Chocolate and Biscuit Dessert Salami

July 09, 2015 by Aurel Pop in Dessert

This blog post is dedicated to the most amazing grandparents that a child can ask for, Bunu and Buna.

The 9th of July is a special day for me- it's my favorite grandpa's birthday. Bunu was one of the most special people in my life and he would've turned 83 today had the Alzheimer’s not taken him away from us last year. Chocolate and Biscuit Dessert Salami, or Salam de biscuiti as we call it in Romania, was his favorite dessert. On my latest trip to Romania, I wanted to prepare this recipe with my grandma, Buna, to honor Bunu. This recipe belongs to my grandmother, who's been using it for years and years, making generations of kids happy.

Even though it was great seeing Buna and cooking together, the trip to Romania wasn’t as happy and positive as my time in Hungary, mostly because it was very hard for me emotionally to visit my grandparents’ house and to deal the fact that my Bunu was gone. The house that I grew up in was missing its liveliest element- the man who loved me like no one else, my role model, Bunu. His fun and happy stories, some of them real, some of them fiction, were noticeably missing.

One story in particular is very special to me. I must’ve heard it hundreds of times- the story of the time I cut the roots of Bunu's kohlrabi seedlings as a token of revenge for a small argument that we had. It was the only time we actually ever had one.

This story was Bunu’s favorite way of bringing joy to the table during our Sunday lunches. Everyone in our family knew it inside out. There were times when some would leave the room to get away from THE story. I never missed one. I loved to hear it, not only because my grandpa was such a gifted storyteller that he always made me feel like it was the first time I heard it, but also because I knew that he found extreme passion and joy in telling it. It was his favorite and it always made him and everyone around him happy.

The story itself is silly, yet still manages to bring a smile (and now a tear) to my face. I hope I can do it justice by retelling it here, but I know nothing can compare to the way he narrated it.

It goes a little something like this: like every summer, I was spending my break at my grandparents’ place. I loved it there- they had a big yard where I played all day, a beautiful garden, two big cherry trees that I climbed, and a chicken coup with dozens of chicken and roosters. Buna would cook whatever I craved, so for this little fatso it was heaven on earth.

One Saturday, Bunu and I were riding Bunu's bike back home from our usual Saturday trip to his river house. As we were riding we ran into one of Bunu's best friends, Lajos, who he loved showing off to about gardening. The two old men were always competing. They were like Jack Lemon and Water Matthau in "Grumpy Old Men". I remember Bunu going on and on about his kohlrabi seedlings and Lajos promised to come by later to see them in person.

Before I get further into the story, let me stop here for a moment to say that Bunu was the kind of guy who loved bragging about everything. Just to give you an idea- when I got my first promotion at work, he told everyone on his street that I was promoted to director level although I was just promoted from an intern to a full time entry level engineer. Just like any of his stories, his bragging was a bit inflated.

When we got home, Bunu and I had had an argument over him wanting to take a nap and me wanting to sing him a song- "Lipe its lipe”, better known as "Life is life” to y’all English speakers. I was being an obnoxious little punk and Bunu raised his voice and told me to go play outside until after he napped. I didn’t take to that order well, but complied.

While I was dismissed out in the yard, I found a bland rusty knife next to the chicken coop where Bunu kept his gardening tools. Now what does a 4 years old do when he finds himself with a knife in the garden while angry at grandpa? Cut the roots of his seedings, of course. Not all of them, just the kohlrabi he had just been bragging about to his friend earlier that day. I took the knife, whacked the roots, hid them, and put the seedling back in the ground as if nothing happened.

After supper, Bunu had the habit of spending hours in his garden. First he would water each and every plant with rain water he collected and then he would just sit and admire his gorgeous plants from his bench. He would even play classical music on his old radio sometimes, so that the eggplant, tomatoes and their other vegetable friends would grow faster.

As he was sitting there that evening waiting for his buddy to arrive, he saw that the kohlrabi seedlings started wilting. He got up, watered them again and waited a bit longer to see if they would perk up. It didn't help. So he pulled one of the seedlings out of the ground. When he saw that the roots were missing he thought that he either overwatered them and the roots had rotted, or that moles attacked his garden. Then he took a better look and realized that the roots were neither rotten, nor chewed by moles, but carefully cut. Then he saw the knife close to the crime scene.

