Recipe: Shrimp po’boy from D’Juan’s New Orleans Bistro

This week, we’re sharing a recipe for the shrimp po’boy from D’Juan’s New Orleans Bistro in Smyrna.

The po’boy’s history is often debated. The sandwich was first affiliated with its name –”po’boy” – in 1929, when Benny and Clovis Martin offered it for free to striking transit union workers in New Orleans.

While the po’boy can be made with a number of proteins, the sandwich is primarily associated with Gulf shrimp. D’Juan’s owner Donald Williams calls the French bread a key ingredient for the sandwich.

“It may be best to prepare either the day before or, at the very least, five hours prior to making [the sandwich,]” he said. Williams recommends using the New Orleans French bread recipe from King Arthur’s Baking, available for free online.

“However, there’s nothing wrong with buying bread from a local bakery or grocery store. Our personal favorite is Leidenheimer, a New Orleans staple,” Williams said of the bread he uses for the po’boys at D’Juan’s.

Williams also encourages using fresh peeled and deveined Gulf shrimp. While the restaurant deep fries its shrimp, you can shallow fry shrimp on the stovetop.

More recipes from the Rough Draft archives

Ingredients

• French bread rolls
• 1 lb small to medium-sized wild-caught shrimp

Remoulade

• 1 cup mayonaise
• 2 Tbsp Grey Poupon mustard
• 1 to 2 Tbsp prepared horseradish
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp Worcestershire
• Smoked paprika to taste
• Cayenne pepper to taste
• Hot sauce to taste
• Finely chopped garlic and green onions to taste

Soaking mixture

• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1/4 cup yellow mustard

Seasoning mixture

• 2 tsp smoked paprika
• 2 tsp seasoned salt
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp dried thyme

Directions

1. If making bread from scratch, prepare King Arthur Baking’s recipe one day in advance.
2. Prepare the remoulade: Combine remoulade ingredients in a bowl. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
3. Prepare the shrimp: Clean shrimp. Soak in buttermilk mixture for 10 to 30 minutes.
4. Evenly coat shrimp with half of the dry seasoning mix.
5. Combine remaining seasoning mix in a bowl with 1 cup all-purpose flour and 1/2 cup cornmeal.
6. Place seasoned shrimp in dry batter and evenly coat it. Return shrimp to the wet mixture to soak for a second time. Return to dry batter for a second coating.
7. Place shrimp in the fryer with any oil heated at 350°.
8. Fry the shrimp for 3 minutes. Remove and let sit for 2 minutes. (Fry shrimp for an additional 2 minutes to get that extra crunch.)
9. Pat shrimp dry to remove excess oil.
10. Open bread to assemble the sandwich. Spread remoulade and mayonnaise on one side and place shrimp on the other.
11. Assemble the sandwich: Dress sandwich with shredded iceberg lettuce, tomato slices, pickle chips, and a little ground pepper and smoked paprika.
12. Serve immediately.