For Mother’s Day, last week, I made shrimp po’boys. It’s a funny choice because if you knew my mom you would know that she is not a fan of shrimp. Being the stubborn person that I am, ever since her confession, I tried to make her retract her statement and start loving shrimp. I took on this challenge happily. I though it was doable; all I would need is one amazing shrimp recipe. There is only like a million ways to prepare shrimp, right?

Well, the mission is complete as of last Sunday. She was head-over-heels for these shrimp po-boys and so were the rest of us at the dinner table. I found this recipe in an old issue of Cooking Light and only tweaked it a little bit. I doubled the coleslaw recipe and used french rolls. I really liked the idea of hollowing out the rolls and using the leftovers to bread the shrimp. It was a light and delicious Mother’s Day meal.

Shrimp Po’Boys (adapted from Cooking Light magazine):

Prepare the coleslaw: combine 6 tbsp. canola mayonnaise, 1 1/2 tbsp. minced yellow onion, 2 tsp. fresh lemon juice, 2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce, 1 1/2 tsp. apple cider vinegar, 1 tsp. Dijon mustard, 1 tsp. prepared horseradish, 1/2 tsp. sriracha sauce, 1/2 tsp. grated lemon peel, 1/2 tsp. granulated sugar, and 1 garlic glove in a medium bowl, stirring with a whisk. Add 4 cups shredded cabbage and 1/2 shredded medium carrot. Pour the coleslaw dressing on the cabbage and carrot mix. Toss to coat. Cover and chill.

To prepare po’boys: combine 1 tbsp. cornstarch, 1/2 tsp. grated lemon peel, 1/4 tsp. salt, 1/4 tsp. ground black pepper, and 1 large egg white in a medium bowl; whisk until blended. Add 1 lbs. peeled and deveined medium shrimp and toss well. Marinate in the refrigerator for 30 minutes, stirring once.

Hollow out top and bottom halves of 6 toasted french rolls, leaving a 1/4-inch-thick shell. Place torn bread in a food processor; process until very fine crumbs form. Set aside 1/2 cup breadcrumbs; reserve remaining breadcrumbs for another use. Combine 1/2 cup breadcrumbs, 3 tbsp. cornmeal, and 1/4 tsp. ground black pepper in a large zip-top plastic bag; seal and shake to combine.

Remove shrimp from bowl; discard marinade. Add shrimp to breadcrumb mixture. Seal and shake to coat.
Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add 2 tsp. olive oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add shrimp; cook 3 minutes on each side or until done. Repeat until all the shrimp are cook, adding oil to each new batch.
Arrange coleslaw on each bottom and top half of bread. Top with shrimp, slice of tomato, chopped scallion, and diced jalapeno. Cover with top half of bread and enjoy.