course skewered for brochettes, just to name a few! Every cuisine from around the world offers shrimp dishes with their unique ingredients and flavors.
- Fast and easy to cook – what other ingredient tells you when it’s ready? When shrimp turn pink they are done, and it usually takes just a few minutes.
- Available year round – as most shrimp are frozen they are available year round. Even when you see them thawed and ready to go at the market, they usually arrive frozen and the store thaws them. Shrimp are sold by the count and come in many sizes from tiny bay shrimp to extra colossal shrimp weighing in at 2-3 ounces each. If you are not familiar preparing shrimp, visit What’s Cooking America for helpful information on buying and cooking shrimp.
Creating the Recipe – Shrimp, Hominy and Jalapenos
Notepad in hand I sat down and brainstormed ideas and ingredients for a dish with shrimp, jalapeno chiles and hominy. I wanted to create a recipe that was simple yet elegant, with ingredients that are easily available, and easily do-able for a home chef. A southwestern, “fresh-western” pattern began to emerge. I quickly had an idea what I wanted to do. Shrimp with a mixed vegetable side dish – hominy succotash.
Hominy
Hominy is made from corn kernels where the bran and germ layers have been removed. The kernels are dried, boiled, then soaked in lime until the kernels are plump. Available in both white and golden colors, hominy looks like puffy corn. Commonplace usages for hominy include grits in the South Eastern US and in Mexican dishes like Pozole and Menudo.
Succotash
Traditionally, succotash is a dish of corn and beans plus cream or milk and maybe butter to make it creamy and saucy. Many people think of succotash as corn and lima beans, although there are many variations. The term succotash has become a loose term for a mixed vegetable side dish. Historically it’s a Native American dish which was taught to newly arriving colonial settlers.
A few years ago I created a version of a succotash to go with my spiced apple-glazed pork tenderloin recipe. It included sweet red bell peppers, roasted corn kernels and edamame (soy beans), shallots, garlic, herbs and crisp crumbled bacon. All I had to do was switch the roasted corn to hominy for a new and different twist!
Kicking Up the Shrimp
Plain shrimp would never be able to compete with the talented chefs recipes in the Sears Chef Challenge, so I decided to marinate them in a versatile vinaigrette I created to go with a seared Ahi appetizer.
This vinaigrette has bright citrus flavors, jalapeno chile, fresh mint, a touch of honey for sweetness and a little Dijon mustard to help it emulsify. After marinating the shrimp just 30 minutes then grilling them, the shrimp were delicious to taste and a beautiful golden-pink color.
The vinaigrette even works as a finishing sauce for the dish. I had my recipes for event three!
Love In Action – The Saddleback Church Food Pantry
From today’s videotaping by Penny McLean of Small Potatoes Productions, a short compilation will be created and put on the Sears Chef Challenge website on June 26. Starting that day until July 10 you can go to the Sears Chef Challenge website and vote for your favorite chef (hopefully me!) each day.
Saddleback Food Pantry
If I win the Los Angeles semi-final round the Saddleback Church Food Pantry will receive a $5000 donation. That will help put food on the tables of hundreds of families in need in Orange County.
In May the one-year-old food pantry had a record number of guests serving 453 families and almost 1700 people. There is a large and growing need as so many people are out of work. That donation would buy a lot of food to help support hungry families.
The Sheepfold Shelter
As well, I would win an appliance of choice to donate to the The Sheepfold, an organization who helps abused women and their children get a new start in life.
This is why I want to win. It’s not for me. These organizations can win only if you vote and tell everyone you know to go online and vote as well!
Enjoy These Recipes
Please enjoy these recipes, from my kitchen to yours. The flavors are fresh and bright. It’s easy to prepare and wonderful going into summer. Try the shrimp without the succotash as a chilled appetizer and use the jalapeno-mint vinaigrette as the dipping sauce. The shrimp also make a great picnic dish packed right and kept chilled, and try the vinaigrette on salad greens, grilled or roast vegetables. It even works over cooked potatoes as in a potato salad.