My grandma, Buna,  proudly posing with my grandpa's favorite dessert- Chocolate and Biscuit Salami that we made together — My grandma, Buna, proudly posing with my grandpa's favorite dessert- Chocolate and Biscuit Salami that we made together

I saw all of this while hiding in the cherry tree. I watched and savored my sweet revenge. Bunu spotted me and chased me around the backyard and house. I ran to Buna who protected me, although I know Bunu would have not done anything to harm me. If anything, he would have made wash his bike or help him pull weeds out of his garden.

And this is the story he found extreme joy telling. He said it was the best prank anyone has ever pulled on him.

This is the story that Bunu told me last time we talked. It was over Skype a couple of days before he passed away. He had Alzheimer’s and even though he barely remembered the people around him or the house he lived in, he recognized me and told me OUR favorite story all over again. La multi ani, Bunutule! Te iubesc, mosule!

Chocolate and Biscuit Dessert Salami

Serves 6-8
Prep time: 25 minutes
Cook time: 5 minutes
Inactive time: 1 hour

Ingredients

1 lb tea biscuits, roughly chopped
3/4 cup water
4 TBS cocoa, unsweetened
7 oz sugar
1 TBS rum extract
7 oz butter, unsalted
4 oz walnuts, roasted and roughly chopped
1 cup sour cherries, roughly chopped (or regular cherries, apricots or Turkish Delight)

Instructions

Place biscuits in a food processor and pulse a few times until the biscuits are crumbled. Don't overdo it, as you don't want to turn them into biscuit powder.
In a medium sauce pan mix water, cocoa, sugar and rum. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Stir well to combine and cook for 3-4 minutes. Make sure there are no lumps in your chocolate mixture. Remove from the heat and set aside.
Add butter to the pan and stir until it melts. Slowly add biscuits, walnuts and cherries and still until combined. Make sure everything is evenly coated in chocolate.
Lay a long sheet of thick plastic wrap on you work station. Place the biscuit mixture in the center. Mold the mixture into a 4 inch wide and 12-15 inch long log. Wrap it tightly in plastic wrap, roll it a few times to give it a salami shape and then twist the ends of the wrap to seal. Place it in the fridge for at least one hour.
Before serving remove the plastic wrap and let it sit at room temperature for about 5 minutes. You can even roll the chocolate salami in coconut or almond flakes. Cut into 1/2 inch thick slices and serve.

Ricotta Bacon Stuffed Pain Perdu with Blueberry Flambé

July 02, 2015 by Aurel Pop in Breakfast/Brunch

After ten awesome days in Singapore I had to say goodbye to this amazing country. I knew Singapore was not going to disappoint me and this trip just confirmed what I already knew- I love this country. I also love its people: the food hawkers, the vibrant and lively city, the mix of races and cultures that live together in harmony. It’s a country that seems to have everything figured out. People are happy- from the taxi drivers to the operators on the manufacturing floor where I worked— everyone told me the same thing: that they are proud and happy to be living in Singapore.

Although I worked long hours, I made sure that food wasn’t neglected. During lunch breaks, I asked the engineers that I worked with to take me to the closest food hawkers. Hawker centers are great and filled with food stalls that serve delicious and fresh dishes. If you go to Singapore you don’t want to miss out. They are cheap and have a great variety of cuisines: Chinese, Malay, Indian, Japanese, Indonesian and even Thai. During my stay in Singapore, I haven’t had a single mediocre meal. All of them were great. I re-visited a few of the places that Roni and I checked out while we were here in January. Even though my focus was to explore other places and discover hidden gems, I couldn’t skip the good old Original Peanut Pancake stall in Tanglin Halt, Bismillah Biryani in Little India or Tian Tian at the Maxwell Food Hawker Center.

I mentioned in a few of my previous posts that in Romania and Hungary, breakfast is a very important meal of the day. There is a saying in Romanian that tells you to eat like a king for breakfast, like a servant for lunch and like a beggar for dinner. Today’s recipe follows that logic. One of these toasts will fill you up for a long time. You’ll get a taste of sweet, savory and tart at the same time.

I came up with this recipe on a rough Sunday morning. I was hungover after playing Cards Against Humanity and drinking until 4am (I think) with our couchsurfers from New Zealand, Naomi and Neil. On days like that (when I feel like crap after having that one extra drink that I shouldn’t have had), only a filling breakfast can fix me. I need protein, carbs, fat, sugar and some fruit to feel less guilty and more healthy. This recipe has them all: cheese, bacon, bread, maple syrup and blueberries.

