Cocktail Shrimp Shooters

I love cocktail shrimp and everyone has it at parties and weddings...so here's a new way to serve it that will look amazing and control how much shrimp people eat! I also am giving you a recipe for a yummy cocktail sauce with a new kind of kick!

You can buy pre-cooked shrimp but it's always so much better if you have the time to cook your own (plus it's cheaper to buy uncooked shrimp). I prefer using 13-15 shrimp or 16-20 shrimp (this number tells you how many shrimp are in one pound, the lower the number, the bigger the shrimp) If you can't find these or they're way too expensive, use 21-25 or 26-30...but I wouldn't go much bigger for this recipe as each shrimp stands on his own in the shot glass. I also buy already peeled and deveined shrimp, there are chefs who say cooking shrimp in their shell is better, but I have not found that to be the case....do an experiment...it's so much easier to either buy the already peeled shrimp or to even peel and devein them before cooking (just remember to leave the tail on)! You can boil, broil or steam the shrimp, however you like....I like to steam them for this recipe.

Shrimp Cocktail

1-2 lbs peeled and deveined shrimp (depending on how much you want to make)

1 medium or large pot with a steam basket (you can use a colander if you don't have a steam basket)

Fill the pot about half way with water and begin bringing the water to a boil. Arrange the shrimp around the basket in a single layer. As the water starts to come to a boil, put the basket of shrimp on the pot, cover with a lid and turn the heat down. The shrimp are cooked as soon as they are opaque, firm and bright pink in color. Don't overcook! I arrange the cooked shrimp on a platter and throw ice on them as soon as they are done for a few minutes to stop the cooking process then refrigerate until ready to serve.

Estimated Cooking Time for Steamed Shrimp:

21-25 per pound steam in 5 1/2 to 6 minutes

16-20 shrimp per pound takes 6 1/2 to 7 minutes

8-12 per pound take 7 1/2 to 8 minutes.

Wasabi Cocktail Sauce:

1 cup chili sauce or ketchup if you don't have chili sauce

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice

1 tablespoon wasabi

2 teaspoons horseradish

1/4 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon salt
In a medium bowl, whisk together all the ingredients. Store in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

For the shooters, you can buy the plastic shot glasses or use really small cocktail or rocks glasses. Start by putting a spoonful of the cocktail sauce in the bottom of the glass, arrange the shrimp around the rim of each glass and garnish with sprigs of chives. You can also serve these at an intimate dinner party by using a martini glass and serving several shrimp around the rim of the glass as a starter to your meal. These are so pretty and a modern way of serving up an old favorite! Enjoy!