Coconut Shrimp and Chicken with Pina Colada Dipping Sauce

Today I was woken up with the request of making coconut shrimp from my brother-in-law. This has turned into a family favorite! This is actually the second time that I made this recipe. It takes some time to get used to and can get tricky. One thing that I do when battering the shrimp is keep one hand for the dry batter and one hand for the wet batter. They are delicious! And one thing that I enjoy about this recipe is that it turns out the same way each time! Any questions or tips, feel free to ask.


Pina Colada Dipping Sauce
* 1 C. Pina Colada Mix
* 1/4 C. Water
* 2 Tbsp. Crush Pineapple (drained)
* 1 Tbs. + 1 tsp. Sweetened Coconut Flakes
* 3 Tbs. + 1 tsp. Powder Sugar
* 1+1/2 tsp. Corn Starch
* 3 tsp. Cold Water

-Mix the Pina Colada Mix, water, crushed pineapple, coconut, and powdered sugar in a saucepan. Heat on medium low temperature until sauce begins to simmer, stirring frequently. Let mixture simmer slowly 10-12 minutes Mix cornstarch and water together (making sure there are no clumps), add to sauce and blend well. Let mixture simmer for 3-5 minutes longer while continuing to stir. Remove from heat and bring to room temperature or you can chill it in the fridge.

Shrimp and Chicken
* 1lb. of shrimp and 1/2 pack of boneless skinless chicken tenders
* 6-8 cups canola oil (as required by fryer)
* 25 large shrimp, peeled and deveined
* 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
* 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 1 cup milk
* 2 tablespoons coconut rum
* 1 cup panko Japanese-style bread crumbs
* 1/2 cup sweetened coconut flakes

**I COOK THE CHICKEN BEFORE BATTERING AND FRYING**

1. Heat oil to 350 degrees or med/high on stove-top
2. Measure ¾ cup of flour into a medium bowl.
3. In a 2nd Medium bowl, mix together the remaining ¾ cup of flour, sugar, salt and mix together. Stir in milk and rum. Let this batter stand for 5-10 minutes.
4. In a 3rd medium bowl, combine panko breadcrumbs and coconut.

5. Butterfly each shrimp before you start the battering. Make sure to leave the tail intact.

6. Batter Sequence: Flour, Wet Batter Mixture, then Panko/Coconut
- It’s easiest if you batter all the shrimp before you start frying.

7. Drop the shrimp into the oil, and cook until golden brown on the outside. Follow the same steps for the chicken (excluding, of course, the butterflying part)

I tried to include as many pictures into this recipe as I could, so you can get a better idea of how everything should look during the process. This recipe is not my own, but a compilation of different recipes I found online. I have tweaked some of the measurements for the proper combination. This may look difficult, but is VERY do-able. Try something new today!

-Bon Apetite!