The chickpea and shrimp puree is my personal reinterpretation of a recipe found years ago in a cooking magazine.
It was the early years of the blog, and I was always on the lookout for new inspirations when I came across an interview with chef Fulvio Pierangelini, described by food critic François Simon as the greatest on the planet!
(Among his diners are guests like Sting and Tony Blair, to name a few).
In that interview, he talked about one of his dishes, simple yet extraordinary if made with high-quality ingredients like Mazara shrimp.
Unfortunately, we are not in Mazara, and it is tough to find live or extremely fresh shrimp to consume raw after flash-freezing, but the combination of chickpeas and shrimp intrigued me.
So, starting with local products like Murgia chickpeas and local shrimp, I brought to the table a tasty and easily replicable recipe even for us who are not chefs but love to eat well.
Follow me in the kitchen because it is really simple, and serve your chickpea and shrimp puree!
READ THE F.A.Q. AT THE END OF THE RECIPE to help clear up your doubts, and if you have questions, feel free to ask.
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- Difficulty: Very Easy
- Cost: Medium
- Rest time: 8 Hours
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 2
- Cooking methods: Stovetop, Pressure Cooker
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All Seasons
- Energy 369.13 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 39.23 (g) of which sugars 4.13 (g)
- Proteins 22.27 (g)
- Fat 12.76 (g) of which saturated 1.75 (g)of which unsaturated 4.29 (g)
- Fibers 11.02 (g)
- Sodium 218.55 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 120 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients
- 1 cup cup dried chickpeas
- 8 shrimp
- to taste garlic powder (or 1 fresh clove)
- salt
- black pepper
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Tools
- 1 Pressure Cooker
Preparation of chickpea and shrimp puree:
– The night before, soak the dried chickpeas in cold, soft or mineral water (otherwise, they will remain hard).
– Rinse the chickpeas and put them in the pressure cooker with the oil and garlic; add 2 cups of water (or vegetable broth), close the lid, and cook for about 25 minutes from the whistle. Once done, depressurize, adjust with salt and pepper and set aside a couple of ladles of chickpeas.
– Blend the chickpeas directly in the pot with an immersion blender and check if you need to add a little water (if the puree turns out too thick).
– Heat the pan and sear the shrimp, turning them after 2 minutes.
– Serve the puree in bowls or plates decorating the surface with shrimp and whole chickpeas set aside.
Tips
– If you have very fresh shrimp, after flash-freezing for 48 hours, shell them and season with lemon juice, thyme, and rosemary. Place them in a plate covered with food wrap (or an airtight container) and refrigerate for about an hour. Then cook them in a pan and proceed according to the recipe.
– You can also season the shrimp with lemon zest before serving if desired.
F.A.Q.
Questions and answers to clear your doubts
– Can I use canned chickpeas?
– Yes, remember to drain them from the brine and rinse them thoroughly to remove salt residues.
– How do I proceed if I want to make vegetable broth?
– Place onion, zucchini, carrot, a celery stalk, perhaps a potato and some tomatoes in about 2 quarts of water. Boil for the necessary time and salt at the end. Then strain and proceed as per the recipe.
– I don’t like chickpeas, can I use other legumes?
– Try with lentils.
– I don’t have a pressure cooker, how should I proceed?
– After soaking and rinsing the chickpeas, put them in the pot you normally use and cook with garlic, oil, and water (or vegetable broth) for about 50 minutes, salting only at the end of cooking; otherwise, the chickpeas remain hard.
– Can I use a food mill instead of a blender?
– Yes.
