I love shrimp. I could eat it all day I think. I’m partial to fried shrimp, though. Fried in any capacity: tempura, beer batter with tartar sauce, shrimp parmigiana, coconut shrimp, etc. Arwyn (my cat) also loves shrimp. She’s not really as picky as me though- she likes any kind of shrimp. She eats around the coatings or sauces she doesn’t like. I’m not as evolved as that so I stick to what I like. And I likes fried shrimp.

The queen of frying, Ms. Paula Deen, made this and therefore I had to. I renamed them Shrimp Po’ Arwyns because of my cat who, just a few minutes ago, ate the remaining shrimp off her own little plate. No tartar sauce

SHRIMP PO’ BUBBA’S ARWYN’S

Uncle Bubba’s Fry Mix:

• 6 cups self-rising flour
• 1 cup cornmeal
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper

Shrimpy goodness:

• 2 pounds, uncooked shrimp, peeled (tails left on), deveined and butterflied
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 3 eggs
• ¼ cup water
• ½ cup Louisiana hot sauce (recommended: Texas Pete)
• 2 cups Uncle Bubba’s Fry Mix
• Peanut oil, for deep frying
• Tartar sauce, or Cocktail sauce, for dressing
• Lettuce and tomato slices, for topping

Directions:

1. Lightly sprinkle the shrimp with salt and pepper. In a small bowl mix the eggs, 1/4 cup water and hot sauce. Place the fry mix in a shallow dish. Dip each shrimp in the egg mixture and then into the fry mix.
2. Cook’s Note: If the fry gets lumpy you can sift it to make smooth.

3. Heat 3 to 4-inches of peanut oil (in a Dutch oven or deep-fryer) to 350 degrees F.

4. Place the shrimp in the pot and fry until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Remove with a clean strainer or slotted spoon and drain on paper towels for a minute.

5. Serve on a toasted hoagie roll with tartar sauce, lettuce and tomatoes.

A few edits, if you will:

• I use tartar sauce on mine, which is what the original recipe called for. But some people prefer cocktail sauce (see above photos) so have that available as well.
• I didn’t have self-rising flour so I made one using a cheat and it worked just fine. I also omitted the water in the egg/hot sauce mixture- it made the batter too watery and none of it stayed on the shrimp when they were put into the oil. Also, in the aforementioned mixture I used plain old Tabasco sauce, which I love, instead of Louisiana hot sauce but you use whatever you want or whatever you have on hand.
• My fry mix didn’t get lumpy at all, so I didn’t have to sift, but I made only one pound of  (jumbo) shrimp and halved the fry mix recipe (and the egg mixture, of course) and still have a ton of mix left over.. so keep that in mind. But thats okay because it keeps for 4 months in an airtight container.
• I myself would add some paprika and maybe cayenne to the fry mix, it was a bit bland for me. But I live on hot sauce and my taste buds are immune to an extent so its really a matter of taste.
• I did not butterfly the shrimp, either, but thats pretty obvious.
• You’ll need a candy thermometer to check the temp of the oil, too. But you should have one of those anyway. If not- go get one.

Happy summer!

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