As I was browsing through the kitchen trying to puzzle together the Holy Five (protein, carbs, fat, sugar and fruit) that would cure the hungover beast inside of me, I stumbled upon bacon, eggs, blueberries, some leftover ricotta cheese from the previous night’s lasagna cooking with Neil and a loaf of challah bread. Home-baked challah. Home-baked bread isn’t something that you’ll find in our household, but our amazing couch surfers baked it for us. I’m not ashamed to admit that I was a little bit scared of baking until Neil showed me how easy it was and taught me how to make ciabatta and challah.

Making this awesome breakfast/brunch shouldn’t take longer than 45 minutes regardless of cooking skills and experience in the kitchen. It’s easy to prepare, yet delicious and filling. So what are you waiting for? Go to the store, buy what you don't have on hand, and start cooking. You have a long weekend and plenty of time to kill ahead. Maybe even a hangover to kill, too. Happy 4th of July and bon appetite!

Ricotta Bacon Stuffed Pain Perdu with Blueberry Flambé

Serves 4-6
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

Blueberry flambé

1 large orange, juiced
3/4 cup maple syrup (or brown sugar)
1/2 lemon, zested
1 1/2 pints fresh blueberries
1 stick cinnamon
1 1/4oz rum
1 tsp potato starch (optional)

Pain Perdu

6 slices bacon
1 cup ricotta
1/4 cup parmesan, freshly grated
1/2 cup parsley, finely chopped
2 TBS chives, finely chopped
1 TBS thyme, finely chopped
1/2 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
kosher salt, to taste
3 eggs, pasture raised
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
1/4 cup parmesan, freshly grated
1/2 cup roasted walnuts, optional
4-6 slices of challah bread (about 3/4 inch thick)
2 TBS butter
1 TBS powdered sugar
1/2 cup roasted walnuts

Instructions

Start with the blueberry flambé. In a medium sauce pan or deep skillet, combine orange juice, maple syrup and lemon zest. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Add blueberries and cinnamon stick. Cook for about 5 minutes. Pour rum over the blueberries. Using a matchstick ignite it. Let the flame die out and cook for another 5 minutes. Congratulations, you just made a blueberry flambé.
If the sauce is too thin, scoop out 3-4 tablespoons of blueberry sauce into a small bowl. Add the potato starch and mix well. Return the starchy sauce to the pan and give it a stir so it mixes with the rest of the sauce. When the flambé thickened, remove from the heat and set aside.
The next step is the crispy bacon. Lay bacon slices in a cold skillet. Make sure they don’t overlap. Heat the skillet over medium-high heat. Cook bacon on each side until it becomes golden brown and crispy. Transfer bacon from the skillet to a paper towel lined plate or wire rack. Save the bacon fat. When it cooled down, crumble bacon into bite size pieces.
Now the filling. In a medium sized mixing bowl combine ricotta, bacon crumbles, parmesan, parsley, chives and thyme. Mix well and add 2 TBS bacon fat. Sprinkle black pepper and salt. Taste and adjust seasoning. Set cheese mixture aside.
In another bowl beat eggs. Add milk, parmesan and a pinch of salt and pepper.
Spread about 1/4 inch cheese mixture over one side of the bread. Top it with another slice. Dip bread in egg mixture. Let it soak for about 1 minute on each side. You don’t want your pain perdu to be dry.
Heat butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. When the butter starts foaming place bread in the skillet. Fry for 4-5 minutes on each side, until it becomes golden brown. You can add extra butter each time you flip the bread as it helps achieving richer flavor and color.
Sprinkle powdered sugar on top and serve it with the blueberry flambé and roasted walnuts. Enjoy!

NOTES

Contains alcohol! Handle the open flames with care.

Bacon Wrapped Venison With Balsamic Fig Reduction

June 25, 2015 by Aurel Pop in Main Dish

I'm now in Singapore, but my mind is still in Hungary. I love going there and getting to see old friends that I worked with for 4 years before moving to Austin. It always fills me with joy being around them. I wasn't able to let all of them know that I would be coming home, so when I ran into them in the office hallway or cafeteria they were surprised and happy to see me. We just start talking and it always feels as though I never left, even though we hadn't seen each others in years. The conversations start where they been left off years ago.

The thing that I love to do the most while I'm in Hungary - apart from hanging out with old friends- is eat. Eating is sacred in Hungary and meat, in any form and shape, is the ultimate food. Game meat is especially common in Eastern European cuisine.

