Midtown Brewery Shrimp Roll
Summer days and dreams of Shrimp Rolls.
As if they were a super special treat.
Fact is - they are so crazy easy, you could have them every day - which is Mr. KB's advice - and wish!
Of course, Lobster Rolls may come to mind first, but they are more costly than these rolls made with salad shrimp - and are just as satisfying!
We were on a road trip to Prince Edward County and enjoyed Shrimp Rolls at the Midtown Brewing Company in Wellington. Spooky when Bon Appetit dropped their recipe into my email.
Was all set to try that when I recalled that I have my own Shrimp Salad recipe (based on Ina Garten's) that can easily be adapted!
Kitchen Bliss Shrimp Roll
If you visit the link to the recipe already on this blog you'll see it starts with cooking 2-4 lbs of shrimp in their shell. For this easy recipe, I buy salad shrimp. The brand in my grocers is frozen, but already cooked, and weighs in at 454 g - enough for 6 shrimp rolls - or maybe more if you use less filling in each. [UPDATE: the brand of Canadian cold water salad shrimp I buy has been subjected to “shrinkflation” - meaning it is now in a pkg of 340g. So I now buy two packages for this recipe and double the dressing below.]
NOTE that for this 1 lb variation of the KB recipe, I have done more than simply cut the 2 lb version in half...
You may also be interested in the Bon Appetit recipe that adds lemon juice and horseradish.
Surprisingly (and sadly) the hardest part of this recipe is getting those funky shrimp / lobster roll "hot dog buns" - the ones that have square edges. No worries - you can use a regular bun - or as I did - a Brioche type bun.
Getting Ready:
thaw the shrimp according to package directions, and pat them dry!
chop the onion and celery (can be done ahead, or day before)
Review the variations in Notes (below) to see what options you may prefer
1 lb salad shrimp
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp white wine vinegar
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 TB minced fresh dill
1/4 cup red onion, minced or finely diced
1/2 cup celery, minced or 1/4" dice
Thaw the shrimp according to package directions and pat dry. See above note - if you end up with two packages of 340g double this dressing. The quantity of red onion and celery is ok.
Whisk together the mayonnaise, mustard, vinegar, salt, pepper and the dill.
Combine with the well-drained shrimp.
Add the red onion and celery and check the seasonings. (See Notes for a red onion tip!)
Cover and refrigerate for at least a half hour, or several hours. The flavour does improve if you let it sit for a bit.
Toast the buns, butter the buns and spoon in / on the shrimp mixture. (The photo above shows that you can line the bun with leaf lettuce - or shredded lettuce.) Garnish with chopped chives and/or paprika if desired.
Serve: potato chips are a frequent accompaniment in restos! This would also go well with fresh corn on the cob!
Notes and Tips...
Mustard - you could try other flavoured mustards instead of Dijon - or none at all; note the addition of horseradish in the Bon Appetit recipe
Vinegar - substitute red wine vinegar if you wish
Onion - red onion can be replaced with 2 thinly sliced scallions
Red Onion - soaking red onion briefly in water takes out some of "the bite" that some people dislike. (Read more)
For KB Recipe Attribution Practices please click here.