My herb garden has been beyond fabulous this year. I wanted to make sure that I made this dish before my beautiful basil faded away.
This dish was described as being “more addictive than Doritos.” 🙂 The recipe is from Bon Appétit, contributed by Andy Baraghani. I don’t usually follow a recipe precisely, but did on this occasion because I had never used Fresno chilies. Oops. The dish was tasty but beyond spicy. I regret not tasting my chilies for heat intensity. I will certainly do that next time, and will follow the recipe as written with milder chilies or remove the seeds and ribs for spicier chilies.
The spicy-sweet sauce was delicious and I still enjoyed it. This dish also comes together very quickly and is perfect for a weeknight meal. We ate it over brown Basmati rice with tomato slices on the side. The tomatoes really helped offset the heat. 🙂
Yield: Serves 3 to 4
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3 Fresno chiles, coarsely chopped (seeds and ribs removed, to taste)
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6 garlic cloves, smashed
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1/4 cup granulated sugar
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2 T fish sauce
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1 tsp kosher salt
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4 T vegetable or grapeseed oil, divided
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1 lb large shrimp, peeled, deveined, patted dry
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2 cups basil leaves (about 1 bunch)
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lime wedges, for serving
- 1 cup of rice (cooked in 2 cups stock or water), for serving
- Blend chiles, garlic, sugar, fish sauce, salt, and 3 T oil in a blender until smooth. (I used a Vitamix.)
- Transfer marinade to a medium bowl and add shrimp; toss to coat. Let sit 10 minutes.
- Heat remaining 1 T oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high.
- Using tongs, just when oil begins to smoke and working in batches if needed, add shrimp, leaving marinade behind, and cook, turning once, until lightly charred around the edges, about 1 minute per side.
- Remove pan from heat. Add basil and toss vigorously until basil is wilted.
- Transfer shrimp mixture to a platter. Serve with rice and lime wedges alongside.
thebrookcook 
Time for Shrimp! 🍂🍤
Spicy shrimp! 😉