Jen Hearts Mayo

Shrimp with lychee mayonnaise and chili sauce was inspired by similar entrees I’ve eaten at Chinese and Japanese restaurants here in Massachusetts. When most people think of mayonnaise, they usually think of it as a condiment/spread/ edible glue in sandwiches but in many Asian cultures, mayonnaise is sometimes a sauce ingredient on top of anything battered and deep fried. One of my favorite mayonnaise sauces is a fruity mayonnaise and chili sauce on top of crispy deep fried shrimp or chicken. I have several versions of this mayonnaise, fruit juice and chili sauce combination. Today, I combined mayonnaise, lychee juice(reserved juice from a can of lychees) and Lingham's Hot Sauce. Lingham's hot sauce is an all natural hot sauce from Malaysia and it’s fantastic. It's a perfect blend of sweet and spicy and an unknown complexity that I couldn't quite put my finger on. It's quickly becoming my favorite. I have used Sriracha in the past and that works quite well too.

I deveined and peeled about a pound of large sized shrimp. Then, I made a batter with buttermilk and Vietnamese Fry Powder. The Fry powder is available at your local Asian Supermarket. I love Vietnamese Fry powder for deep frying because it’s a perfect blend of wheat flour, cornstarch, rice flour, baking powder, salt and pepper. The best part - no MSG. The buttermilk and fry powder makes a nice light crunchy batter. Finally, I drizzled the shrimp with the sweet, spicy and creamy sauce. Shrimp with lychee mayonnaise and chili sauce is great with white rice.