Shrimp Toast

It'd been a long time since I'd ordered shrimp toast as an appetizer. As a child I loved the stuff, Crisp toast, sweet and fragrant shrimp puree with that little sprinkling of sesame seeds on top. But like my love for egg drop soup my taste moved on to slightly more sophisticated fare. Shrimp toast was a fond memory.

Friday evening after a 12 hour shift at work we decided to head to Golden Buddha. Ironic almost that this would be the place that I rediscovered my love of shrimp toast as it is also a recovered treasure from youth. We ordered our usual House Special Sizzling Rice Soup, Egg Foo Yung and Shrimp with Pine Nuts and in a spirit of adventure decided to forego the usual pot stickers in favor of well...shrimp toast.

They were just as lovely as I remembered them to be and it inspired me to try my own version.

1/4 lb peeled and deveined raw shrimp
1 4 oz can water chestnuts
1-1/2 piece of fresh ginger finely grated
1/2 small shallot finely minced
2 Tbl sherry
1 Tbl soy sauce
2 Tbl cornstarch
1 egg white
1/4 tsp each white pepper and salt
2 Tbl Sesame seeds
8 slices white sandwich bread.
Oil for frying


Finely mince the shrimp and water chestnuts, combine with the seven ingredients and set aside. Using a spoon back lightly smoosh the bread to form a shell, divide the filling evenly between the bread and smooth over to edges. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and cut each piece of bread diagonally into quarters. Fry in hot oil, shrimp side down a few at a time about 2 minutes per side. Drain on paper towels and serve with hot mustard and plum sauce.