A quick look at the weather maps shows that we aren't the only ones in wild weather right now.
The current situation explains all the wind that's been rocking the trailer all night...
...but we really don't have much room to complain, given the rain and snow predicted to fall elsewhere...
Still, it's interesting to be able to look directly at the sun even after it's cleared the horizon.
Shortly after this sequence, the mountains disappeared completely. We have the Princessmobile closed up to keep as much dust out as possible. All the other nearby campers are tucked up against a tree screen, as we are. The forecast nearby is for 65 mph winds!
Last night I tried a new-to-us recipe. Something like this has been discussed somewhere on eGullet, but what caught my eye was a recipe from SimplyRecipes that came in my email: Bang-Bang Shrimp Tacos. I found the title irresistible, and made sure to get peeled, deveined shrimp when I was at the right store for it.
The instructions in the recipe I linked to are clearly written, and that's useful for a fryophobe like me. They detail the frying station setup and the frying process: Soak the shrimp in buttermilk for at least 20 minutes, then dredge in a mixture of flour, corn starch, salt and pepper, then allow them to dry on a rack while the oil is heating. Have another tray set up with paper towels to drain the shrimp. Keep the oil at 350F (I settled for 180C) and do the shrimp in batches. Keep the fried shrimp in a warm oven until everything's ready.
In the meantime, warm some tortillas, and thinly slice vegetables for garnish / additions to the tacos. I sliced cabbage, radishes, jalapenos, green onions, cilantro. One could use other things too.
The Bang-Bang sauce is a mix of mayonnaise, garlic-chili sauce, sriracha (optional, and I left it out). I didn't have the specified garlic-chili sauce, but I substituted this Trader Joe's product.
The mixture was very stiff, so I thinned it a bit with water until it seemed right.
It was quite a production in the Princessmobile. I've said before that I detest frying inside, but the outside campstove would have gone flying into the next county in this wind. I didn't want to wait for good weather (days away) and my darling has never met a fried shrimp he didn't like. He was impressed and happy that I planned to fry those shrimp!
Never let it be said I'm not a good sport.
I didn't bother photographing the wreckage clutter in the kitchen. Here's the dinner table, and a couple of taco shots.
He didn't like it!!! The first issue was that the tortillas were tough. (True.) So on his second round he made it more of a salad.
Nope. Still didn't like it. Didn't like the breading. I realized this morning that I was supposed to toss the shrimp in the sauce to coat them -- think of a shrimpy version of Buffalo Wings -- rather than serving it atop the shrimp. I don't think that would have helped for him. The breading was "different". Yes, it was: crisper and crunchier than anything I've ever managed. He can't explain what he thought was missing. (In fairness to him, let me note that he almost never says "I don't like it" for fear of hurting my feelings. At least not until the next morning. He takes a more roundabout route, like suggesting that there are too many leftovers, or oven-baked prebreaded shrimp would have been easier. But I got the rest of the opinion out of him this morning.)
So, scratch that recipe. I learned some valuable technique and will thoroughly enjoy polishing off the leftovers! But I'm more than happy to go back to, oh, shrimp scampi or shrimp Bolivar or skewered and grilled shrimp or....anything less messy than last night's dinner!
