The Big Sandy Mountaineer -

About the only thing I learn when cooking is that I can make a dish better than the one I just made.

For instance I have been making Shrimp Creole for forty years at least. Recently I learned how to make it much better than I had made it before.

First, I had always made it to go with rice. I learned I like it much better if it is made to go with wide noodles and there is a meat market in the vicinity that carries very wide and long noodles. If you cannot find wide noodles and want to make your pasta dish with them, just cook up a batch of lasagna noodles. When done and cooled, cut them length wise into the size of noodles you like.

To make this Shrimp Creole, you will need

A pound of noodles, cooked and drained with 2 cups of the pasta water saved.

15 large shrimp, deveined and butterflied

1 large can crushed tomatoes

1 regular can Rotel tomatoes and peppers

1 fresh tomato chopped

½ pound chopped fresh mushrooms

1 onion chopped

2 celery sticks, diced

1 red or yellow or green pep per chopped

½ cup butter

Tabasco to taste (use lots with

shrimp Creole

Old Bay to taste

Salt and pepper to taste

Creole seasoning to taste

Pasta water

Green onions chopped for

garnish

Sauté the vegetables in the butter (onion, celery, mushrooms and pepper). Add the canned tomatoes and fresh chopped tomato.

Add a cup of water and let cook down for a while. Add everything else but for the shrimp and let that mixture simmer for 20 minutes. Don’t use too much Creole seasoning or it will hide all the other flavors.

Fifteen minutes before serving add 2 cups of reserved pasta water and the shrimp. Do not overcook the shrimp. Garnish with green onions and serve.

Bon Appétit!