Panko Crusted Shrimp with Chili Garlic Glaze and Asian Slaw and a review of the Actifry Cooker
I had to attempt another recipe out of the cookbook to see if I was being too critical. The second recipe I made was a Chipotle Beef Chili. Again, I followed the directions exactly as they were written. Unfortunately, this did not turn out well either.
The flavors were okay, but the moisture in the chili cooked off. It was so dry that we added another whole can of tomatoes, but it still absorbed all the liquid, so the meat and beans had no sauce.
The heat source must have something to do with the absorption of the liquids in these dishes since both this dish and the Spicy Thai Chicken Curry needed much more liquid than the recipe originally called for. I guess I have to ask if someone really tested these recipes. I followed them precisely and these were my results. Once again, I would say preparing chili in a more traditional manner in a pot on the stove would be my preferred method of cooking it.
On the positive side (I saved the best for last!), I did have success with frying shrimp. I tried them several ways and they were all good. The coating stayed on the shrimp and it cooked evenly. I used bread crumbs and Panko and both worked well. I had the best success when I put the Panko in a food processor for a few seconds and made the flakes a bit smaller.
The shrimp was best when prepared in smaller batches and with a bit more oil than is suggested for “frying” in the Actify. I found that 1/2 pound of medium shrimp did well with about 1 1/2 tablespoons of peanut oil.
I really wanted to be able to say that I thought the Tfal Actifry cooker was awesome and that you should run out and get one, but I can’t quite yet. I do like this cooker very much and the concept of the cooking process. I have had a great deal of fun playing with it and will continue to use it for certain dishes. I do like the idea that we can have some fried foods using just a couple tablespoons of oil. The recipes I tried from the cookbook that is included were what was disappointing and not the actual cooker. I plan to adapt some of my own recipes that I believe can be successfully prepared in the Actifry based on what I have learned so far.
Now for the best recipe…We really enjoyed this Panko Crusted Shrimp! The shrimp were crisp and browned nicely. They were not oily tasting like you would expect with traditionally fried shrimp, so we were excited. I bought medium-sized local Georgia shrimp. I served the shrimp with a Chili Garlic Glaze for dipping (the recipe is from Chef Craig Deihl at Cypress in Charleston, SC). I made an Asian Slaw that was perfect with all the other flavors. You could add some other ingredients to the slaw if you like. I wanted something simple since the dipping sauce is so flavorful.
* If you do not have an Actifry cooker, you could fry your shrimp in a little peanut oil.
Enjoy!
Panko Crusted Shrimp with Chili Garlic Glaze and Asian Slaw
Ingredients:
For shrimp:
1 pound medium shrimp (31-45 per pound) I used local Georgia shrimp
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (you may need more)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 eggs, beaten
1 tablespoon milk
2 cups Panko, crushed slightly in a food processor
3 – 4 tablespoons peanut oil, divided
For Chili Garlic Glaze:
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon fine sea salt
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon minced ginger
1/2 tablespoon sambal oelek
1/2 tablespoon chopped cilantro
1/2 tablespoon chopped mint
1/2 tablespoon chopped basil
For Asian Slaw:
1/2 head Savoy Cabbage
4 green onions, sliced thinly
3 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 package Ramen noodles (you will only use the dried noodles)
1/3 cup slivered almonds
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 1/2 teaspoons soy sauce
Directions:
For shrimp:
Clean and devein shrimp. Pat dry. Set aside. Season the flour with salt and pepper in a shallow bowl. Set aside. Add the milk to the beaten eggs in a small bowl. Place your Panko crumbs in a shallow bowl. Make an assembly line of these ingredients in that order.
Dip the shrimp first in the flour mixture. Fully coat in the flour and then tap off the excess flour. Dip the shrimp next into the egg mixture, letting excess run off. Finally, dip each piece of into the Panko, being sure to coat completely. Set aside in a single layer on a large plate.
When ready to cook, if using the Actifry, place half of the shrimp in the cooker in a single layer. Drizzle with 1 1/2 tablespoons (or a little more) of peanut oil. Turn the cooker on and set the timer for 7 minutes. Check after that time to see if the shrimp have browned. You may want to cook them for another minute or two to brown a bit more. Watch them closely to be sure they don’t overcook. Keep first batch warm. Repeat cooking process with last half of shrimp.
