The Hero Ingredient You Need In Your Freezer This Holiday Season
I promise you that keeping some frozen extra-large cooked shrimp in the freezer this holiday season will save you so much time. It's the hero ingredient to get you through the holidays, and I'm going to prove it with three recipes that are ready in no time!
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Are you feeling the pain of the season? I am. I love the holidays, but I get worn out from all the expectations while simultaneously LOVING all those same expectations! I want to be around friends. I want to be around family. I want to be out and about and delighting in all the things!
But, there is only so much time in the day and only so much me to go around. Iβm sure, like you, there are the realities of life that must get done: job, family, home. Add in holiday cards, gift buying, and holiday meal planning. I do find myself having moments of βsomethingβs gotta give.β
When Kroger approached us about having free reign to talk about any of their house brands when it came to the holidays, I didnβt even blink. I knew the answer to ease some of the holiday pain β βExtra Large Frozen Simple Truth Cooked Shrimp, Peeled & Deveined.β Done!
Note: I like the taste of the Frozen Simple Truth Cooked Shrimp a lot. Itβs not too βshrimpy.β I recently cooked a meal for a friend who had just had surgery, and the meal included this same shrimp. She followed up with me afterward, as her foodie husband wanted to know where I got the shrimp because it was so good. Simple Truth from Kroger!
Iβm hopeful these three recipes will come in handy as you navigate the holidays.
As an added time/money saver, I first wrote about Krogerβs Boost membership, with extra fast deliveries, no delivery fees, no price hikes, and amazing gasoline savings HERE. I have continued to use this program and ordered all my additional ingredients through this membership for the three recipes below. The ingredients arrived in about two hours with less money spent than any other delivery service I have tried. Plus, I really enjoy those triple fuel points each month!
3 Shrimp Recipes for EASY Holiday Entertaining
Good Olβ Plain Shrimp
For an easy way to wow a crowd that is also the simplest thing ever, thaw some pre-cooked, shelled, and deveined shrimp. You can place the frozen shrimp in the refrigerator overnight, or if you are in a hurry (like I always am), just rinse them with cold water for about five minutes, and they are good to go.
Grab a large shallow bowl and fill it with ice. Place the thawed shrimp on top of the ice.
I suggest (1) one-pound bag per every eight to 10 people, which allows for about three to four shrimp per person. Depending on how much food you are serving, you could also use this amount for 15 people, which is about two shrimp per person.
While cocktail sauce is the expected thing to serve with the shrimp, I really like the Green Goddess recipe on the back of the Simple Truth Cooked Shrimp bag to elevate the dish.
Green Goddess Dressing
Equipment
- 1 Punch bowl
IngredientsΒ Β
- 2 tbs minced fresh garlic
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 3/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
- 1 tbs fresh tarragon
- 5 tbs fresh green onions (green parts only)
- 2 tsp rice vinegar
InstructionsΒ
- Place everything in a food processor and serve with the shrimp as a dipping sauce.
Nutrition
This dressing makes about two to three times the amount you need, but if you make this, you will then have Green Goddess dressing on hand for salads, dips, AND the next easy shrimp recipe!
Shrimp Salad
This shrimp salad recipe can be made easier by substituting the Green Goddess dressing with mayonnaise, salt, pepper, and a squeeze of lemon juice. BUT, to make it extra special, the Green Goddess dressing is pretty fabulous. And, if youβve already made it for the above recipe, itβs actually the easier option.
Holiday Shrimp Salad
IngredientsΒ Β
- 1 lb Extra Large Simple Truth Cooked Shrimp, Peeled & Deveined
- 1/2 cup Green Goddess Dressing
- 1/2 cup celery, minced
- salt, pepper
InstructionsΒ
- While you could use any size of shrimp for this recipe, it's easier to keep one to two pounds of frozen shrimp that are multi-purpose in your freezer at all times. They are sold in one-pound bags.
- Thaw the shrimp according to the directions, either overnight in the refrigerator or by rinsing with cold water for about five minutes.
- Chop the shrimp up into small pieces. For the extra large size, I typically make 11-12 pieces out of each shrimp.
- Toss the cut shrimp with the Green Goddess dressing and use salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve with crackers.
Nutrition
Shrimp & Grits
Shrimp and grits is a wonderful recipe for serving a crowd, for dinner with friends, or a meal to help you tell your family that you love them and youβll spare them from yet another takeout order (donβt we lean into takeout a bit too much to get through December without losing all of our hair?!).
Yes, there are complicated versions of this recipe, but thatβs not what today is for. Today is for WOWing with ease.
This dish does just that!
Please see BOTH recipes below β one for the cheese grits and one for the shrimp. (This grits recipe from Heidi Potter first appeared on StyleBlueprint in 2014, here.)
Cheese Grits
IngredientsΒ Β
- 2 cups quick-cooking grits
- 2 1/2 cups grated extra-sharp cheddar
- 1 stick unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon hot sauce recommended: Tabasco
- 3 large eggs well beaten
- 1/4 cup canned chopped green chiles
- Garlic salt
- *optional 2 fresh jalapeΓ±os finely chopped*
InstructionsΒ
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Cook the grits according to the directions on the back of the package. Remove from the heat and add the next 5 ingredients (cheddar through chiles). Stir well and season with garlic salt, to taste. Pour into a buttered 9-inch baking dish and bake for 1 hour. Let cool slightly before slicing and serving.
Nutrition
Shrimp for Shrimp & Grits
IngredientsΒ Β
- 1 lb Frozen Extra Large Cooked Simple Truth Shrimp, Peeled & Deveined, thawed
- 1/2 pound bacon
- 1/2 cup butter
- 2 cloves fresh garlic, pressed (or two teaspoons minced garlic)
- 1/2 cup chopped tomatoes
- 1/2 cup fresh, chopped Italian parsley
- 1 lemon, juiced
- salt and pepper to taste
InstructionsΒ
- Thaw the shrimp by leaving them in the refrigerator overnight or by rinsing for 5 minutes under cold water.
- In a medium-heat saucepan, cook the bacon.
- Remove the bacon and use a paper towel to sop up the grease (use thongs as the grease is really hot), leaving just a bit in the pan.
- Add the butter, garlic, and tomatoes to the pan and let cook for two minutes over medium heat.
- Add the cooked shrimp and lemon juice to the pan and cook for about one minute (you are really just heating up the shrimp). Turn off the heat.
- Add the parsley and a little salt and pepper.
- Crumble the bacon and add it to the pan.
- Serve with the cheese grits mentioned above.
Nutrition
This article is sponsored by Kroger.
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For even more easy meal ideas, visit our recipe archives!
Liza Graves
As CEO of StyleBlueprint, Liza also regularly writes for SB. Most of her writing is now found in the recipe archives as cooking is her stress relief!