Most often, recipes for Mexican-style devilishly hot shrimp – camarones a la diabla – involves destemming, deseeding and charring dried peppers, then reconstituting them in water, etc. This version is a quicker, simplified one that uses chile powder rather than dried chiles. Give it a try! 

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 3 Tbsp New Mexico chile powder (you could also experiment with other chiles, like guajillo, pasilla, etc.)
• 1 Tbsp paprika
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. Mexican oregano
• 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
• 16 oz. tomato sauce
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
• 2 jalapeno peppers, de-stemmed, seeded and chopped
• 1/4 cup Mexican hot sauce, such at El Pato
• 2 Tbsp vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 1 Tbsp unsalted butter
• 1/2 onion, peeled and thinly sliced

Method: 

1. In a blender, puree the chile powder, spices, salt & pepper, garlic, jalapenos, hot sauce and tomato sauce until smooth. If the mixture is too thick (it should be like a thin gravy), add a little chicken broth or water.
2. In a small-to-medium saucepan, heat 1 Tbs. of the oil over medium-high. When the oil is hot enough to make a drop of the sauce sizzle, carefully add the puree (it may splatter) and stir well until the mixture thickens some, about 5-7 minutes.
3. Add the chicken broth and stir. Partially cover the pot, lower the heat, and allow the diabla sauce to simmer and thicken, about 30 minutes.
4. Near the end of the cooking time for the diabla sauce, melt the butter along with the remaining 1 Tbsp vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in the sliced onions and cook, until slightly wilted, 2-3 minutes.
5. Add the shrimp to the skillet with the onion and cook, stirring frequently, until the shrimp are just pink but not quite cooked through; they’ll finish cooking in the sauce.
6. Carefully pour the diabla sauce into the skillet with the shrimp and stir well. Cook the shrimp for 2-3 minutes in the sauce, until cooked through. Taste the sauce for spiciness and add additional Mexican hot sauce, as needed. 

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Originally trained as an anthropologist, Ted Scheffler is a seasoned food, wine & travel writer based in Utah. He loves cooking, skiing, and spends an inordinate amount of time tending to his ever-growing herd of guitars and amplifiers.

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