Although my dad and grandfather were big into hunting, it never turned into something that I was interested in. As a kid I joined dad on a few of his hunting trips, but I was more fascinated by the nature than killing animals. As kids our role was to herd the game towards the hunters. I shot only a few times in Romania, since firearm restrictions are a lot more strict. I never actually shot anything, but came close to shooting a duck once. Another time I saw a deer about 50 feet away from me but when I pointed the gun in its direction and saw its big wet eyes, I couldn't pull the trigger. My dad wasn't happy with that, so he stopped taking me hunting.

What I loved most about dad's hunting trips was that we never returned empty-handed even though we didn't always shoot something. If we saw beautiful mushrooms, we'd pick them. I learned which ones were edible and which one were not from my mom, who read several books and was able to recognize the good ones. Other times we'd pick wild berries. Or sometimes dad would shoot pike fish. Pike is well known to spawn really close to the surface where they are visible from the shore. That's when my dad would shoot them and bring them home.

I know game meat is not for everyone. Roni, for example, will not eat any game meat, no matter how well prepared it is. Venison tenderloins and backstraps are absolutely delicious and if you haven't tried them, please do because you're missing out on something extraordinary. I prefer marinating them before cooking to remove the gamey taste and infuse them with great aromas. When preparing game meat in Romania and Hungary, juniper and nutmeg are always present, as they help bring out the sweetness of the meats that makes them so delicious. Game meat pairs really well with fruity sauces or reductions. If you have fresh berries on hand you could use that instead of figs.

As for a side dish, I prefer mashed potatoes with pan roasted meats. I also found parsnips and broccoli in the fridge so that's how this mash came to be. Enjoy!

Bacon Wrapped Venison With Balsamic Fig Reduction

Serves 4-6
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 45 minutes
Inactive time: 1/2 day

Ingredients

Marinade

1/4 cup white wine
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
10 juniper seeds
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp black pepper, freshly ground

Venison

1 1/2 lbs venison backstrap, cleaned (or tenderloin)
1/2 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
8-10 slices bacon (or prosciutto)
2 TBS peanut oil (or sunflower seed oil)
2 TBS unsalted butter
1 clove garlic, crushed
1-2 sprigs fresh oregano (or rosemary, thyme, or tarragon)
salt, to taste

Balsamic Fig Reduction

1 small shallot, finely chopped
1/4 cup balsamic vinaigrette
1/2 cup dry Solera sherry
1/3 cup beef stock
10-12 fresh figs (or 1/2 cup fig preserve with lemon juice to reduce the sweetness)
1/2 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
2 TBS unsalted butter
salt, to taste

Parsnip and Broccoli Mashed Potatoes

1/2 lbs parsnips, peeled and diced
1 1/2 lbs Yukon Gold Potatoes, peeled and roughly diced
1/2 lbs broccoli florets
1 1/2 TBS salt, for boiling the vegetables
3 TBS butter (or basting fat from the venison or a mix of both)
1/2 cup milk (or heavy cream)
1 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
salt, to taste

Instructions

Mix all marinade ingredients in a ziplock bag along with the venison backstrap. Seal the bag and shake well. Put the backstrap in the refrigerator and let it marinade overnight.
Preheat oven to 360F (180C) degrees. Put the parsnip, potatoes and broccoli into a large pot. Cover with water, add 1 1/2 TBS of salt and bring to a boil.
Remove venison from the refrigerator, pat dry and discard the marinade. Sprinkle fresh ground pepper on it. Lay bacon or prosciutto overlapping each other about a quarter of an inch on a plastic wrap. Place the venison on the top and slowly lift the plastic wrap starting from the top end. The venison will start rolling over the bacon. Wrap everything tightly in plastic plastic wrap. Set it aside and let it rest for 10-15 minutes at room temperature.
By this time the vegetables should be boiling. Reduce the heat to medium and let it simmer for 20-25 minutes until the vegetables are easily pierced with a fork. Set an alarm if you have to because you'll be multitasking.
Add oil to a heavy bottomed or cast iron skillet.
Heat oil over medium-high heat until it starts shimmering. When it's almost smoking add wrapped venison and roast it for 3-4 minutes on each side until the bacon is crispy. If using prosciutto you may need to cook it for about 2 minutes on each side.
Reduce heat to medium, add butter, aromatic herbs and crushed garlic and baste venison wrap for 5 more minutes. Scoop out 3-4 tablespoons of grease and save it in a small bowl. You'll need it for the cumberland sauce and the mash.
Remove skillet from heat and place it in the middle shelf of the oven. Cook for about 10 minutes or less. If you have a thermometer make sure the inside temperature of the venison is not higher than 125F (50C) degrees.
While the meat is in the oven, start the cumberland sauce by adding half of the saved fat to a small or medium sauce pan. Heat it up over medium heat and add shallots. Sweat them for 2-3 minutes and add the sherry and vinaigrette. Bring to a boil and let it simmer for another 2-3 minutes. Add the beef stock and cook for 3-4 more minutes. Add the figs and lightly crush them with a spatula or spoon. Cook for 5-6 minutes, remove from the heat and whisk in the butter until the sauce thickens. Taste and adjust seasoning.
Transfer venison to a plate and wrap it in tin foil and let it rest for 5 minutes. This is an essential step for every meat that you roast. If you don't rest it the meat will bleed when sliced losing the delicious and precious juices.
By this time your vegetables are tender as well. Drain them well and while they are still warm, add butter (or grease from the venison basting sauce), cream, and black pepper. Using a potato masher or a hand mixer, mash the vegetables to your desired consistency. If you like it creamier add more butter and mash them longer. I prefer my mash chunky so I always use the masher. Taste the potato mash and adjust saltiness. You will need more salt than usually because of the sweetness of the parsnips and broccoli.
Cut venison into medallions and serve with the fig reduction. Serve with parsnip and broccoli mash, or alternately with asparagus, roasted rustic potatoes or creamy polenta with cheese.

