If you have ever had a shrimp fatteh in a Lebanese restaurant, and looking for the secret, we have you covered! A great get together dish, but please don’t assemble until you’re ready to serve it, to keep everything crispy and fresh. Watch the video tutorial.
Ingredients
450g/ 1 lb shelled shrimp
4cupswhole milk plain yogurtdon’t use Greek yogurt, read the note above
1medium eggplantabout 5 oz/ 150 grams trimmed
1/4cuppine nuts
1teaspoonpaprika
3pita breads / 1 1/2 lebanese bread
2cupcanola oilto fry the eggplants and the bread
5tablespoonsof canola oilto toast the pine nuts and to cook the shrimp
Salt to your taste preference
Instructions
Using a sharp knife, cut along the middle back of the shrimp, make the cut slightly deeper, but not through the shrimp, discard the vein and run the shrimp under cold water in a colander, and set aside.
Dice the eggplant to 3 cm/ 1inch cubes, sprinkle with a dash of salt
Cut the bread into equal small cubes
Heat the 2 cups of oil an d fry the eggplant pieces, until uniformly golden brown, it takes about 5 minutes. With a slotted spoon transfer the eggplant to a plate lined with kitchen paper towels and sprinkle with salt. Add the cubed bread to the same oil and fry to a golden color, making sure to stir all the time to avoid burning. Remove with a slotted spoon and transfer to a plate lined with kitchen paper towel.
Combine together the yogurt with crushed garlic and adjust salt to your taste preference. Whisk well to homogenize.
Heat 5 tablespoons of oil in a saucepan, add the pine nuts and toast to a golden color, make sure to stir to avoid burning. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside; add the paprika and a dash of salt and saute the shrimp until the they turn pink and curled, 2 to 3 minutes. Slice one shrimp open to see that it is opaque throughout, remove from heat and set aside. (The cooking time will vary with the size of the shrimp.)
To assemble: Transfer the bread to a large semi deep plate. Scatter the fried eggplants over the fried bread, drizzle the garlicky yogurt all over the to cover the bread and eggplants. Neatly add the shrimp with a little stream of the oil used to cook the shrimp. Add the pine nuts and serve directly. How scrumptious!
Video
Notes
If you make the "Shrimp Fatteh", share your pictures on Facebook! I would love to see your creations!Hashtag them #Hadia's Lebanese Cuisine