Eating while standing is a European thing: The Spanish have tapas, the Italians have cicchetti and the Dutch have broodjes (bro-chess), small sandwiches that are ideal pub grub. Broodjes also happen to be the specialty of Amsterdam Bar & Hall in St. Paul, where chef Thom Lowe creates inventive versions such as beer-braised smoked-pork broodjes and a shrimp-and-squid broodjes. The latter is tossed with a homemade curry mayonnaise laced with cardamom and Sriracha. Hard to pronounce for some, broodjes sure are easy to eat.
Curried Shrimp and Calamari Broodje
Recipe adapted from Thom Lowe, Amsterdam Bar & Hall, St. Paul, MN
Yield: 8 broodje (sliders) or 4 full-size sandwiches
Cook Time: 10 minutes plus 1 hour chill time
Ingredients
Broodje
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
2 small garlic cloves, finely chopped
½ pound (16 to 20) shrimp cut into 1-inch pieces
½ pound squid with tentacles--cleaned, bodies cut into rings and tentacles left whole (or use one pound of either shrimp or squid)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 scallions, trimmed and thinly sliced on a bias
8 small soft rolls or slider buns or 4 soft sandwich rolls
Mayonnaise
½ cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon mild curry powder
¾ teaspoons ground cardamom
¾ teaspoons Sriracha or sambal chile sauce
Directions
1. Make the broodje: In a large skillet set over medium heat, heat the olive oil. Add the onion and garlic and stir often until the onions soften, 3 to 4 minutes. Increase the heat to high; once the onions start to brown, add the shrimp and squid. Season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring often, until the seafood is cooked through, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a large plate or shallow bowl and let cool about 10 minutes before covering with plastic wrap and chilling in the refrigerator, at least 1 hour.
2. Make the mayonnaise: In a large bowl, stir together the mayonnaise, curry powder, cardamom and chile sauce.
3. Add the chilled seafood mixture and scallions to the mayonnaise and stir to combine. Slice the rolls open, top with the seafood salad and serve.
