The Andrew Extravaganza

As we all learned from Bubba in Forest Gump, shrimp are extremely versatile. One application is the shrimp po’boy, perhaps my favorite sandwich. I had never tried making one until a few months ago; I can’t explain why that is the case, it’s one of those unfortunate oversights.

The two best shrimp po’boys that I’ve come across are found at Sammy's Grill in Baton Rouge, LA and On The River in Freeport, TX.

Sammy’s is just up Highland Road from my grandparents’ house and is a frequent lunch destination on our visits. It’s usually packed, but the food is worth any wait. You can’t beat any of their po’boys served (by an attractive LSU coed) with a side of their excellent onion rings.

While working my co-op with Rhodia, I would attempt to steer any organized lunch outing toward On the River. The craziest damn thing I ever saw (I don’t get out much) was the appetizer of fried dill pickle slices, which were surprisingly great. The service was inconsistent, but I was never in any hurry to return to work.

What both places have in common is the basic recipe for a perfect fried-shrimp po’boy: crusty, toasted French bread; mayonnaise; sliced tomato; shredded lettuce; and lightly breaded, juicy gulf shrimp. Nothing fancy necessary, it’s really that simple.

Here’s how I made my restaurant quality version from Southern Living’s 2002 annual recipe collection:

SHRIMP PO’BOYS

Makes 4 sandwiches

2 pounds shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 ¼ cups all purpose flour
½ tsp salt
½ tsp pepper
½ cup milk
1 large egg
1/3 cup butter
1 tsp minced garlic
4 French bread rolls, split
Sliced tomatoes
1 cup shredded lettuce
Mayo
Vegetable oil for frying

In a medium bowl, combine flour, salt, and pepper. In a separate bowl, stir together milk and egg until smooth. Toss shrimp in milk mixture; dredge in flour mixture to coat. Heat oil to 375 degrees. Fry shrimp in batches, 1 to 2 minutes until golden brown. Remove to a plate covered with paper towels to drain excess oil. Melt butter; add garlic. Spread cut sides of rolls evenly with butter mixture; place on a large baking sheet. Bake at 450 degrees until rolls are nicely toasted; watch them carefully to avoid burning. Spread the mayo on thick, then pile the shrimp on bottom; don’t be bashful, pile them high. Dress it up with lettuce and tomato and press the top side of the roll down to contain the guts.

A few notes from me:

Medium to large shrimp are best, although you can use any size. You don’t want to get too huge or too small because you’ll create stacking troubles on your sandwich.

You can go the deep fryer route, but it's not necessary. An inch of oil in a good cast iron frying pan works (that's what I used). A Dutch oven works. A regular frying pan with an inch or two of oil works too. Medium-high heat on the stove is a good setting; if you’re using cheap oil that starts to smoke, then you can get by with medium heat.

Don’t settle for flaccid Sara Lee deli roles; you need authentic French bread.

As a variation, you could put mayo on the bench in favor of a rémoulade; you can’t go wrong either way.

A few splashes of Tabasco will make the shrimp po’boy even more delicious.

I have always been a fan of the shrimp po'boy. I think I will have to give this a shot. Good post.

this actually sounds pretty good. bit o work required though...