Flavorful Shrimp Scampi w/ Wild Rice

This shrimp scampi is so easy to whip together and packed with flavor.  Plenty of herbs, lemon, garlic and shallots make a wonderful dish!  Served over a wild rice blend - which in this case has Japonica rice, making the end batch a rich purple hue, it's a fun alternative to the usual shrimp scampi over pasta.  The punch of lemon makes it a perfect dish to serve over rice.  Even the kids loved it! Enjoy!

Flavorful Shrimp Scampi w/ Wild Rice

Serves 4 (can easily be doubled)

 

To Cook Wild Rice:

Add together in a pot over high heat:

1 cup wild rice blend (I used Lundberg’s Countrywild blend of brown rice, Wehani and Japonica – which is why it ends up a darker color once cooked)

2 cups water

 

Once boiling, cover with lid and turn heat to low.  Let simmer 45-50 minutes.  Remove from heat and let sit 5 minutes. Fluff and serve.

 

To Cook Shrimp Scampi:

 

Heat in large saucepan over medium heat:

2 Tbsp olive oil

2 Tbsp butter

 

Add and cook until tender, 2-3 minutes:

3 tsp minced garlic

3-4 Tbsp finely diced shallot (~half a shallot)

Diced shallot and minced garlic (and some of the herbs used later) - the shallots and garlic cooking until tender.

Add and cook, turning shrimp regularly, until shrimp are pink through (this usually takes couple of minutes):

225g large shrimp (peeled, deveined and tail removed (if desired)

Juice of ½ lemon

¼ cup chicken broth

Pinch cayenne

Fresh ground pepper

Once shrimp are cooked, add the following and mix in well to thicken it up a bit:

~1 tsp arrowroot starch

(if you’re worried about the arrowroot starch not mixing in, or you want to use cornstarch, just mix the 1 tsp arrowroot starch or cornstarch with 1-2 tsp cold water before adding to pan).

 

Add and fold in the following, they will soften nicely:

1-2 Tbsp fresh basil leaves, chopped

1-2 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped

1 Tbsp fresh chives, chopped fine

Remove from heat. If you need to wait a few minutes before serving, cover with a lid to keep shrimp hot.

 

Serve shrimp scampi over wild rice with a slice of lemon, if desired. 

Enjoy!