Jayne: Fancy. That’s what Shrimp Cocktail still means to me. It’s what tells me I’m in a nice restaurant or at a high-end Christmas party. It elevates the whole menu to classy.
And then there’s Las Vegas – a place where you could have two distinctly different Shrimp Cocktails. The retro glam version and the $.99 all you can eat buffet special. In one day, the Golden Gate Casino served 2,000 Shrimp Cocktails and the city of Las Vegas ate 60,000 pounds of shrimp.
Somewhere in between those two bipolar versions is my father’s. He loved Shrimp Cocktail. He loved to eat out and loved to order Shrimp Cocktail. He ate it every time it was on the menu at his Heritage Estates Dining Room. Who wouldn’t?
So, why is it called a “cocktail”? The story is that in about 1860 or so, a gold miner took his nuggets to a bar and ordered a whiskey and oysters. After he drank his whiskey, he put the oysters in his glass, poured some liquor over his oysters and added Worcestershire, horseradish, Tabasco, etc., and drank the concoction. Like the gold rush, this Oyster Cocktail caught on like wildfire. When oysters were no longer as plentiful, it shifted to shrimp and was no longer something you drank (…unless you are in Mexico, where they still offer a similar cocktail).
The best Shrimp Cocktail is very simple — jumbo shrimp poached briefly in court bouillon, chilled and offered with a zesty sauce – and presented in a fancy glass with ice and lemon. At Bin54, our local high-end Steak House, they fan out the shrimp on a cool plate or wood plank with various accoutrements, which updates the presentation to something fresh and special.
Ingredients:
For shrimp –
- 4 – 6 jumbo shrimp (per person), deveined and peeled with tails intact
- 10 cups water
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 lemon, sliced
- 10 black peppercorns
- 1 Tbs kosher salt
- Place water through salt in a large saucepan and bring to a gentle boil.
- Add the shrimp and poach for 5 minutes (no more) at a very low simmer (or off heat completely). If the shrimp are on the smaller side, cook for a little less.
- Immediately put the shrimp in a bowl of ice and water. When almost cool, pat dry and refrigerate. You don’t want them soaking in ice water or they will lose some flavor.
For Classic Cocktail sauce –
- 1/2 cup chili sauce (like Heinz)
- 1 Tbs fresh lemon juice
- 1 1/4 Tbs prepared horseradish
- 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1/4 tsp Tabasco sauce
- lemon wedges, for serving
- Mix all ingredients together in a bowl and taste for seasoning. Add more horseradish and/or hot sauce to taste.
To serve –
Arrange shrimp and sauce in a wine glass, martini glass, high ball glass, coffee cup, bowl or plate – add a lemon wedge – and you are fancy.
This recipe is dedicated to our father, Howard Seebach.
Special thank you to drinksfeed.com for the history lesson and Bride’s Lifetime Guide to Good Food and Entertaining for the sauce recipe.
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