Shrimp Po' Boy Salad - Collards Are The Old Kale

I’m proud to collaborate with more than 30 Black recipe developers as we celebrate Black History Month 2022. This Virtual Potluck explores Black food through the lens of Afrofuturism. Our collaboration of recipes explores the intersection of the Black diaspora via culture, future, geopolitics, imagination, liberation, culture, and technology.

Cook and share the inspiring recipes by checking out the list of participants below. Follow each participant and continue the discussion with us on social media using the hashtag #BHMVP2022!

I learned somethings in 2020 and 2021. Setbacks are really opportunities in disguise. Stacy Abrams, Black women (what else is new) please take a bow. Welcome to the thunder dome! With democracy now balancing on a precipice, let us pray our leaders will finally ask corporations to pay taxes. That act alone would cure a lot of ills as so many people of all colors are hungry, houseless, jobless and struggling financially. If I could, I would, in the purest African-American tradition of communal living, have everyone over for a Shrimp Po’ Boy Salad. The background story of the namesake sandwich is truly apropos for the times.

Legend maintains that the Po’ Boy Sandwich, slang for Poor Boy Sandwich, came about during a union strike of streetcar workers in July of 1929 New Orleans. The most violent strike of that summer, all White male union members physically clashed with New Yorkers brought in to cross picket lines. The infamous uprising led to an even more disastrous event three months later – the stock market crash leading to the Great Depression.

While it was a White, male owned restaurant establishment serving striking White males in the 20th century that supposedly invented the sandwich, historians maintain a sandwich of succulent, fried oysters on a style of baguette known as Po’ Boy Bread was popular New Orleans street fare in the late 19th century. The people baking the bread and preparing the actual sandwiches graced with inexpensive cuts of meat were quite likely Black. The majority of Africans enslaved in Louisiana came from Senegambia, the Bight of Benin, the Bight of Biafra, West-Central Africa and a few, from Southeast Africa. Captured and stolen away from their coastal homes, they and their descendants certainly dined upon wild caught fish, crawfish, shrimp, and my favorite oysters, lightly sauteed then dressed with lemon and hot pepper in proper West African fashion.

Not only would labor unions prevent Blacks from joining, we could not sit inside the restaurant to enjoy a sandwich once the Po’ Boy became popular. The Shrimp Po’ Boy Salad is the logical progression of the classic because we are all trying to cut back on carbs and frankly it tastes ridiculously good. While this salad is a filling meal alone, I would pair it with a cup of my Vegan French Lentil Soup. Laissez les bons temps rouler.

Shrimp Po’ Boy Salad

Equipment:

1 Large Frying Pan

1 Cutting Board

1 Paring Knife

1 Large Salad Bowl

1 Cookie Sheet

Ingredients:

Shrimp:

1-16 0unce Bag Trader Joe’s Wild Raw Argentinian Shrimp

3 Tbs. Olive Oil

1 tsp. Jane’s Krazy Mixed-Up Salt

1 tsp. Chef Curl Ardee Original Seasoning

1 tsp. Chef Curlardee Lemon & Herb Seasoning or Frontier Co-op Seafood Seasoning

1 tsp. Garlic Powder

1 tsp. Onion Powder

Salad:

4 1/2 Cups Mixed Salad Greens

1 Tomato, chopped

1 Cucumber, chopped

1 Avocado, chopped

1/2 Red Onion, chopped

Croutons:

2 Pieces of Gluten-Free Bread (You can use the sandwich bread of your choice)

Salted Butter

Garlic Powder

Dried or Fresh Thyme

Dried or Fresh Rosemary

Dried or Fresh Oregano

Dried or Fresh Sage

Fennel Seed

Dressing:

1 Tbs. Mayonnaise

1 Tbs. Buttermilk

1/8 tsp. Jane’s Krazy Mixed-Up Salt

1 Dash Chef Curlardee Original Seasoning

Instructions:

Season thawed shrimp with seasonings. Add olive oil to large sautee/frying pan. Turn to medium heat. Add shrimp and cook approximately three minutes on both side or until the shrimp is opaque. Set aside.

Chop vegetables and assemble salad in a large salad bowl or in individual salad bowls if desired.

Turn oven on to High Broil. Butter each slice of bread and sprinkle with herbs. Place bread onto cookie sheet and place into oven for about 1 minute or less to toast, depending on your oven. WATCH CLOSELY SO THE BREAD DOES NOT BURN. Once the bread has toasted, remove the cookie sheet from the oven and allow the toast to cool. Using your hands or a sharp paring knife, cut the toast into small squares for croutons. Sprinkle over assembled salad.

Combine the mayonnaise, buttermilk and seasonings. Drizzle desired amount over individual salad bowls or plates, and serve.

Find more scrumptious Black History Month recipes below:

Fonio Bundt Cake with Hibiscus Glaze by A Classic Twist

Collard Green Hand Pies by A Girl Called Adri

Sweet Potato Wedges with Peanut Dipping Sauce by Big Delicious Life

Sweet Potato Biscuits by Black Girls Who Brunch

Chicken Plantains and Vegetables by Black Peoples Recipes

Bobo de Camarao (Brazilian Shrimp Stew) by Brazilian Kitchen Abroad

Salted Caramel Chocolate Tart with Candied Peanuts by Britney Breaks Bread

Vegan Coconut Cake with Lime Glaze by Chenée Today

Fried Green Tomato BLT by Coined Cuisine

Warm Brewed Zobo Drink by Dash of Jazz