Fake Out Take Out: Curried Rice and Shrimp

Welcome back to another edition of Fake Out Take Out, where I create an authentic ethnic meal without picking up the phone.

Today's meal comes from the September issue of Real Simple Magazine, so you know that recipe is ridiculously easy and fast.

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 teaspoons curry powder
1 cup long-grain white rice
Kosher salt and pepper
1 1/2 pounds large shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/2 cup fresh basil

Directions:

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and carrots and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, 6 to 8 minutes.

Add the garlic and curry and cook, stirring, until fragrant, 2 minutes.

Add the rice, 2 1/2 cups water, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes.



Season the shrimp with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper and nestle them in the partially cooked rice. Cover and cook until the shrimp are opaque throughout, 4 to 5 minutes. Fold in the basil and serve.


Yield: Makes 4 servings

NUTRITION PER SERVING
CALORIES 431; FAT 7g (sat 1g); CHOLESTEROL 259mg; CARBOHYDRATE 50g; SODIUM 757mg; PROTEIN 39g; FIBER 3g; SUGAR 3g


Cook's notes:

I used brown rice to make the dish slightly healthier. I also added a simple salad to the meal.



As for the shrimp, I totally just used a bag of frozen shrimp from Trader Joe's. I didn't even thaw them, just dumped them frozen in the pan. It's cheating, but seriously who doesn't cheat at cooking?

Look! It looks just like the picture in the magazine!



I also added extra curry just for fun. My apartment smelled like an Indian restaurant for three days. I'm sure my neighbors were thrilled.

But it a really good meal. I will make it again, only toss in a few other veggies. And there was plenty left over, so Mr. Snowgoose had Fake Out Take Out for lunch. I'll be his coworkers were jealous.