Oh shrimp toast, you perfect specimen of asian appetizers.  You prince of perfect party pass-arounds.  Crunchy and fried on the outside, but slightly gooey in the middle, you beckon to me on every chinese menu.  But I only rarely indulge, so why not try my hand at them?  Now, this isn’t one of those “Tastes-like-the-real-thing Amazingly Baked-Not-Fried Shrimp Toast” recipes.  This is a “Quarter-cup of Oil, but Blot on Paper Towels if You’re Trying to Lose Weight” recipe.

You’ll need: (for 24 shrimp toasts)
3/4 lb shrimp
2 tbs ginger
3 cloves garlic
1 tsp sesame oil
1/8 cup water chesnuts
1 egg
1/4 cup cilantro (I used 1 tbs dried)
12 slices white bread
1 handful scallions
1 handful scallions, to garnish
2 tbs sesame seeds, to garnish

Sesame-Chile Dipping Sauce:
1 tbs sesame oil
1 tbs sweet chile sauce
1 tbs hoisin sauce

Start by cutting the crust off of your bread and then halving each slice (I like triangles, but you can default to your preferred shape).  Set these aside.  In a blender or food processor, add your ginger and garlic and pulse ~5 times.  Then add the rest of your ingredients- egg, sesame oil, shrimp, scallions, water chestnuts, cilantro.  Pulse ~10 times, until the whole mixture has come together but is still reminiscent of shrimp.

In a wok or frying pan (I used a small frying pan to reduce the amount of oil I was using), heat 1/4 inch of vegetable oil over medium-low heat.  When the oil is ready for frying (drop a small piece of bread in the oil and if it is golden in 30 seconds, then you’re golden), place shrimp toasts shrimp side down and fry for ~3 minutes until brown.  Then pop them over to the bread side and fry for about 1 minute.

Scoop out your toasts and drain on paper towels over a cooling rack before munching.  Garnish with sesame seeds and scallions, and serve with your sesame chile dipping sauce.

xiang shou!

the hungry texans