Well I’m starting to feel those extra quarantine pounds so I’m making some adjustments. I need to focus on cooking a little lighter again. I usually am good about balance, but man, once we were ordered to shelter in place with Covid, I bought all the cookies, pasta, ice cream. Hello! What did I think would happen?

This shrimp and veggies with spicy quinoa recipe is packed with flavor. The hot sauce with the quinoa and sweet flavor with the shrimp–it all goes together so well.

Are you ready to start eating a little healthier so we can come out of quarantine looking like we did when we went in? Let’s do it together!

Shrimp and Veggies with Spicy Quinoa

Prep time: 15 minutes | Cook time: 20 minutes | Total time: 35 minutes

Ingredients

Note: this makes two servings

• Quinoa
• 10-15 frozen shrimp
• 2 tbs olive oil
• 2 radishes, chopped
• 1/2 of a zucchini, chopped
• 1/4 cup red onion, chopped
• 1/2 of a carrot, chopped
• 1/2 of a celery stalk, chopped
• 2 tbs minced garlic
• 2 tbs Louisiana hot sauce
• 2 tbs butter
• 2 tsp McCormick Caribbean Jerk seasoning (or something similar)
• 3 tbs Hoisin sauce

Recipe

• In a medium pot, cook the quinoa as instructed on the package. Since I’m making two servings of this dish, I use the instructions for 1 cup of quinoa and water which makes quite a bit.
• While the quinoa is cooking, in a medium saucepan, heat up olive oil and then add the veggies and garlic.
• Sauté the veggies until they begin to get a little brown and then add in the frozen shrimp. Make sure the shrimp are in a single layer in the saucepan so they cook evenly.
• After about 5 minutes, stir the veggies and shrimp so the veggies don’t stick to the bottom of the pan. Take some tongs and flip over the shrimp so they cook through on the other side.
• Once you flip the shrimp over to the other side, add the Caribbean Jerk seasoning and drizzle the Hoisin sauce over the top.
• After cooking for a couple minutes, give the veggies and shrimp another stir. At this point, the shrimp are cooked and you’re just letting the flavors marinade together.
• Give your quinoa a stir once it’s all done and then add in the butter and Louisiana hot sauce. This is the magic ingredient that puts this dish over the top! Any hot sauce will do.
• To plate, put a spoonful of quinoa in a bowl and then a spoonful or two of the shrimp and veggies on top.
• Enjoy!

XO, Rachel