Meal No. 3994: Barbecue Blackened Shrimp, Bacon, and Blue Cheese Puff Pastry Pizza

When I made that delicious blackened shrimp bowl on December’s first Thursday, a handful of those tempting sea delights were left over...perfect for helping top and fortify a Sunday night puff pastry bistro pizza. Also on board for that culinary ride: bacon, blue cheese, white cheddar, mozzarella, and a base of homemade barbecue sauce. The hearty combination of complementary flavors was well enough aligned that I completely forgot that I’d planned to toss on some diced red onion.

---

Assistance and Reminders from: "Easy Puff Pastry Pizza," from Stella Drivas of Hungry Happens. [Published 05 February 2025]

Meal No. 3992: Blackened Shrimp Bowls

On a recent work trip to Brunswick, Georgia, I was delighted to get to enjoy a dinner out with a fine collection of administrators from that school district. We met at Fiddlers on St. Simons Island, lucky to be able to snag a table for six at a wildly popular restaurant where reservations are not taken. At the recommendation of my meal mates, I tried their excellent Fiddlers shrimp bowl, and that was the inspiration for my dinner on Thursday of last week.

This was an extensive indulged prep, and I loved the process and was in heaven with the result. Those blackened shrimp were awesome once I scooped them out of the cast iron skillet, before drizzling on some sweet and tangy soy glaze and garnishing with streaks of fresh-made yum yum sauce. I also made a kewpie mayonnaise from scratch as the base for the dressing of a Japanese coleslaw that also proved glorious. And it was terribly rewarding to return to coconut rice as an accompaniment, upping my game with a revised approach that brought forth a perfect finish. I loved this meal.

I'm also wondering if this was the first time Scarlett had smelled raw shrimp...she was certainly on instant curiosity alert.

---

Adapted from "Blackened Shrimp Bowls," by Bailey Rhaitgan of SailorBailey.com. [Updated 13 October 2025]

"Sweet and Tangy Soy Glaze," from Jamie of DriveMeHungry.com. [Published 14 March 2019 / Updated 28 September 2020]

"Yum Yum Sauce," from Kimberly Killebrew of The Daring Gourmet. [Published 02 April 2025]

"Japanese Coleslaw," by Dan Coombs of The Curry Guy. [Published 24 August 2023]

"Japanese Mayonnaise (Kewpie Mayo)," by Namiko Hirasawa Chen of Just One Cookbook. [Published 01 April 2025]

Coconut Rice Based on:

• "Easy Coconut Rice (YouTube)" by Sarah Leung of Woks of Life. Printed Recipe available from WoksofLife.com. [Updated 16 April 2025]
• "Coconut Rice," from Andy Ricker of Pok Pok. Published in Bon Appétit, January 2012.

Meal No. 3661: Bang Bang Shrimp Tacos

The fun dinner experiment on Tuesday night was bang bang shrimp tacos, and boy howdy was it ever delicious. It also meant a lot of bowls to clean by the time it was all put together, because this was an air fryer version of panko-crusted shrimp, dipped in egg and spiced tapioca starch, and I was very pleased with how those buggers turned out. The bang bang sauce is a breeze and came out sweet and creamy. And the slaw had a great spice and onion punch to it, which was perfect as the bed of the taco fixings. It took both hands to manage it, and it was messy as heck, but I'm going to enjoy bringing this one back for a future meal, for sure.

---

"Air Fryer Bang Bang Shrimp Tacos," from Maddie Ireland of Munchin' with Maddie. [Published 16 July 2024]

Meal No. 3248: Shrimp Po'Boys

While the premature winter-like chills of late autumn continue to characterize these final weeks of 2022, my recent weekend preoccupation turned to a hopeful endeavor regarding New Orleans-style shrimp po’boys for my Sunday repast.

After all, it’s been over five years for this dinnertime treat and why not go all out by making the French rolls from scratch?

That meant starting Saturday night so that the dough would slow-rise and develop deeper flavors in the fridge overnight. I lack a developed technique for creating even and matched rolls, as is obvious, and yet I must pat myself on the back for the earnest effort. Alas, the slashing of the tops showed I still have so much to learn about baking rolls, because they completely collapsed! From that it seemed they’d not rebound as they baked, and I would’ve had dense doughy rolls as a result. But glory be, they puffed up barely enough in that well-steamed heat and came out rather incredibly delicious if not also sad looking. I had to eat the runt of the litter immediately, slathered with some softened butter, and it transported me.

Those little creole popcorn shrimp were terrific nuggets of fried goodness, albeit a tad salty, and were pretty glorious once adorned with the homemade remoulade sauce, whose ingredients I should have written down but I'll just have to make up another version the next time.

