A shrimp marinated in a sweet and spicy sauce served with sauteed bell peppers paired with ripe yellow plantains. This recipe is so good that it can be served for lunch for a weeknight dinner.
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Calling all seafood lovers!! This recipe is especially for you, if you love heat with a hint of sweetness then this spicy sweet shrimp and plantains dish has your name written ALL over it.
What can I say, it's so delicious and full of flavour, it's also a great way to become acquainted with plantains if you've never tried them before.
What do you do, with some plantains, bell peppers and a pack of shrimp? You get creative and make the perfect shrimp dish.
That's exactly what I did, I brought some plantains to make Pastelon but had 2 left over so I quickly put on my thinking cap and jotted down a recipe that I thought would work.
I tested the recipe a couple of times, making some adjustments (namely the heat) until I was truly satisfied. I feel as if this recipe is now blog worthy.
It's a nice combination of sweetness from the coconut nectar which is a low GI sweetner that I like to use and hot from the chilli flakes.
If you cannot source coconut nectar then simply use agave or unrefined maple syrup. Both of these are great diabetic friendly options so they won't cause your blood sugar levels to spike.
Prepping the recipe
Sauteing the bell peppers/onion/garlic - Start by sauteing the onion, garlic bell peppers first of all. Add some coconut oil to a frying pan and saute until tender. This should take a few minutes to achieve.
I like soft bell peppers so I prefer to cook them off with a splash of water during the beginning so they are completely soft as I add the rest of the ingredients.
Sweet shrimp sauce - I like to make the sauce first which consists of dried herbs and spices - garlic, paprika, black pepper, mixed herbs (parsley and thyme), water and of course the syrup (coconut nectar).
Let the sauce thicken up and reduce in volume so the flavours can completely release. It takes about 6-8 minutes in total to achieve.
Adding the shrimp and plantains- I would suggest using raw shrimp because this lessens the chance of overcooking the shrimp which would take on a rubbery texture. Add them last, coat them in the sauce and allow the shrimp to cook until they turn pink.
The sweetness of the plantain is determined by the ripeness, if you want extra sweet plantain buy plantain with an almost dark exterior. Pale yellow plantain is firm and not so sweet so pick your poison.
The steps
- Melt the coconut oil on medium heat in a skillet.
- Proceed to saute the onion, garlic and bell peppers until tender.
- Once tender, add a splash of water (approx ¼ cup) to the skillet, reduce the heat, cover the pan with a lid and allow the peppers to completely soften via steaming for 5 minutes.
- Once the peppers are soft, add the paprika, thyme, parsley, onion/garlic granules, , black pepper, chilli flakes, pink salt, maple syrup and remaining water to the pan to make the sauce.
- Bring the skillet to a rolling boil then reduce to low heat, stir and allow the sauce to thicken up. This should take 6-8 minutes.
- Around the 6 minute mark, fold your plantain pieces into the sauce, coat and cook for 2 minutes before finally adding the shrimp.
- Once the sauce has thickened up add the shrimp and cook. Cook the shrimp until they turn pink to indicate the readiness.
- Do a taste test and additional black pepper and pink salt to taste.
- Serve accordingly.
Notes and tips
- Use an alternative sweetener if you cannot get hold of coconut nectar.
- Raw shrimp is recommended but cooked shrimp works too. Just heat through for more than 2 minutes to avoid the rubbery texture.
- The soft plantains (with the dark almost black skin) tend to be very sweet and absorbs a lot of liquid. Plantains with a more yellow skin are more firm and not as sweet (which I prefer)
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Spicy Sweet Shrimp and Plantains
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon coconut oil
- 1 small onion chopped
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 2 bell peppers sliced
- 1 cup warm water
- 2 tablespoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon thyme
- 1 teaspoon parsley
- ¼ teaspoon garlic granules
- ¼ teaspoon onion granules
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon chilli flakes or omit if you don't want any heat
- 2 tablespoon maple syrup
- ½ teaspoon pink salt
- 2 yellow plantains peeled and chopped
- 1 lb raw shrimp (450g)
- additional black pepper and pink salt to taste
Instructions
- Melt the coconut oil on medium heat in a skillet.
- Proceed to saute the onion, garlic and bell peppers until tender.
- Once tender, add a splash of water (approx ¼ cup) to the skillet, reduce the heat, cover the pan with a lid and allow the peppers to completely soften via steaming for 5 minutes.
- Once the peppers are soft, add the paprika, thyme, parsley, onion/garlic granules, , black pepper, chilli flakes, pink salt, maple syrup and remaining water to the pan to make the sauce.
- Bring the skillet to a rolling boil then reduce to low heat stir and allow the sauce to thicken up. This should take 6-8 minutes.
- Around the 6 minute mark, fold your plantain pieces into the sauce, coat and cook for 2 minutes before finally adding the shrimp.
- Once the sauce has thicken up add the shrimp and cook. Cook the shrimp until they turn pink to indicate the readiness.
- Do a taste test and additional black pepper and pink salt to taste.
- Serve accordingly.
Notes
- Use an alternative sweetener if you cannot get hold of coconut nectar
- Raw shrimp is recommended but cooked shrimp works too. Just heat through for more than then 2 minutes to avoid the rubbery texture
- The soft plantains (with the dark almost black skin) tend to be very sweet and absorbs a lot of liquid. Plantains with a more yellow skin are more firm and not as sweet (which I prefer)
Damien says
What an amazing recipe so glad I found you. I will be preparing more of your dishes. This was super flavorful and a fraction of what it would cost in a restaurant. Hands down one of the best cooks I have found in a while online.
Charla says
I am humbled. Thank you so so much Damien.
Jessica says
Oh My God! I've been telling my husband we should incorporate more plantains in our diet because of all the nutrients they offer so I've been searching for fun things to do with them that's not deep fried. I Made this recipe tonight! I didn't have bell pepper so I made it without but it still came out so good! We served the stew with coconut rice. This will definitely be on our dinner rotation! Thank you for the recipe!
Charla says
Aww thanks for the positive feedback Jessica, I'm so glad that you both liked it.
Russ says
Made a variation on this after searching for recipes. My changes: diced some hot pepper in with the onions and garlic instead of using cayenne. (If I had a habanero I would have used that). I didn't have fresh bell peppers so I used a couple of red peppers from a jar, which was great. Also used cilantro instead of parsley. The two biggest changes were adding a can of coconut milk and finishing with half a lime. Really delicious, even if I did make a few changes. The recipe itself was inspiration to come up with a fun dinner. Thanks!
Charla says
No problem Russ, your variation sounds delicious. I'm glad that I was able to be an inspiration to your dinner and you are very welcome.
KaeKae says
Made this for lunch yesterday with some sweet potatoe mash and having for breakfast this morning. So good!
Charla says
I'm so glad to hear that and thanks for the feedback.