Vietnamese Shrimp on Sticks (Chao Tom)

🧂 Ingredients

• 10-12 oz peeled and deveined shrimp
• 6-7 lemongrass stalks
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed or finely minced garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed or finely minced shallot
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed or finely minced ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon fish sauce
• 1 teaspoon olive oil

  (plus more for greasing and frying)
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch

Instructions

• 1 Make sure the shrimps are very cold. If you have time, put them in the freezer
  for about 20 minutes.
• 2 Cut lemongrass stalks into 4 to 4 1/2-inch sticks. If the outer layer is dry,
  peel it off. Make a few slits along the lemongrass to make it easier to release
  the aroma. You can watch the video in the post to see how to do this step.
• 3 Add shrimps to the bowl of a food processor. Also add garlic, shallot and
  ginger. Pulse a few times until shrimps are coarsely chopped.
• 4 Add salt, black pepper, fish sauce, olive oil and cornstarch to the food
  processor bowl and process until smooth.
• 5 Check if the shrimp mousse is still cold. If not, chill in the refrigerator. Use
  a spoon to mix the paste a few times. Very lightly oil your hand and use a
  tablespoon (or slightly more) of shrimp mousse to wrap around the top part of
  each lemongrass stick.
• 6 Place a fry pan with a generous amount of oil over medium heat. Once the oil is
  hot, add shrimp sticks and fry until golden. You can also grill them.
• 7 Serve hot with sriracha sauce (or Vietnamese nuoc cham dressing or Thai chili
  sauce), lettuce and fresh herbs. You can also add some rice vermicelli noodles
  to the serving plate.

Nutrition Info