Coconut and Panko Fried Shrimp

 This recipe was pretty easy but in order to get that crispy breaded coating you need to follow the steps.  I use to combine or skip steps because I was lazy and they never turned out quite right.  You will need a bowl of tempura flour (or regular flour), a bowl with one whisked egg, and a plate with a mixture of coconut flakes and panko bread crumbs.  I also won’t tell you how to serve it as a side dish, main dish, appetizer, or something.  If it were up to me, I’d just make a pound of shrimp and eat that for dinner.

Coconut & Panko Fried Shrimp (serves 2-4)

Ingredients:

• 1 pound of de-veined, butterflied shrimp
• 1 cup of tempura flour
• 1 egg
• 1 cup of panko bread crumbs
• 1 cup of coconut flakes
• 3 cups oil 

Directions:

1. De-vein and butterfly 1 pound of shrimp. Basically that means slitting both sides of the shrimp, one side should have the poop tract and the other side would butterfly the shrimp in half.  Pour 1 cup of tempura flour in bowl, whisk one egg into another bowl, and combine 1 cup of panko crumbs with 1 cup coconut flakes on a plate.
2. Dredge shrimp in tempura flour. Shake off excess flour, coat with egg mixture. Shake off excess egg, coat in panko/coconut mixture, set aside.  Halfway through this process, heat 3 cups of oil on medium high on your stove.  Use a small pot deep enough so the shrimp are fully covered in oil, assuming you don’t own a deep fryer.  If your stove knob goes up to 10, set it to 8.
3. Place 4-5 shrimp in at a time.  Too many will cause the oil to either bubble over or the oil temp to go down, something bad always happens when I do too much too fast.  When shrimp is golden brown, use tongs or wire mesh to scoop up onto plate lined with paper towel to drain.

This is how I served mine, with a side salad: