Shrimp Salad in Wonton Cups

I really like small bites of things.  Some of my favorite meals have been at restaurants where I’ve shared several hors d’oeuvres with my family or a friend or two or three—and it is fun to have a few bites of several things rather than a whole plate of one thing.  So sometimes at home, I’ll make small bites of things to serve my family or guests before a light dinner.

This recipe is a good one.  The cups are crispy and the salad is just-right spicy and the cilantro tastes fresh and the whole thing is one big bite (or two small ones) of crunch and good flavor.  If you don’t have the time to make the wonton cups (or just don’t want to), you could serve this shrimp salad any number of ways…in phyllo dough cups from the freezer section, on toasted bread rounds or on your favorite cracker.  But they do look pretty this way, and the salted cups are tasty.

Shrimp Salad in Wonton Cups

Makes 24

Preparation Time for Cups:  15 minutes
Preparation Time for Salad:  15 minutes
Total Time:  30 minutes

Ingredients for the cups:

24 wonton wrappers, each cut to about 4-inch squares
Cooking spray
Vegetable Oil (about 2 teaspoons)
Kosher salt

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Spray two mini-muffin tins (12-count each) with cooking spray.  Lightly brush one side of each wrapper with oil and then press them into the muffin tins (oiled side up).  Lightly sprinkle with kosher salt and bake for 10 minutes or until they are a rich, golden color.  They need to be nicely browned so that they stay crisp—too lightly and they will get soggy.  Remove them carefully from the tin and cool them on paper towels.  Once they are completely cooled, you can store them in an airtight container until you’re ready to serve.

Ingredients for the salad:

1/3 cup mayonnaise
3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro, plus leaves for garnish
1-½ tablespoons of fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon mango chutney (I used Major Grey’s)
1 teaspoon Thai green curry paste*
1 pound medium shrimp, peeled, deveined, cooked and coarsely chopped

Stir together the mayonnaise, fresh cilantro, lime juice, chutney, and green curry paste and blend well.  Fold in the shrimp and salt and pepper to taste.  (If you’re making this ahead of time, you can refrigerate the salad for up to a day.)  When you’re ready to serve, spoon the shrimp salad into the wonton cups and garnish with a fresh cilantro leaf.

*Note:  If your market doesn’t have green curry paste, you can substitute a fine chop of one green onion, ½ clove garlic… and if you like it spicy—1 teaspoon or two of finely chopped jalapeno pepper)

Tags: appetizers, canape, chutney, cilantro, curry, lime, shrimp canape, shrimp salad, won ton cups

Appetizer | RSS 2.0 | Respond in the Reply form below | Trackback |