NOTES

I use a plastic wrap to help with wrapping the bacon tightly around the venison. It also saves me some time as I don't need to wrap the bacon strips around the venison one-by-one.
If you are not using a heavy skillet, the cooking times may need to be less. I prefer cast iron because the heat is distributed evenly and the shifts in temperature aren't that sudden when reducing/increasing heat under it.

Grilled Fruit with Zabaione

June 21, 2015 by Aurel Pop in Dessert

There is nothing I hate more than not sticking to the commitments I make. Back in April I made a commitment to post on gourmetcubicle twice a week, but this past Thursday I skipped a post for the first time. As I mentioned last week, I am on a crazy round the world trip for work and my free time has been limited.

I left Hungary today and I'm in Amsterdam right now waiting for my connection to Singapore. I have 30 minutes to write a short, simple and sweet post, just like the recipe that you're about to read. It is hard to write about fruit right now as I kind of got used to eating huge amounts of meat this week.

As mentioned in previous posts, Hungarians and Romanians don't bother with salads and sides, rather they go straight for the meat. Meat is like the ambrosia for the gods around here. So I am happy to get to eat seafood and more exotic food for the next few days in Singapore. Then I'll go to Tokyo where ramen and yakitori will compensate for the lighter fare I'll have in Singapore.

This recipe is for anyone who, like me, prefers fruity and refreshing desserts. I got the idea of using zabaione during a free cooking class I attended at the Cordon Bleu school not long ago.

I grilled what I had on hand that day. The decision to use white wine instead of Marsala may sound like an odd choice, but before you start judging me, give it a shot. It will blow you away. They are calling my name on the loud speaker for boarding. I think it's a good time to leave you to the recipe. See ya!

Grilled Fruit With Zabaione

Serves 6-8
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 15 minutes

Ingredients

Grilled Fruit

1 pineapple, cored and cut into 1 inch rings
1 lb peaches, halved and pitted
1 lb prunes, halved and pitted
1 TBS sugar

Zabaione

6 eggs yolks
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 lemon, zested
1 cup dry white wine

Instructions

Heat grill to high. Place fruit on the grill, the cut side down and sprinkle only the plums with a tablespoon of sugar. Grill plums and peaches for about 2-3 minutes until slightly caramelized. Flip the peaches and plums and grill until they are heated through, about 1-2 minutes. If you grill them any longer they'll become mushy. The pineapple will need more time, about 5-6 minutes on each side. Remove from the grill.
Place double boiler over medium high heat. If using the saucepan-bowl combo, fill up the saucepan with an inch or inch and a half water and bring it to a boil over medium-high heat.
Combine the egg yolks, sugar, vanilla and lemon zest in the bowl and whisk vigorously until the mixture becomes pale and slightly frothy. Place bowl over the saucepan filled with water slowly pour the wine into the bowl, whisking vigorously again until the mixture becomes slightly thick and creamy, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and let it cool.
Sprinkle just a little bit of zabaione over the grilled fruit and serve the rest in a dipping bowl on the side. If you're left with zabaione, keep it in the refrigerator. It will stay good for up to 2-3 days. Enjoy!

