Sichuan Peppercorn Shrimp

Mouth-numbing. Not always a great term to hear. It makes me think of trips to the dentist and the rubber lips and embarassing drooling that follows.


In this case, however, it's music to my ears. My trip to the Asian market yielded me a package of Sichuan peppercorns, among other treasures, so I was excited to find this recipe from Food and Wine in my files.


After extensive research (i.e. a trip to Wikipedia via Google), the numbness has been explained. The pepper is not related to black pepper and not really "hot," but creates "a tingly numbness in the mouth (caused by its 3% of hydroxy-alpha-sanshool)." OK...lesson over. Go find some and fix this fantastic recipe.


Sichuan Peppercorn Shrimp
From Food and Wine.

Makes 4 servings.


1 1/2 teaspoons Sichuan peppercorns 1 pound large shrimp—shelled, deveined and butterflied
Salt
1/4 cup olive oil
3 scallions—2 coarsely chopped, 1 thinly sliced
3 garlic cloves, minced
3 jalapeños, seeded and thinly sliced
1 small ancho chile, seeded and very thinly sliced
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
Chile-sesame oil, for drizzling

In a small skillet, toast the peppercorns over moderate heat until fragrant, about 30 seconds; let cool. Transfer the peppercorns to a mortar or spice grinder and grind to a powder. Put the shrimp in a bowl, toss with 1 teaspoon of the ground peppercorns and season with salt.


In a medium skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Add the shrimp and stir-fry over moderate heat until almost cooked through, 4 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

Heat the remaining 3 tablespoons of olive oil in the skillet. Add the chopped scallions, garlic, jalapeños and chile and cook over moderate heat, stirring, until the scallions and garlic are softened, 5 minutes. Add the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of ground peppercorns and cook, stirring, for 1 minute.

Add the shrimp and lime juice and stir until the shrimp are just cooked through, 1 minute. Season with salt and transfer to a bowl. Garnish with the sliced scallion, drizzle with the chile oil and serve.