She Strengthens

Savory Shrimp and Zucchini Noodles with Romesco Sauce

Get Ahead of the Game
Save time by preparing the Romesco Sauce up to two days in advance. This dish is equally delicious served cold, substituting Pesto for the Romesco Sauce and cold cucumber noodles instead of steamed zoodles. For an added shortcut, use pre-cooked shrimp and skip the last step.

Shrimp Cooking Tips
Shrimp are surprisingly easy to prepare, but be careful not to overcook them. Perfectly cooked shrimp will be pink in color and shaped like a “C”. If they’re curled up tightly into an “O” shape, they’re overdone. Make sure to thaw frozen shrimp completely before cooking.

Romesco Sauce

Melt 2 tablespoons of cooking fat in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1/2 cup of chopped almonds and toast for 3 minutes, stirring often. Then, add 1 small diced onion and cook for 2 minutes, followed by 3 cloves of minced garlic for 1 minute. Add 1 teaspoon of chili powder and 1 teaspoon of paprika, cooking until the flavors open up. Finally, add 2 seeded and chopped tomatoes, mixing well and cooking until warmed through.

Transfer and Blend
Transfer the sauce mixture to a food processor. Add 2 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil, 1 1/2 teaspoons of red wine vinegar, 1 teaspoon of salt, and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper. Blend on low speed until smooth, then pour into a serving dish or glass storage container. Allow to cool before refrigerating; the sauce will keep for up to 5 days.

Seeding Tomatoes
Seeding tomatoes can be messy if you try to dice them before removing the seeds. Try this method: place the tomato on a cutting board, stem facing up. Slice left-to-right across the middle of the tomato, creating two equal halves. Then, scrape out the seeds and white core with a small spoon.

Assemble the Dish

Peel 4 medium zucchinis with a regular peeler. Using a julienne peeler, make long slices along one side of each zucchini until you get down to the seeded core. Rotate the zucchini and continue to peel until you’ve done all four sides. Discard the core, and set the noodles aside.

Add 2 cups of water to a large pot over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Melt 2 tablespoons of cooking fat in a large skillet over medium heat, swirling to coat the bottom of the pan. Add 1/4 onion, finely chopped, and cook until translucent, about 2 minutes. Stir in 2 cloves of garlic, minced, and cook until aromatic, about 1 minute. Add 1 pound of large shrimp, peeled and deveined, and cook until they form the shape of a “C”, 4 to 6 minutes.

Transfer the shrimp to a serving bowl, seasoning with salt and pepper. Steam the zucchini noodles in the boiling water until al dente, about 2-3 minutes. Drain and transfer to a serving dish or individual plates. Sprinkle the shrimp with 2 teaspoons of chopped fresh parsley leaves, then spoon over the zoodles. Finally, spoon the Romesco Sauce over the shrimp and zucchini and serve.

Yield: 2 servings
Difficulty: Easy
Total Time: 55 minutes
Active Time: 45 minutes