---

"Shrimp Po'Boy," in Bon Appétit, June 2011, p. 118-119.

"New Orleans Po’Boy Rolls," from Chula King of PudgeFactor.com.

Remoulade was a home creation with ideas and inspiration from:

• "Remoulade Sauce à la New Orleans," by cookincowgirls on AllRecipes.com.
• "Cajun Remoulade Sauce," by Remoulader. Found online at Food.com.

Meal No. 3242: Shrimp and Grits with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

The noontime meal for me on the first day of December required reaching back almost four years into the archives and coming out with shrimp and grits, Tupelo Honey Cafe-style, with roasted red peppers and a nice buttery sauce instead of a heavy cream one. I served it over Louisville-ground yellow grits, also heavy on the butter, and it was quite a delicious lunch.

---

"Shrimp and Goat Cheese Grits with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce," in Tupelo Honey Cafe: Spirited Recipes from Asheville's New South Kitchen, by Elizabeth Sims with Chef Brian Sonoskus. Kansas City: Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC (2011), p. 100-101, 179.

Guidance for making the creamy grits: Luquire Family Stone Ground Grits, milled in Greenwood, SC.

Meal No. 3119: Cobb Salad with Grilled Shrimp

Another suppertime, another seafood-enhanced endeavor, as occurred on June 9th: Cobb Salad. Back in 2019, I tried out Cobb Salad a couple of times, to delighted satisfaction. On this more recent occasion, I had snagged some jumbo shrimp on the fly on a Costco run and marinated and skewered it to toss onto the grill. In the meantime, I used the dependable 5-5-5 method with the Instant Pot to end up with perfect hard-boiled eggs. I tried bakin' bacon in the oven, which wasn't so bad (and I still had bacon grease to capture and save for various nefarious future exploits). I piloted a smashingly tasty new vinaigrette that's a winner and a keeper. When it was all put together, I royally pigged out.

Speaking of bacon, I'd like to brag on the super-awesome pup of the Roediger House, who can be fully trusted even when there is a plate of bacon on the countertop. He might sniff near it if he walks by coming back from his water bowl, but there is no fear whatsoever that he would ever help himself to any of it. Oh, and I baked two packages of store-brand bacon that evening, by the way, and I had to snag a picture of one of them to show a likely explanation for why they can sell it at such a discount:

---

"Classic Cobb Salad Dressing Recipe," from Chef Billy Parisi. [Published 15 January 2021]

Cobb Salad inspired by many different recipes but overall plan based mostly on "Cobb Salad," by Maria Lichty of the Two Peas and Their Pod blog. [Published 13 August 2018]

Additional perusing of ideas led me to "The BEST Cobb Salad," from Joanne Ozug of Fifteen Spatulas. [Published 26 January 2022 / Updated 07 April 2022] // "Cobb Salad with the Best Dressing," from Natasha Kravchuk of Natasha's Kitchen. [Published 17 January 2020]

Grilled Shrimp based on: "Amazing Spicy Grilled Shrimp," by Pat Rota on allrecipes.com.

"How to Cook Bacon in the Oven," from Joanne Ozug of Fifteen Spatulas. [Published 21 June 2018 / Updated 04 February 2022]

Guidance for Hard-Boiled Eggs from "Instant Pot Hard Boiled Eggs," by Jill Winger of the Prairie Homestead [Published April 2016]; and from "Instant Pot Recipes Everyone Should Know," by Alina Bradford from c|net.com. [Published 17 May 2018]

Meal No. 3023: Blackened Shrimp over Grits with Cajun Sherry Cream Sauce

Shrimp is rare these days at the Roediger House, and I have missed it. The occasion to bring out a shrimp-based meal presented itself last Wednesday evening and I happily jumped at the opportunity. I tossed them in blackening spice before pan-searing them in butter. In the meantime, I'd saved the leftover grits from the rainbow trout meal and cut them into rounds. On another burner I had a shallot-based Cajun sherry cream sauce a-going, and broccoli florets were roasting in the oven. It was a super supper for me and me alone that night!

---

Adapted from "Sherry Cream Sauce," by Dianne Rattray. Published online via The Spruce Eats (formerly about.com). [Updated 11 November 2021]

Meal No. 2762: Basic Pad Thai with Shrimp

Friday night was the first time I've fixed anything with shrimp in almost two years, and it turns out I was repeating the dish (but not the recipe) I'd last made with it! In the bowls was a stripped-down shrimp pad thai, a bit oversauced and therefore a bit more pungent than pleasant. I still ate it up but this was not one of my better offerings.

