Summertime brings the days where, let’s face it, we don’t want to cook. I won’t call this a “recipe” because it truly is very flexible and easy to make. You may already have all the ingredients…all I ever have to buy is imitation crab, or cocktail shrimp, or both. I usually go with both. Today, though, I only have crab (I forgot the shrimp at the store lol). This is a party favorite, or a good light dinner.
I call it a “mix” because you can choose which veggies you like. I’ll list what I made it with today, but feel free to mix it up with your favorites. You just want to make sure that every veggie is about a 1:1 ratio with your seafood. This takes about 15 minutes to prep and it goes even faster if you use your handy-dandy chopper…I can’t live without mine!!!!! If you’re serving as an appetizer, it will be enough for 8-10 guests. If your serving for lunch or dinner, it’s enough for a good helping for 4 people
- 1 package imitation crab (or 3/4 package and 3/4lbs of cocktail shrimp)
- 1/2 large red onion (use whatever onion you like)
- 1 red bell pepper
- 1 cucumber
- 2 medium avocados
- 1 large Roma tomato
- 2-3 jalepenos
- Fresh cilantro
- A few limes, or lime juice
- 1/4 cup Ketchup (trust me)
- 1/4-1 cup Clamato juice (my secret weapon)
- Garlic salt, to taste
- Cayenne pepper (if you have no jalapeños, or they’re duds)
- Tortilla chips or tostadas!
Okay, that sounds like a lot, but it’s not. It goes fast….I swear. Lol. First thing you want to do is rinse your shrimp, rough chop them and add lime juice; set aside. Dice all veggies and throw them into a bowl. Shred the crab, throw it in. For the cilantro, cut off a handful of leaves, roll them up on a cutting board and chop it finely….same for the jalepenos. I always finely dice jalepenos so my guests, or kids don’t bite into one. Throw it all into the bowl and add your marinated shrimp, with the extra lime juice, ketchup and Clamato juice. I use Clamato juice because it adds exactly the right flavor against the acid in the lime. You want some juice to settle to the bottom, but you don’t want it to be soupy…..well, unless you do. Lol. Different veggies absorb the juice in different ways, so depending on the veggies you add, you may need to add more or less juice.
Now TASTE! You want to taste before adding seasonings. And remember, if you’re serving with chips….you may want to add less garlic salt to make room for salty chips.
Enjoy!!!
If you don’t have this chopper….u need to buy it today. I am a gadget queen and I’m telling you this is the fastest, easiest kitchen gadget I’ve found for chopping fruit and veggies. It’s not a pain to get out and put away, cleans easy and cuts your chopping time in less than half. I love it! Your can find it linked here.
