Shrimp and Pasta with Peanut Sauce
Similar in taste to the sesame noodles you might order at a Chinese restaurant, only lighter, fresher and better.
--Barbara
Shrimp and Pasta with Peanut Sauce
adapted from The Best of Cooking Light
Serves 2
1 T. minced fresh cilantro -- Tom used more
1 T. grated, peeled fresh ginger
3 T. low sodium soy sauce
2 T. crunchy peanut butter
1 t. sugar
1 t. rice vinegar
1/4 t. hot sauce
1 jalapeno pepper, minced (optional)
1 garlic clove, minced
1 t. sesame oil
8 ounces shrimp, de-veined and peeled (about 6 per person)
1 cup onion sliced into crescents
1/2 red bell pepper, cut into 1/4 inch strips
1 cup pre-washed spinach
2 cups hot cooked rigatoni (about 1 1/4 cups uncooked)
Prepare the tasty sauce. Combine the first 8 ingredients in a medium bowl, stirring well with a whisk.
Cook the shrimp. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add shrimp -- lay them down in one layer, with lots of space in between and don't move them until you begin to see pink, about 2 to 2.5 minutes, then turn them over individually, like pancakes, and finish cooking, about 1 minutes more. Do not overcook. Remove. I took my tails off after they cooled, but you can do this beforehand.
Prepare the pasta. Heat the water, salt it well, and cook per the package. Ours took 10 minutes.
In the same skillet, add a little olive oil to the remaining shrimp juice left in the pan, then add the onion and bell pepper and saute for 3 to 5 minutes or until you have cooked, but not limp vegetables. You want some texture in this dish.
Add the spinach and let it cook down a little, then add the soy sauce mixture, and then add the shrimp, then reduce the heat to medium and cook until the spinach wilts, about 2 minutes.
Divide your pasta on the plates, then top it with half of the shrimp spinach mixture. It is a very tasty dish! You could use cut-up chicken or pork tenderloin instead of the shrimp. And it would taste good over rice, too.
Calories 483 (25% from fat); Fat 13.4g; Protein 36.1g; Carbs 55.1g; Fiber 4.8g; Sodium 1,003 mg; Calc 108 mg; Chol 172 mg