---

Recipe Based on:

• "Pad Thai from Kris Yenbamroong," a One-Pot Wonder from Genius Recipes and found on Food52.com. [Published 14 January 2020]
• "Easy Pad Thai with Chicken," by Kelly Senyei of JustaTaste.com. [Published 09 October 2013]

Meal No. 2304: Shrimp Pad Thai

On Valentine's evening, the Roediger House dinnertime meal featured a new take on shrimp pad thai, with ideas to get me started from a recipe for Thai shrimp and noodles. I went an extra step and created my own paste from a block of tamarind pulp that I'd recently bought from the Asia Grocery, just down Peters Creek Parkway from the house. I still had some of that really good garlicky shrimp made earlier in the week and it was perfect with this bowl of goodness.

---

Adapted from "Thai Shrimp and Noodles," by Karen from Colorado. From GeniusKitchen.com.

Guidance for extracting Tamarind Paste from "Technique: How to Use Tamarind Pulp," by Emma Christensen of TheKitchn.com. [Published 20 July 2009]

Meal No. 2303: Cobb Salad, Round 2

With most of the ingredients still on hand, plus those that I'd resupplied (like avocados), I was ready for a second go at Cobb salad. This time I made some fresh buttermilk ranch dressing, which was tasty albeit thin and plain. Still, it was a perfectly suitable meal to finish out a surprisingly chilly and windy Wednesday.

---

"Homemade Buttermilk Ranch Dressing," from Jenn Segal of Once Upon a Chef.

Meal No. 2301: Cobb Salad with Shrimp

Salad has certainly taken up a home here at the Roediger House these last few months and, to avoid getting into too much of a Caesar rut, I decided to really orchestrate a whole 'nother level of salad on Monday night, in the vein of the famous Brown Derby Cobb salad. My version that night included garlicky barbecue shrimp, crumbled bacon, Gorgonzola, avocado, cherry tomatoes, hard-boiled eggs, and more of that miso buttermilk ranch dressing on mixed power greens. It was mighty darned delicious and left me full as a tick.

---

Cobb Salad inspired by many different recipes but overall plan based mostly on "Cobb Salad," by Maria Lichty of the Two Peas and Their Pod blog. [Published 13 August 2018]

"BBQ Shrimp," by Chef Brian D. Smith of Randol's Restaurant and Cajun Dancehall in Lafayette, LA [restaurant closed in November 2021].

Guidance for Hard-Boiled Eggs from "Instant Pot Hard Boiled Eggs," by Jill Winger of the Prairie Homestead [Published April 2016]; and from "Instant Pot Recipes Everyone Should Know," by Alina Bradford from c|net.com. [Published 17 May 2018]

Meal No. 2272: Shrimp and Goat Cheese Grits with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

Last Friday night, as the cold rains of the day finally began to wrap up their nasty work, I served up the Tupelo Honey Cafe's take on shrimp and grits for supper for the three of us. I made my usual spot-on creamy Southern grits but then added in goat cheese and crushed basil. Atop it goes the Creole-spiced shrimp that's swimming in a shallow roasted red pepper sauce. It's kind of a simple meal to throw together but it packs a punch of flavor that delights the taste buds.

---

"Shrimp and Goat Cheese Grits with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce," in Tupelo Honey Cafe: Spirited Recipes from Asheville's New South Kitchen, by Elizabeth Sims with Chef Brian Sonoskus. Kansas City: Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC (2011), p. 100-101, 179.

Guidance for making the creamy grits: Luquire Family Stone Ground Grits, milled in Greenwood, SC.

Meal No. 1974: Shrimp and Goat Cheese Grits with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

Recently someone was overheard to make a quote along these lines: Sunday brunch is breakfast at lunchtime but with a one-hour wait. I didn't see the need to go somewhere and wait in line but figured I could make something pretty brunch-y at mid-day this past Sunday. That resulted in shrimp and goat cheese grits with roasted red pepper sauce and a sherry cream sauce, over stone-ground creamy grits. It was pretty awesome.

---

"Shrimp and Goat Cheese Grits with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce," in Tupelo Honey Cafe: Spirited Recipes from Asheville's New South Kitchen, by Elizabeth Sims with Chef Brian Sonoskus. Kansas City: Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC (2011), p. 100-101, 179.

Guidance for making the creamy grits: Luquire Family Stone Ground Grits, milled in Greenwood, SC.

"Sherry Cream Sauce," by Dianne Rattray. Published online via The Spruce (formerly about.com).

