Shrimp Asopao ►
Asopao is a simple home-style soup/stew. Chef Alfredo Ayala dresses his for company with shrimp, capers, olives, and a garnish of roasted red pepper.
Ingredients
- Soup
- Short-Grain Rice - 1 cup (alt. basmati rice)
- Olive Oil - 1 tablespoon
- Onion - 1 small, finely chopped
- Garlic Cloves - 2, minced
- Banana Pepper - 1 small (alt. other mild chili pepper, seeded, deribbed, and finely chopped)
- Tomato - 1 small, seeded and finely chopped
- Smoked Ham - 2 ounces, minced
- Green Olives - 1/4 cup pitted
- Capers - 1 tablespoon, drained
- Fish Stock - 6 cups (alt. shellfish stock or bottled clam broth) (see Basics)
- Green Beans - 1 cup, coarsely chopped
- Winter-Style Squash - 1 cup, diced, peeled (alt. (butternut, pumpkin, or Hubbard)
- Garlic Clove - 1, peeled
- Oregano Leaves - 1 tablespoon, fresh
- Salt - 1/2 teaspoon
- Freshly ground black pepper - 1/2 teaspoon
- Shrimp - 2 pounds, medium or large, cleaned and deveined
- Cilantro - 1/4 cup, finely chopped
- Culantro - 2 tablespoons, finely chopped (optional)
- Garnish
- Bell Pepper - 1, red, roasted, peeled and cut into thin strips
- Lime - 1, cut into 6 wedges
Instructions
In a medium bowl, cover the rice with cold water and set aside. In a very large saute pan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat, heat the olive oil and saute the onion, garlic, chili pepper, tomato, and ham for 1 minute. Add the olives and capers; pour in the fish stock. Bring to a simmer; cook at medium heat for 5 minutes. Add the green beans and squash and continue cooking for 5 minutes. Strain the rice and add to the pot. Reduce the heat to low and cook uncovered for 15 minutes or until rice is tender. In a mortar or small bowl, mash together the garlic clove, oregano, salt, and black pepper. Stir this mixture and the shrimp into the soup. Add the cilantro and culantro and cook for 3 minutes or until shrimp are opaque. Adjust seasoning to taste.
To serve: Ladle the soup into large, shallow bowls. Top with strips of roasted red pepper, and serve each with a wedge of lime.