Serve with Chili Garlic Glaze and Asian Slaw.
For the Chili Garlic Glaze:
In a saucepan combine rice wine vinegar, sugar and salt. Place over medium-high heat and reduce by one-fourth. Mixture should have a syrup-like consistency.
Remove from heat and add garlic, ginger and sambal. Incorporate evenly and allow mixture to cool completely.
Add cilantro, mint and basil to cooked mixture. Adding herbs to mixture when hot will cause herbs to turn brown.
Place in a container and keep refrigerated.
For Asian Slaw:
Shred or thinly slice the cabbage to a desired thickness for your slaw. Add the sliced green onions and toss lightly.
Melt the butter in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the Ramen noodles, almonds and sunflower seeds. Stir and cook over medium heat until all of the ingredients are lightly browned, about 8 minutes. Place the mixture in a bowl and cool.
Whisk together the salt, oil, sugar, apple cider vinegar and soy sauce in a small bowl until dressing comes together. Set aside.
When ready to serve slaw, add dressing to the slaw, to taste. Check for seasoning. Serve topped with the Ramen noodle, almond and sunflower mixture. * Do not mix the dressing into the slaw until you are ready to serve it. It will wilt quickly.
Panko Crusted Shrimp & Asian Slaw – Bunkycooks
Chili Garlic Glaze – Executive Chef Craig Deihl, Cypress – Charleston, SC
An honest assessment of a product! Thank you for telling it like it is not like the sponsor wants it to be told.
That’s not to say this isn’t a great piece of equipment, it is, but it doesn’t do everything and some things are pretty crap.
What it does do well it does extremely well.
Those shrimp look yummy!
I was glad to see your review- I’ve looked at these for a while and wondered how they worked. We’ve pretty much given up deep-frying food, and I do miss the crispiness. Those shrimp do look delicious! I don’t think I’ll rush out and get one yet, but please let us know how your ongoing experiments come out!
Mmmmm. Looks good!!!
~sigh~
No more frying for us, sadly.
Oh yes…this panko shrimp looks so good. I have yet been able to make successful french fries at home. I know one day I’ll hit frying gold! After a long day at work, it was refreshing to come and visit your blog. I hope you are having a good start to your week. Much love and many hugs from Austin! Thank you for sharing your creative concoctions with me.
Shame the product didn’t work out as well as you would have liked. At least you gave it a couple of chances to make sure it wasn’t something funky with one of the recipes.
On a positive note, these shrimp look marvelous! I could go for a plate of this on a summer afternoon.
Well, the panko-crusted shrimp look and sound fabulous! It’s the kind of thing I would order if I saw it on a restaurant menu. As for the rest, I think that as soon as you got used to the machine you could come up with much more fabulous dishes than what you found in their cookbook.
Super Yummy ! Seems Absolutely Delicious ! Gonna try this . Cheers !
Well, the shrimp sounds delicious! And that slaw alongside it as well. Happy Cooking!
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Thanks for this recipe. Tried it and it was very good. I have made the cole slaw for years and its a keeper. I love the actifry but the recipes have been greatly disappointing. For the curry’s I have found I have to use Madras curry because it takes the heat better of the machine and stays tasting like curry and I have also experimented with when to add ingredients. Not everything goes in at one time if you want to keep the flavors of things. I also have found I cook, take things out and then recombine and put them back in the machine.
Wish someone did a really good recipe book for this machine. Its a good tool but not the way they promote it.
Hi Tish,
Thank you for your comment. I am glad you reminded me of this recipe. It is very good and we love the Asian dipping sauce with the shrimp. I agree with you on the cookbook that comes with the Actifry. It’s not good and the recipes don’t work. It’s too bad that they didn’t test them to make sure they work because most people will be thoroughly disappointed and never use the appliance again.
Gwen
When you do the shrimp, do you use it with the paddle in?? Does the batter stay on? or do you take it out?
Thank you.
The paddle remains in the Actifry for all cooking as it moves the food while the heat is circulated by the fan. Yes, the batter stays on pretty well (as you can see in the photos). As I found with most everything I cooked in the machine, it wasn’t a perfect method of cooking, but it did reduce having to add more fat. I hope that helps.