Meal No. 1822: Shrimp Po'Boys

This past Wednesday night represented a return to an easy favorite that's the best version I've found for shrimp po'boys. It was a stripped-down take that night, with wonderful creole-spiced fried shrimp on baguettes with a zingy remoulade sauce.

---

"Shrimp Po'Boy," in Bon Appétit, June 2011, p. 118-119.

"Cajun Remoulade Sauce," by Remoulader. Found online at Food.com.

Meal No. 1789: Shrimp and Goat Cheese Grits

My cousins Marilyn and Earl came over last Thursday night for a long overdue visit. It was great to see them and to have time to catch up. We all live here in the Winston-Salem/Lewisville area but it'd been over two years since their last visit, which makes me feel pretty horrible. On the supper table that night was the Tupelo Honey Cafe's version of shrimp and grits, with a roasted red pepper sauce.  The bowls were all clean by meal's end.

---

"Shrimp and Goat Cheese Grits with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce," in Tupelo Honey Cafe: Spirited Recipes from Asheville's New South Kitchen, by Elizabeth Sims with Chef Brian Sonoskus. Kansas City: Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC (2011), p. 100-101, 179.

Guidance for making the creamy grits: Luquire Family Stone Ground Grits, milled in Greenwood, SC.

Meal No. 1748: BBQ Shrimp Risotto

Thursday night was an opportunity to celebrate the birthday of long-time friend and fellow Wake Forest alum Chris Burris. His meal request: risotto. I prepped up some BBQ shrimp and tried a new take on remoulade sauce to round it out, and the meal kicked off with heaping bowls of Caesar salad (but I just put my salad on my plate). It was one of those terrific gatherings of a crew of good friends where we lingered extensively after the plates were cleared.

---

"BBQ Shrimp," by Chef Brian D. Smith of Randol's Restaurant and Cajun Dancehall in Lafayette, LA.

Thyme, Marjoram, and Parmesan Risotto based on Emeril Lagasse's directions found in "Shrimp and Asparagus Risotto Casserole."

Remoulade Sauce adapted from "Remoulade Sauce à la New Orleans," by cookincowgirls on AllRecipes.com.

Meal No. 1695: Bang Bang Shrimp Pasta

This past Monday was a great day spent with the admin team at Cook Literacy Model School. We put in a good long day, though, and I was in the mood for a simpler meal that night. But I wanted to try something new, so I looked at two different recipes for Bang Bang shrimp pasta and came up with a one-bowl meal for us to enjoy. And enjoy it we all did.

---

Recipe based on "Bang Bang Shrimp Pasta!" from Lisa M. of My Incredible Recipes blog; and "Bang Bang Shrimp Pasta" by Chungah on the Damn Delicious blog.

Meal No. 1612: Shrimp and Goat Cheese Grits with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

Once again, the Roediger House got to enjoy a visit from down-the-street neighbors Deborah and Alaina this past Saturday night. On the supper table, it was the Tupelo Honey Cafe's version of shrimp and grits with a delightful roasted red pepper sauce. Goat cheese and basil bulked up the already-delicious creamy southern grits, and it all came together nicely with some steamed asparagus. The ladies brought a marvelous lemon mousse pie to help finish it all out.

---

"Shrimp and Goat Cheese Grits with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce," in Tupelo Honey Cafe: Spirited Recipes from Asheville's New South Kitchen, by Elizabeth Sims with Chef Brian Sonoskus. Kansas City: Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC (2011), p. 100-101, 179.

Guidance for making the creamy grits: Luquire Family Stone Ground Grits, milled in Greenwood, SC.

Meal No. 1601: Shrimp Po'Boys

It was a hot summer Sunday night at the Roediger House and I still managed to make the kitchen hotter with a grand deep fry endeavor. Tonight it was shrimp po'boys and hushpuppies for the four of us, and we did our darnedest to scarf it all down.

---

"Shrimp Po'Boy," in Bon Appétit, June 2011, p. 118-119.

"Cajun Remoulade Sauce," by Remoulader. Found online at Food.com.

"Southern Style Hush Puppies," by Elaine Bovender. Posted on JustAPinch Recipes.

Partial help for making easy coleslaw from "Nana's Southern Coleslaw," from Kristina on AllRecipes.com.

Meal No. 1503: Shrimp Bisque

The quantity of Madeira vegetables that I made last Sunday night gave me plenty extra to utilize with other dishes this past week, including Monday night's lamb meat loaf. On Thursday night, I put the last of them to work in a batch of shrimp bisque, which proved to be a reasonably elegant weeknight meal that hit the spot.

---

"Shrimp Bisque," in Bon Appétit, June 2011, p. 114.