I just decided to give this tutorial… I don’t know why. Anyway. I enjoy making certain things from scratch, fresh cooked spinach is definitely one of them.
You will need:
In a medium sized pot (large enough to stuff your entire bag of spinach in). Pour water till its about 1/4 fourth up the side of the pot. Add roughly a tablespoon of minced garlic and, a pinch of salt.
*tip* it’s really important NOT to over season your spinach or, shrimp, they both hold flavor exceptionally well. Put this on medium heat. Don’t let it boil.
Open your bag of spinach, I like to rinse it off, even if it says it was washed. Squeeze out the water and, stuff your pot with the entire bag spinach. Place on the lid and, check in 10 mins.
After 10 minutes it’s cooked down to half it’s original size. There is more water then what you initially added. Continue cooking until you’re satisfied with the texture. I let it cook all the way down. This way the stems are also fully cooked and you don’t even notice them when eating (unlike store bought frozen spinach…YUCK!!)
Now that I’m satisfied with the spinach, which has fully cooked all the way down. Pour it into your strainer. Let it cool
If I don’t make Alfredo sauce from scratch, my favorite brand is Classico, I buy either regular or roasted garlic. I tend to use Ronzoni anything..
Prepare your shrimp, I don’t remember the size on the bag, but these are quite large. I actually took 14 from the bag and cut them up.
*tip* when buying shrimp remember, the larger the number, the smaller the size.. meaning size 25/30 are a lot bigger than say 70/90
Peel your shrimp, even though these are already deveined rinse them under room temperature or cold water, to remove any veins still present. I cut these into 3 sections. Seasoned them very lightly with Goya and cayenne pepper since I like spicy food. Toss to cover all the pieces with your hand.
Wash your hands thoroughly!! If you do accidentally touch your eyes. rinse with Very cold water.
*tip* Do not rinse shrimp in hot water, they will cook! A reason to buy frozen uncooked, versus frozen cooked is, that frozen cooked shrimp retain the water they are cooked in, They will not hold much flavor since they have so much water in them. They tend to water down your sauces, soups, etc. Also they will have a slightly rubbery texture if you re-cook them.
Boil a pot of water for your pasta.
Put on rubber gloves if your spinach is still hot at this point. Take your spinach and squeeze all the water you can out of it. I broke it into two parts and did this.
One of these will go into the sauce, the other only 1/3 will go in, the other 2/3 I gave to my little monkey (my son) to eat. Since he’s autistic he has like a pre-defined list of food he will eat and a very long list of things he wont even touch! So I make him eat spinach so that he gets some vegetables!
The monkey… aka Wesley
Using another pot (or the same one, since I simply cleaned it and reused it.. ) place it on medium heat and, add your shrimp. You do not need, butter, oil or anything else. The water collected in the bottom of your bowl when prepping your shrimp is enough!! Keep an eye on the shrimp, they do cook fast. Once they are fully cooked, add your Alfredo Sauce. Stir this around letting all the seasoning from the shrimp get fully incorporated into the sauce. Take your spinach and break it up into the sauce. Stir again and let come to a boil. Turn it off.
*tip* do not over cook the Alfredo Sauce! it’s a cheese based sauce. The longer it cooks the grittier the cheese will be. I’ve learned this when making it from scratch.. trust me, it doesn’t taste very good or look good either!
*tip*Do not add water to the jar to get the rest of the sauce out. Stick a spatula in the jar and clean it out. Adding water, just waters down your sauce and, adds more cooking time to your food!!
Add your pasta to your boiling water and cook it for the recommended time.
Strain and set aside.
Plate and enjoy!!
I’ve done variations of this, such as, fresh broccoli steamed then added (again so it doesn’t acquire so much water) also grilled chicken breast.
Maveric
You will need:
- One bag of Fresh uncooked Spinach.
- 1 or 2 cups of raw shrimp, I buy them uncooked and deveined.
