Teriyaki Shrimp with Horseradish Mashed Cauliflower

I love the idea of shrimp and grits, but I've never been a big fan of the texture of grits. They're just so....gritty. There's a great little Japanese restaurant within walking distance of our house where you can get Teriyaki shrimp or salmon with a side of rice, veggies, soup, and salad for less than $15. Michael and I love going there for lunch, and the shrimp is so good. I've been wanting to make my own version for a while.

I made mashed cauliflower to go with some salmon last week and decided it would be perfect to pair with some saucy teriyaki shrimp. I added creamy horseradish for some bite (wasabi would be great too, but I already had horseradish on hand), and doused it in a quick "teriyaki" sauce (it's not technically teriyaki sauce, but it tastes similar), and the result is so so good. It kind of looks and feels like shrimp and grits, but without the...grits. It's creamy, saucy, delicious, and comes together in a snap.

Here's what you'll need for this teriyaki shrimp and mashed cauliflower (and how much it'll cost).

• Peeled and deveined raw shrimp ($5.42)
• Pineapple juice ($2.88)
• Garlic ($0.46)
• Cauliflower ($2.88)
• Creamy Horseradish ($1.42)
• Typical pantry and fridge ingredients:
  • Salt
  • Black pepper
  • Soy sauce (or coconut aminos for gluten free)
  • Butter (use ghee for dairy free)
  • Crushed red pepper
  • Maple syrup (or brown sugar, if you don't have maple syrup on hand)
  • Arrowroot starch (also called arrowroot powder, flour, etc. It's all the same). You can also use regular flour--1 teaspoon arrowroot starch = 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

Excluding the typical pantry and fridge ingredients, the ingredients for this dish cost around $13.06, or about $4.35 per serving.

Here's how you make it.

If your shrimp is frozen, defrost it before proceeding. I find the quickest way to defrost shrimp is to put it in a bowl with warm water and let it sit for a few minutes. You can also put it in a strainer and run warm water over it in the sink. It defrosts pretty fast.

Add shrimp, pineapple juice, soy sauce, maple syrup, minced garlic, crushed red pepper, and arrowroot starch to a large mixing bowl and stir to combine, then set it aside.

While the shrimp marinates, add cauliflower florets to a medium or large saucepan and add enough water to cover the cauliflower. Add a generous pinch of salt to the water, put the pot over high heat, and bring to a boil. Cook the cauliflower until it's tender and easy to pierce with a fork, about 10-15 minutes.

Meanwhile, remove the shrimp from the sauce and add them to a large pan over medium heat (keep the sauce in the bowl--you'll use it later). Cook them for 1.5-2 minutes on each side, or until they go from translucent to an opaque white color. Once they're done, remove them from the pan and set aside. Then add the sauce to the pan, and cook until it thickens slightly, about 5 minutes. Add the shrimp back to the pan and remove it from the heat.

Once the cauliflower is done, drain the water and add the cauliflower back to the saucepan. Use an immersion blender to blend the cauliflower until it's smooth like mashed potatoes. If you don't have an immersion blender, place the cauliflower in a blender or food processor and blend until it reaches your desired consistency, and then place it back into the saucepan. Add butter, horseradish, salt, and black pepper and stir until the butter melts.

Serve the shrimp over the cauliflower, and make sure you get extra sauce on top. Garnish with sesame seeds if desired.

Serve it with...

This goes great with steamed veggies--we like broccoli and carrots. Make it easy on yourself and get a bag of steam-able veggies in the frozen aisle.