Panko Crusted Jumbo Shrimp with Garlic Chili Remoulade

Football is IT in my house. I love to eat with my fingers and when it comes to football season you have all the opportunities in the world to go on a cookin' spree. Football games are an excuse to make the tried and true finger food or that recipe you've stuffed in a book to experiment with later. Thanksgiving weekend is a great weekend to try out football food on your guests. They are probably all a little tired of turkey and are craving a new taste. With three games on Thursday, Ohio University football on ESPN Friday, Saturday college gameday, and NFL Sunday and Monday this weekend was made for tailgating.

Fried Shrimp are a tried and true although this time we went all out. These shrimp are with a larger shrimp, 16-20 ct, compared to what I normally use. The texture of the shrimp is fantastic. You have a crisp panko shell with a luscious tender shrimp. Dipped in your favorite sauce I can guarantee you'll keep coming back to this recipe!

Panko Crusted Jumbo Shrimp with Garlic Chili Remoulade
Shrimp
10 ounces of panko
1 1/2 pounds of 16-20 ct. shrimp
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 eggs
1 cup 2% milk
1 1/2 tbsp Old Bay seasoning
1 tsp kosher salt
2 cups canola oil

Remoulade Sauce
2/3 cup mayo (I prefer lite Hellman's)
1 garlic clove
1/2 lemon
1 tbsp garlic chili sauce from your Asian aisle
salt and pepper to taste

Prepare the remoulade sauce and place covered in the refrigerator. This will allow the garlic time to flavor the mayonnaise.

Next, you will coat the shrimp in this order, flour, egg mixture, and panko. Prepare the coating vessels. Add the flour to a baggie. Add panko, Old Bay seasoning and salt to another baggie. Mix these dry ingredients. In a flat shallow bowl, mix the milk and the eggs.

Create an assembly line. Toss a few shrimp in the flour. I did about 8 per batch. Don't do too many at one time or your shrimp will become a clumpy mess. Tap off as much flour as possible and add those shrimp to the egg mixture. Turn the shrimp in the egg mixture and then add to the panko mixture. Then remove and lay on a sheet pan or plate. Continue until all shrimp are coated.
A few tips here:
1. try to use one hand for wet ingredients and one for dry. This way you'll avoid getting everything coated and you'll hopefully have less mess.
2. Try to lay the shrimp in a single layer so they don't stick together.

In a small, heavy pan (I prefer my little Le Creuset) heat the oil. Test the oil with a small piece of crumb. Once it sizzles the oil is hot enough. Slowly drop in the shrimp. I would do small batches of 6-8 shrimp to avoid lowering the temperature of the oil too much. Cook each batch until golden brown. No more than 3minutes. Use a Chinese spider to remove the shrimp from the oil. The common mistake when cooking shrimp is to over cook so they are tough and chewy. Cooking for 2-3 minutes will guarantee a tender, succulent shrimp.