#41 My love-hate affair with shrimps

After McDonald's Japan announced the introduction of shrimp nuggets in its menu, I made my home version. Plus, I have an invitation for you. Make sure you read this all the way to the end.

For decades, I battled an allergy. Eating shrimps was a huge NO. I overcame the allergy eventually... But not entirely.

I loved shrimps as a child. Then, sometime during grade school, I found that I could no longer tolerate them. I stopped eating shrimp, crab and, after a while, even squid. Not just in solid form because broth or sauce made with any product that involved any of them made me just as sick.

It was a sad childhood for a girl who loved good food. The sadness persisted through high school and college. It was especially sad when eating at Asian restaurants. There were always so many dishes I could not touch — not even dare a taste.

Of course I’d been advised by every well-meaning friend and relative to try eating shrimps a piece or two at a time to give my digestive system a chance to get used to them. I followed the advice but it still took years to allow my body to develop whatever it needed to develop to overcome the allergy.

When it finally happened, I realized that how I eat shrimps will always have limitations. Sucking the juice from shrimp heads is still a no-no. But fully dressed shrimps, I can enjoy now. With gusto.

How to clean, peel and devein shrimps and prawns - How shrimps and prawns should be deveined and prepped depends on how they are intended to be cooked. There is a simple way and there is a special way if you don't want the shrimps or prawns to curl during cooking. Read more.

Thai glass noodle salad (yum woon sen) - Shrimps, sausage meat, glass noodles, shallots, tomatoes, Thai basil and cilantro are tossed in a dressing made with galangal, kaffir lime and its leaves, lemongrass, cilantro roots, chilies and palm sugar. See the recipe.

Shrimp fry (ebi furai) curry - Two dishes, combined. The ideal time to make shrimp fry curry is when you have leftover Japanese curry sauce so that you only need to cook the shrimps. See the recipe.

Creamy shrimp and broccoli spaghetti - Garlic sauteed in butter, sour cream, shrimps, pasta and broccoli florets are tossed in sour cream for an easy and delicious meal. Only one pot is required from start to finish. See the recipe.

Shrimp nuggets - In Japan, McDonald's recently introduced shrimp nuggets in the menu. This is my home version. Just grind peeled and deveined shrimps, season, coat with panko and fry. Get the recipe.

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