NOTES

For the zabaione you'll need either a double boiler or an improvisation consisting of a glass or metal heatproof bowl and a saucepan. If using the latter, fill up the saucepan with an inch or inch and a half water. When the bowl is placed over the saucepan the water should not touch the bottom of it.

Pickled Shrimp

June 15, 2015 by Aurel Pop in Appetizer

I flew in to Hungary a few days ago and I seem to have arrived at the perfect time, because the cherry trees are loaded with gorgeous crisp cherries. Watermelons, raspberries and strawberries are all also in season which makes me even happier.

I’m spending the first couple of days with family at my sister’s home in a small town near Budapest, mostly eating and beating the jet-leg.

I asked my mom and dad to bring my two favorite cheeses, Burduf and Telemea from Romania as well as some Kabanos sausage when they came to pick me up from the airport in Budapest. I've been eating that with fresh tomatoes and peppers from my sister's in-laws' garden for the last couple of days. I love everything about the Eastern European cuisine, even though I can't eat as much as I used to while I lived there. Although delicious, Eastern European food is very heavy and filling. If you're following me on Instagram you've seen what I'm talking about. If you're not yet, now it's the right time to start doing it.

Hungarians and Romanians seem to be on a reverse eating pattern than Americans. Here we eat more for breakfast, less for lunch and even less for dinner. Typical breakfasts consist of amazing cured meats, sausages, liver pâté and boiled eggs served with freshly slices onions, peppers, tomatoes and cucumbers, loafs of fresh crusty bread and lots of cheeses. It's heaven on earth!

One thing that’s missing in our cuisine is seafood, although freshwater fish dishes aren't rare at all. The Hungarian Halászlé (Fisherman's Soup), Harcsapaprikás (Catfish Paprikash) and the Romanian Grilled Trout and Grilled Zander are just a few of the most famous ones. I plan on posting recipes for all these here in the future.

Most saltwater fish are frozen, and not as fresh as in other parts of the world. You can find frozen salmon, cod, and other fish, but shrimps, crabs or lobsters are very difficult to come by. I ate shrimp for the first time when I studied in Virginia during college. I loved its sweet and briny flavor as well as its firm and crisp texture.

I came up with this recipe when I made Cucumber and Avocado Gazpacho for a few friends that we had over for dinner. I wanted to surprise (impress) them with something that they most likely haven't had before and I needed a protein to accompany the creamy and sweet gazpacho. It turned out great and the dinner was a huge success. It also makes for a great appetizer or party snack on its own.

I usually store the pickled shrimp in mason jars in the refrigerator where they will keep for a long time. I love to eat the pickled onions and garlic, too. Enjoy!

PIckled Shrimp

Yields 8 servings
Prep time: 30 minutes
Cook time: 5 minutes
Inactive time: 1 day

Ingredients

Boiling mixture

1 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
3 cups water
3 bay leaves
4 cloves, whole
1 tsp coriander seeds, whole or ground
1 tsp red chili flakes, dried
1 tsp mustard seeds, whole
2 cardamom seeds, whole
1 tsp black peppercorns, whole
2 tsp salt

1 cup ice
2 cups water
1 1/2 pound shrimp (16/20 count size), peeled and deveined

Pickling mixture

1 cup rice vinegar
1 cup apple cider
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup lemon juice
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
5 cloves garlic, halved
1 tsp mustard seeds
2 tsp peppercorns, whole
1 tsp red chili flakes, dried
2 tsp salt

Instructions

In a medium sauce pan combine all the boiling mixture ingredients and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium and simmer for 5-10 minutes.
Pour hot liquid over shrimps and keep them in the marinade until they turn pink around 3-4 minutes. Remove them with a sieve from the hot liquid and drop them in an ice-bath (1 cup ice, 2 cups water). Make sure you don't keep the shrimp in the hot liquid for more than 4 minutes, because it will overcook.
Remove the shrimp from the iced water. Peel and devein if you didn't do it at the beginning.
In a 24 oz mason jar combine all the ingredients for pickling mixture. Put the lid on the jar and shake vigorously until all the ingredients are well combined. Add shrimp to the mason jar, put the lid on and refrigerate for at least a whole day.

NOTES

Serve with olive oil and smoked paprika sprinkled on top. Pickled shrimp goes really well with the Cucumber and Avocado Gazpacho that I posted not long ago. It keeps for weeks in the fridge sealed in a mason jar.