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We recently attended a Blue Fox vintage dinner (see more here). It was a step back into the days of old-school, glamorous San Francisco. One of our courses was The Blue Fox’s Scampi Alla Livornese. Vintage recipes intrigue us, so when we saw this particular recipe, we had to share it!
Wonder why the shrimp is soaked in milk? We did, and found that this process was commonly used with fish and shellfish in many vintage recipes. It supposedly helps remove the “fishy smell” of seafood. Hopefully, the seafood you’re using doesn’t smell “fishy” to start! Fresh, high-quality fish should not smell.
Would you like to see more vintage recipes? Let us know by sending us an email or in the comments below.
Scampi Alla Livornese
Author: Adapted from The Blue Fox, A Treasury of Great Recipes, 50th Anniversary Edition: Famous Specialties of the World's Foremost Restaurants Adapted for the American Kitchen
Ingredients
- 12 large prawns, peeled and deveined
- Milk
- Canola oil
- ½ cup Flour, for dusting
- Salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 small shallot, finely diced
- 2 cups sweet white wine, such as Sauternes
- 4 ounces butter, softened
- Lemon wedges, for serving
- Parsley, finely chopped, for serving
Instructions
- In a bowl, add prawns and cover them with milk. Allow to soak 10 to 15 minutes.
- Season the flour with salt and pepper.
- In a heavy frying pan, heat about 1½ inches of canola oil to 350°F.
- Remove shrimp from the milk and dry with paper towels.
- Working in batches, dredge each shrimp through a small amount of the flour. Fry for about 2 minutes, or until lightly browned. Remove from the hot oil and drain on paper towels and keep warm.
- For the sauce, add the wine and shallot to a skillet.
- Bring the wine to a boil, and cook until the wine is reduced by half.
- Add the shrimp and boil briskly to heat through (about one minute).
- Add the butter and reduce the heat.
- Toss with the wine and shrimp until the sauce is creamy.
- Garnish with parsley and serve immediately.