Shrimp Po' Boy
Shrimp Po' Boys originated in New Orleans and were a primary staple for the farmers, dock workers, and other "poor boys" in the French Market. It's a basic sandwich of French bread, lettuce, tomato, a meat (often seafood), pickle, and mayonnaise. Of course, New Orleans tends to be a little extra and now suggests the remoulade sauce instead of mayo. How can you disagree with that?
I fried the shrimp in a vat of oil which really adds an oily stench throughout the house for a day or so. Next time, I'm just going to make some sauteed creole shrimp. Faster and just as delicious. Luckily, I had some Mr. Stripey garden tomatoes left over and added those. Store bought tomatoes are so boring.
Ethan now works at Jimmy John's and gets a few loaves of French bread each week. You shouldn't make this sandwich without it (not Jimmy John's bread, any kind of French bread). The consistency just works.
Ingredients
For the Fried Shrimp
- 3 tsp kosher salt
- 2 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 2 lbs raw medium shrimp (about 45), peeled, deveined and tail off
- Canola or Vegetable oil for frying
- 1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 1 cup cornmeal
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 3 tbsp hot sauce
For the Po'Boy Assembly
- 4 8 inch long French loaves split horizontally
- Dill pickles for garnish
- Shredded iceberg lettuce
- Sliced tomatoes
Directions
For the Remoulade Sauce
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Mix everything together and chill in the refrigerator until you are finished frying the shrimp
For the Fried Shrimp
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Mix the salt, paprika, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, and black pepper together then divide the spice mixture in half
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Season the shrimp with half of the spice mixture
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Mix the flour, cornmeal and the rest of the spice mixture together in a bowl
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In a separate bowl, mix the buttermilk and hot sauce together
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Dip seasoned shrimp in the buttermilk, then coat with flour mixture shaking off any excess. If you like a thicker coating you can repeat this step. Chill the shrimp in the refrigerator for 20 minutes.
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Pour the oil into a deep, wide pot to the depth of about 2 inches. Heat the oil to 350° Fahrenheit
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Working in batches, fry shrimp until golden brown about 3-4 minutes per batch. Transfer to paper towels to drain.
To Assemble Po'Boy
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Build your sandwich with on the French bread with mayonnaise or Remoulade, dress your sandwich with lettuce, tomato, and pickles then pile on the shrimp.