Use large shrimp for this recipe, approximately 12-16 pieces per pound. The hominy succotash, a twist on the traditional dish, is a colorful accompaniment and also works well with pork tenderloin and chicken. Serve a side salad and drizzle with additional jalapeno-mint vinaigrette for a complete dinner. Look for hominy in the Mexican products aisle of your grocer. If you like smoky flavors like I do, finish this with smoked black pepper. Update Note – if you don’t care for hominy, try this with cooked quinoa instead.
Ingredients
- Shrimp
- 1 ½ pounds large uncooked shrimp, peeled and deveined, with tail section intact
- ¾ cup jalapeno-mint vinaigrette (see recipe below)
- Succotash
- 3 slices bacon
- 1 large shallot, sliced thin crosswise, rings separated
- 2 large garlic cloves, minced
- 1 large red bell pepper, seeded and cut into small dice
- 1 cup (6 ounces) shelled edamame (soy beans), fresh or frozen, thawed
- 1½ cups (8 ounces) canned hominy, drained and rinsed (or see note on quinoa)
- 2 tablespoons fresh chopped cilantro, plus extra for optional garnish
- 1 tablespoon fresh chopped oregano leaves
- 1 tablespoon fresh chopped chives or green onion
- Fresh ground black pepper*, to taste
- ½ cup jalapeno-mint vinaigrette (see recipe)
- Optional Garnish
- 1 medium jalapeno thinly sliced crosswise into rings
- 1 lime, cut into quarters
- Jalapeno-Mint Vinaigrette
- Yield: about 1 cup (makes extra)
- This brightly flavored and versatile vinaigrette is a true multi-tasker in the kitchen. Great on fresh salad greens, it also works well as a marinade or a sauce. Try it with fish, shellfish and chicken or toss it with roasted or grilled vegetables for additional flavor. The heat level in this recipe is mild. If you like things spicy, add more jalapeno to your taste preference or use chiles with a higher heat rating.
- Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons fresh squeezed orange juice, about 1 large orange
- 2 tablespoons fresh squeezed lime juice, about 2-3 limes
- 2 tablespoons finely minced shallots
- 1 pinch sea salt, plus more to season at end
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoons honey
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh mint
- 1 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1 small jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced fine
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
- Fresh ground black pepper, to taste
- Directions
- In a medium bowl mix together orange juice, lime juice, shallots and salt. Allow to stand for 10 minutes for shallots to soften.
- Stir in mustard, honey, mint, garlic and jalapeno.
- Add the olive oil to the bowl in a slow stream whisking to blend until emulsified.
- Taste and season with additional salt and fresh ground pepper as desired
- Vinaigrette can be made ahead and refrigerated. Enjoy chilled or at room temperature. Will keep for a day or two in the refrigerator but it’s best when the herbs are fresh.
Instructions
- Prepare the jalapeno-mint vinaigrette
- Place shrimp in a ziploc bag and add 3/4 cup of the marinade. Turn shrimp to coat and allow to stand at room temperature for 30-45 minutes. While shrimp marinate, start the succotash.
- In a medium fry pan over medium heat cook bacon until crisp. Remove from pan and drain on paper towels. Crumble or chop bacon and set aside. Drain bacon fat from pan leaving 1 tablespoon to cook shallots.
- Add shallot to pan and cook, stirring, until soft and translucent, 1-2 minutes. Add garlic and cook about 30 seconds. Add red bell pepper and cook until softened, about 3-4 minutes. Add edamame and hominy and heat through, about 5-7 minutes, stirring all ingredients to heat thoroughly.
- Remove pan from heat. Add herbs and crumbled bacon. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside and keep warm.
- Heat a grill pan* over medium heat. Remove shrimp from bag and discard marinade. Place shrimp in hot grill pan. Cook just until one side of shrimp are pink with grilled edges. Turn shrimp over and cook 1 minute more until just pink on second side. Remove from heat and keep warm.
- To serve, mound succotash in center of the plate, place shrimp on top and drizzle reserved vinaigrette over top and around edges of the plate. Serve extra vinaigrette as a sauce on the side.
- For garnish sprinkle extra chopped cilantro and a few thinly sliced jalapeno pieces around the edge. Add a lime quarter to each plate.
- *Note – If you don’t have a grill pan you can cook the shrimp on an outdoor grill, under the broiler, or in a fry pan over medium heat. If you enjoy smoky flavors, try smoked black pepper. It adds wonderful flavor to this dish.
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