This Norfolk Seafood is such a good recipe and so simple to make. The story behind this recipe is interesting.

The story behind Norfolk Seafood:

When I was a young boy, we used to go to a seafood restaurant in Washington DC called O’Donnell’s. The historic O’Donnell’s Sea Grill opened in 1922 on E Street NW in Washington, D.C. It was a legendary destination for seafood, nautical decor, and its signature rum buns. They had wonderful food, and most importantly, they had Buck.

Buck was a gentle giant at 6′ 2″ and was always talking to me about his recipe. He had invented this style of cooking seafood and had even developed special pans which could be used over an open flame and then it could be delivered to the tables still sizzling. He was rightfully very proud of this.

After being there quite a few times, Buck shared his recipe with me and told me to keep it a secret. Since this was over 50 years ago, I guess I can reveal it now.

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Secret Tip:

Have everything prepared and ready to go. Don’t overload the pan and move on and off the flame as needed. It’s cooks very quickly, when the shrimp curl and turn slight pink, they’re done.

Ingredients:

1/2 lb Shrimp, Jumbo Lump Crab or Langoustines, raw and shelled
2 Tbsp Butter
2 cloves Garlic, chopped
Dash of Old Bay Seasoning
Juice of 1/2 Lemon
Few dashes of Tabasco
Splash of White Wine
Salt and Black Pepper

Preparation:

Heat your pan until fairly hot, then add butter and garlic and keep stirring so the garlic does not brown and turn bitter. Add your seafood and continue stirring, then add all remaining ingredients and cook until the seafood is done.

You will want to have all ingredients handy, as you need to work quickly. If it’s shrimp, they are done when they curl and turn pink and if it’s langoustines or crab, they just need to be heated through. It’s 2-3 minutes max.

Then remove the seafood with a slotted spoon and set aside in your serving plates and then reduce the sauce down by half and pour over the seafood and serve.  You will love it and Buck would be so proud.

This article is part of The Pasadena Chef Cooking School. Explore more cooking lessons, techniques, and ingredient guides here. The Pasadena Chef Cooking School

Simple Norfolk Seafood Recipe Inspired by O’Donnell’s

This is such a good recipe and so simple to make. The story behind this recipe is interesting. When I was a young boy, we used to go to a seafood restaurant in Washington DC called O’Donnell’s. They had wonderful food, and most importantly, they had Buck.

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Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 3 minutes mins

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Ingredients Equipment Method

Ingredients

  

• 1/2 lb Shrimp Jumbo Lump Crab or Langoustines, raw and shelled
• 2 Tbsp Butter
• 2 cloves Garlic chopped
• Dash of Old Bay Seasoning
• Juice of 1/2 Lemon
• Few dashes of Tabasco
• Splash of White Wine
• Salt and Black Pepper

Equipment

• Oven Proof Dish Medium Saute Pan

Method

 

Heat your pan until fairly hot, then add butter and garlic and keep stirring so the garlic does not brown and turn bitter. Add your seafood and continue stirring, then add all remaining ingredients and cook until the seafood is done.

You will want to have all ingredients handy, as you need to work quickly. If it’s shrimp, they are done when they curl and turn pink and if it’s langoustines or crab, they just need to be heated through. It’s 2-3 minutes max.

Then remove the seafood with a slotted spoon and set aside in your serving plates and then reduce the sauce down by half and pour over the seafood and serve. You will love it and Buck would be so proud.

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Let us know how it was!