Almost Italian

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Not every dish on Italian-American restaurant menus can claim lineage back to the old country. Born here, without known Italian antecedents, Shrimp Cocktail has held a prominent place for decades—on antipasto menus of American banquet halls and neighborhood Italian restaurants.

While the early 20th century origins of the concoction are well documented in numerous culinary tracts, the connection to Italians is not, though it can be easily inferred.

During the late 1800′s, the Port of New Orleans was second only to Ellis Island as a point of arrival for Italian—and particularly Sicilian—immigrants. In 1910, more than three quarters of the population of the city’s French Quarter was actually Italian. During this period, the French Quarter acquired the nicknames “Little Sicily,” and “Little Palermo.”

The association of Gulf Coast shrimp and the gastronomically indulgent residents of New Orleans is common knowledge. Newly arrived Italians, many of whom worked on the docks, would have been aware of their city’s attention to food, shellfish in particular. And it’s highly likely that they would have been aware of New Orleanians enjoying a dish turn-of-the-century menus listed as Shrimps in Tomato Catsup.

As to why shrimp were ever served as a ‘cocktail,’ we need to consider Prohibition and the temporary end of alcoholic cocktails, as they had been known. It appears that some of the fancier restaurants sought to fill their equally fancy stemware with something other than martinis and champagne. Restaurateurs began presenting legal commodities—shellfish or macerated fruit—in martini glasses, and, with a bit of tongue in cheek, these offerings were called ‘cocktails.’

From elegant restaurants, the shrimp cocktails found their way to less exclusive venues and eventually to the neighborhood red-sauce restaurants. After WW II, when supper clubs offering dinner and a floor-show drew both Italians and non-Italians, the serving of a chilled, elevated glass of shrimp became a sophisticated prelude to the otherwise immutable pastas and main courses alla Parmigiana.

Even now, when Americans can choose from sushi, ceviche, and even the crudo of la nuova cucina Italiana, the refined minimalism of pink shrimp curling over the edge of a martini glass recalls an age of national self-assurance and optimism.

Shrimp Cocktail

Ingredients:

20 shell-on (21 to 25 count) shrimp in their shells (five shrimp per person)

For the brine:

1/4 cup kosher salt
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup water
2 cups ice

For the cocktail sauce:

1 Can(14 1/2-ounce) diced tomatoes, drained
1/2 Cup ketchup
4 Tablespoons prepared horseradish
2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
Few grindings fresh black pepper
Grated rind of 1/2 lemon
Hot sauce to taste (Tabasco is the traditional hot sauce. I prefer Frank’s Louisiana Hot Sauce)
Lemon wedges

Preparation: (at least an hour before serving)

Prepare the brine: Dissolve the salt and sugar in the water and set aside.

Using a pair of scissors or a serrated knife, make an incision down the outer curve of each shrimp. Remove the black intestinal tract and discard. Rinse shrimp under cool water but leave their shells intact.

Place cleaned shrimp into a bowl with brine and refrigerate them for 20 to 25 minutes.

While the shrimp are brining, whisk together tomatoes, ketchup, horseradish, Worcestershire sauce, pepper, and lemon rind, in a non-reactive bowl. Add hot sauce to taste and refrigerate the sauce until ready to serve.

Remove shrimp from the brine. In a large saucepan with a lid, bring an inch of water to simmering. Place a steamer basket in the pan and arrange the shrimp in one layer on the basket. Place the lid on the pan. After 2 minutes, turn the shrimp over so they cook evenly.

After approximately five minutes or when all the shrimp have turned pink, remove from heat and shock them in bowl of ice to stop the cooking. Allow the shrimp to cool to room temperature. Peel the shrimp, leaving the tails intact. Refrigerate until serving time.

To Serve:

Arrange the chilled shrimp around the edge of chilled Martini or Margarita glasses, placing sauce in a pool in the center of each glass.

Serves four.