Dining and Cooking
Chefs’ Collections

Smothered Shrimp in Crab-Meat Gravy

Alexander Smalls, the chef and an owner of two Harlem restaurants, the Cecil and Minton’s, serves this dish over grits as an appetizer at Christmas, but it’s hearty enough for a meal at almost any time of year. It is a recipe rooted in the culinary traditions of the South Carolina coast and benefits mightily from the use of fresh shrimp and crab.

Ingredients

  • 8 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 4 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
  • 1 large Spanish onion, diced
  • 2 ribs celery, diced
  • 1 red bell pepper, diced
  • 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 tablespoons fresh sage leaves, rubbed
  • 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, finely chopped
  • ½ cup dry sherry
  • ¼ cup Worcestershire sauce
  • 3 pinches nutmeg
  • 2 pinches cayenne pepper
  • 3 to 4 cups clam juice, or fish or chicken stock
  • 1 tablespoon tomato paste
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • 3 pounds large shrimp, shelled and butterflied
  • 1 ½ pounds jumbo lump crab meat.
  • Nutritional Information
    • Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)

      641 calories; 22 grams fat; 10 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 7 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 28 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 3 grams sugars; 78 grams protein; 515 milligrams cholesterol; 1936 milligrams sodium

      • Note: Nutrient information is not available for all ingredients. Amount is based on available data.

6 to 8 servings.

Preparation

  1. In a large, heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven set over medium heat, melt butter with olive oil. When the butter begins to foam, add garlic, onion, celery and pepper, and sauté until onion is translucent, stirring often, approximately 10 minutes. Adjust heat to high, add flour and stir briskly to make a blended, smooth roux. Continue cooking until the roux begins to brown, about 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium low, and continue to cook, stirring often, for an additional 20 to 30 minutes, until the mixture has turned a deep brown. Be careful not to burn it.
  2. Add sage, thyme, sherry, Worcestershire sauce, nutmeg, cayenne pepper and clam juice or stock, and stir to combine, then return the heat to medium. When the mixture begins to simmer, add tomato paste, and season with salt and pepper. Cook for approximately 15 minutes, stirring often. Add shrimp, cook 3 to 4 minutes, then gently fold in the crab meat and simmer an additional 2 to 3 minutes to heat through. Serve ladled over stone-ground grits.

1 hour 10 minutes

Dining and Cooking