Blood Orange Shrimp

This Blood Orange Shrimp recipe is a riff on my Blood Orange Chicken recipe! You get that same sweet and sour flavor and sticky texture as the chicken dish, but this one uses shrimp! I added in a little bit of red pepper and onion for extra texture, and it was so tasty. This dish is inspired by the sweet and sour flavors of Chinese cuisine — you can learn a little bit more about the history of sweet and sour sauce here!

Ingredients (serves 2)

Blood Orange Sauce

• Zest of 1 blood orange

• 1 cup of blood orange juice (about 4 oranges)*

• 1 1/2 tbsp low sodium soy sauce (tamari & coconut aminos also work)

• 1 1/2 tsp rice vinegar

• 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper

• Dash of salt & pepper

• 1 tbsp oil (avocado oil is best, olive oil/coconut oil also work)

• 1 tbsp minced ginger

• 1 1/2 tsp minced garlic

• 1 1/2 tsp tapioca starch

*You can also use regular orange juice here. Or experiment with other juices!

Shrimp

• 2 tbsp oil (again, avocado is best but can use olive or coconut)

• 16 oz shrimp (peeled and devined, tail off)

• 1/4 cup tapioca starch

Other

• 1 red bell pepper, cut into small slices

• 1/2 small/medium yellow onion, sliced

• 2 stalks green onion, thinly sliced

• Rice, to serve

• Sesame seeds

1. In a small bowl, mix together orange zest, juice, soy sauce, rice vinegar, crushed red pepper, and salt and pepper. Set aside.

2. In a large pan, heat up the 1 tbsp oil (for the sauce) on medium heat. Add in the ginger and garlic, and cook until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes. Stir frequently to prevent burning.

3. Add in the orange juice mixture, turning up the heat to medium-high. Bring the mixture to a boil. While the mixture is heating, add 1 1/2 tsp tapioca starch to a medium bowl. Once the mixture is boiling, take 2 tsp of the hot sauce mixture and whisk it into the tapioca starch you placed in the bowl. Then, add the tapioca mixture into the sauce in the pan, mixing it in well.

4. Let the mixture boil for 2 minutes, then reduce to medium-low. Cook for 3-4 minutes until sauce has thickened. Transfer to the medium bowl, cover, and let it thicken while you make the chicken.

5. In a large pan, heat up oil for the shrimp. In a separate medium pan, heat up a little extra olive oil on medium low heat. Sauté the red pepper slices and onion slices while the shrimp cooks, until onions are translucent and peppers have softened a bit.

6. While the oil is heating, add 1/4 cup tapioca starch to a Ziploc baggie or a glass Tupperware container. Add in the shrimp, seal, and toss until shrimp is evenly coated in the tapioca starch. Without crowding the shrimp, add to the pan, and cook for 2-3 minutes on each side, flipping once.

7. When shrimp is ready, transfer it to the bowl with the sauce along with the sautéed red pepper and onion. Toss until evenly coated. Serve over rice, and garnish with a sprinkle of scallions and sesame seeds.