Caribbean Shrimp Balls

I love shrimp, I love fried food in general, and I really love appetizers. I could totally live on appetizers and forget everything else. In the summer as you can imagine, I am eating lots of seafood this summer in Italy, but what do I do in the cold months in New York? I love these fabulously tasty fried bites of shrimp with hearty and earthy Jamaican flavor. Serve simply with just hot sauce, or create an herb and ginger sauce, or an Asian flavored sauce, or go for a hot and spicy tomato sauce. All of these flavors will warm your heart and you will forget the cold, and recall summer breezes by the sea.

Caribbean Shrimp Balls

Serves 6 – 8 

Preparation with cleaning 1 hour

1 lb cleaned medium sized shrimp (deveined)

1 tsp powdered ginger, + 4 Tb juice of freshly grated

1 tsp allspice

½ tsp Jamaican Jerk Seasoning

1 garlic clove, diced

1 scallion, diced 

1 tsp soy sauce

1 tsp coconut oil

Salt & pepper to taste

If available, 2 Tbsp Jamaican Pickapepper sauce (can be substituted with tamarind sauce or Worcestershire sauce)

¼ cup chopped mint

¼ cup chopped cilantro

Lime zest

¼ cup all-purpose flour 

Coconut oil for frying

Wash the shrimp, dry and dice as small as possible. Mix all the other ingredients together - except for the flour - and add to shrimp. Leave to marinade for at least an hour in the refrigerator, better overnight. This allows the marinade to really soak in, enhancing the flavors. Add the flour, enough to make a sticky ball. Create the small balls and place in a tray covered with wax paper. Never leave seafood out if not ready to use, so cover and place tray in refrigerator. 

In a frying pan add coconut oil and wait until very hot. Do not overcook as you want the shrimp balls to be firm but moist, and not dried out, until golden brown. Fry in batches and place on a cookie rack, something I learned recently so they don’t become soggy. Plate and serve immediately with a green herb sauce, an Asian flavored sauce or a spicy hot tomato sauce.  

** If you can’t find Jerk Seasoning combine 2 Tbsp each of the following dry or ground ingredients: thyme, black pepper, allspice, garlic powder, ginger, onion powder, nutmeg, zest of lime, cinnamon. If you can’t find allspice add ½ tsp more of the following ground spices: cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger.