Recipe: Shrimp Cilantro with Red Chili Mayonnaise

Shrimp Cilantro with Red Chili Mayonnaise

1 pound tiny cooked shelled shrimp
1 1/2 cups diced celery
1/2 cup thinly sliced green onions, including tops
1/4 cup lightly packed fresh cilantro chopped
1/4 cup chopped Spanish-style pimiento-stuffed green olives
1/2 cup mayonnaise
Red chili mayonnaise (recipe follows)
1 large firm-ripe avocado
Butter lettuce leaves or
8 slices toasted thinly sliced white or whole-wheat bread.

In a large bowl, combine shrimp, celery, green onions, cilantro, and olives.

Blend the mayonnaise and 1/2 cup of the red chili mayonnaise; stir into shrimp mixture and mix gently until combined. Serve, or cover and chill as long as 6 hours.

To serve as a salad, peel, pit, and thinly slice the avocado. Arrange lettuce leaves on 4 plates, top with shrimp mixture, and garnish with avocado.

To serve as an open-faced sandwich, peel, pit, and mash the avocado; spread equally on toast. Spoon shrimp mixture on top. Accompany portions with red chili mayonnaise to add as desired.

Servings: 4

Red chili mayonnaise (makes about 1 cup):
Discard stems and shake seeds from 6 small dried hot red chilies. Coarsely crumble chilies into a blender; whirl until pulverized. Add 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar and 1 clove garlic; whirl until minced. Add 2 large egg yolks*; whirl until mixed. With motor running on high speed, add 3/4 cup salad oil in a very slow, steady stream; mixture will thicken. Season to taste with salt. Use or cover and chill.

* Cooking Egg Yolks for Use in Recipes: Because egg yolks are a fine growth medium for bacteria, cook them for use in mayonnaise, Hollandaise sauce, Caesar salad dressing, chilled souffles, chiffons, mousses and other recipes calling for raw egg yolks. The following method can be used with any number of yolks. - In a heavy saucepan, stir together the egg yolks and liquid from the recipe (at least 2 tablespoons liquid per yolk). Cook over very low heat, stirring constantly, until the yolk mixture coats a metal spoon with a thin film, bubbles at the edges or reaches 160 degrees F. Immediately place the saucepan in ice water and stir until the yolk mixture is cool. Proceed with the recipe. (American Egg Board)