Grilled Pancetta-Wrapped Mexican White Shrimp
Morita chiles are red, fully mature Chipotles. This gives them a unique, medium – hot smokey flavor which is popular in many Southwestern dishes. These can be added to sauces (including Mole) to add smokey flavor and maintain the red color of the sauces. These peppers are about 2-4 inches in length, 1 inch in width, and have a deep brick reddish brown color. The word Chipotle translated to smoked chile. Consider the Chipotle a 6.5 on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the hottest). Scoville heat units 7,000-25,000.
Suggested Use:
Use Morita in enchilada sauces, chili, stews, barbecue ribs, and corn bread. Their smoky quality combines well with poultry, meats and fall squash.
Ingredients:
4 slices of pancetta
12 white shrimp, cleaned and deveined
salt and white pepper to taste
Chipotle cream sauce:
4 canned chipotle chiles in adobo, minced
3 Tbsp. butter
4 tsp. garlic, minced
12 oz. heavy cream
cilantro leaves, chopped for garnish
fresh lime wedges
4 warm corn tortillas
Instructions:
Cut each pancetta slice into three pieces and wrap around the shrimp. Season them with salt and pepper and grill.
To prepare the cream sauce:
Saute the chiles with the butter. When butter turns the color of the shrimp, add the garlic and cream. Reduce slightly until the sauce thickens. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Serve the shrimp, 3 to a plate, atop a warm corn tortilla, and drizzle the chipotle cream sauce over the shrimp. Garnish the tops of the shrimp plates with chopped cilantro and serve with fresh lime wedges.
Yields 4 appetizer servings.