- Minced garlic in water or oil (I prefer water)
- Thin linguini noodles
- Alfredo sauce (your preference of brand, since this was last minute I didn’t bother to make this from scratch)
- Strainer
- Your preferred seasonings. I used Goya (red cap) and Cayenne Pepper
- Salt
In a medium sized pot (large enough to stuff your entire bag of spinach in). Pour water till its about 1/4 fourth up the side of the pot. Add roughly a tablespoon of minced garlic and, a pinch of salt.
*tip* it’s really important NOT to over season your spinach or, shrimp, they both hold flavor exceptionally well. Put this on medium heat. Don’t let it boil.
Open your bag of spinach, I like to rinse it off, even if it says it was washed. Squeeze out the water and, stuff your pot with the entire bag spinach. Place on the lid and, check in 10 mins.
After 10 minutes it’s cooked down to half it’s original size. There is more water then what you initially added. Continue cooking until you’re satisfied with the texture. I let it cook all the way down. This way the stems are also fully cooked and you don’t even notice them when eating (unlike store bought frozen spinach…YUCK!!)
Now that I’m satisfied with the spinach, which has fully cooked all the way down. Pour it into your strainer. Let it cool
If I don’t make Alfredo sauce from scratch, my favorite brand is Classico, I buy either regular or roasted garlic. I tend to use Ronzoni anything..
Prepare your shrimp, I don’t remember the size on the bag, but these are quite large. I actually took 14 from the bag and cut them up.
*tip* when buying shrimp remember, the larger the number, the smaller the size.. meaning size 25/30 are a lot bigger than say 70/90
Peel your shrimp, even though these are already deveined rinse them under room temperature or cold water, to remove any veins still present. I cut these into 3 sections. Seasoned them very lightly with Goya and cayenne pepper since I like spicy food. Toss to cover all the pieces with your hand.
Wash your hands thoroughly!! If you do accidentally touch your eyes. rinse with Very cold water.
*tip* Do not rinse shrimp in hot water, they will cook! A reason to buy frozen uncooked, versus frozen cooked is, that frozen cooked shrimp retain the water they are cooked in, They will not hold much flavor since they have so much water in them. They tend to water down your sauces, soups, etc. Also they will have a slightly rubbery texture if you re-cook them.
Boil a pot of water for your pasta.
Put on rubber gloves if your spinach is still hot at this point. Take your spinach and squeeze all the water you can out of it. I broke it into two parts and did this.
One of these will go into the sauce, the other only 1/3 will go in, the other 2/3 I gave to my little monkey (my son) to eat. Since he’s autistic he has like a pre-defined list of food he will eat and a very long list of things he wont even touch! So I make him eat spinach so that he gets some vegetables!
The monkey… aka Wesley
Using another pot (or the same one, since I simply cleaned it and reused it.. ) place it on medium heat and, add your shrimp. You do not need, butter, oil or anything else. The water collected in the bottom of your bowl when prepping your shrimp is enough!! Keep an eye on the shrimp, they do cook fast. Once they are fully cooked, add your Alfredo Sauce. Stir this around letting all the seasoning from the shrimp get fully incorporated into the sauce. Take your spinach and break it up into the sauce. Stir again and let come to a boil. Turn it off.
*tip* do not over cook the Alfredo Sauce! it’s a cheese based sauce. The longer it cooks the grittier the cheese will be. I’ve learned this when making it from scratch.. trust me, it doesn’t taste very good or look good either!
*tip*Do not add water to the jar to get the rest of the sauce out. Stick a spatula in the jar and clean it out. Adding water, just waters down your sauce and, adds more cooking time to your food!!
Add your pasta to your boiling water and cook it for the recommended time.
Strain and set aside.
Plate and enjoy!!I’ve done variations of this, such as, fresh broccoli steamed then added (again so it doesn’t acquire so much water) also grilled chicken breast.
Maveric
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