Bang Bang Shrimp

We've had a Bonefish Grill in town for about 3 years now. I had never been there, though, until about a month ago when we were invited to dinner there. I was under the assumption that it was very expensive, food that was just okay, and overall very "chain"-y. Boy, was I wrong! The first thing that I loved about the restaurant was when we walked in and had a 20 minute wait, they had servers walking around with samples of their most popular appetizers, including Ahi Tuna Sashimi and Bang Bang Shrimp. I am not a fan at all of anything mayonnaise based, but I absolutely loved the Bang Bang Shrimp, and they definitely convinced me to order it as an appetizer for our table.

By the time dinner was over, if I wasn't already convinced that I would be returning, on our receipt there was a coupon for a free Bang Bang Shrimp appetizer for our next visit. Mr. Z and I returned the next week and got our free appetizer. Yum!

While we will continue to go back from time to time, I really wanted to find something similar to make at home. That way, I could try to make it a little healthier (Ha! It's still not healthy, but I bet a lot better than Bonefish Grill's version!), as well as being able to have that delicious dish without having to spend $75 on dinner for the two of us. I struck gold when I found this recipe- with a few small tweaks that I made, it tastes very similar to the original version (I made double the sauce because Mr. Z likes a lot of sauce on food). I served it over jasmine rice, because that's what I had on hand- delicious!

Bang Bang Shrimp
from FoodNetwork.com, written as I made it

Ingredients:
1 c. mayonnaise
3 tbsp. chili garlic sauce
2 tsp. honey
1 tsp. rice vinegar
vegetable oil (enough to cover about 1/2" of the pan)
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 c. flour
1/2 plain breadcrumbs
salt and pepper, to taste
garlic powder, to taste
cayenne pepper, to taste
1 lb. medium shrimp, peeled and deveined

Mix mayonnaise, chili sauce, honey, and rice vinegar in a small bowl. Set aside.

Heat vegetable oil in a large pan over medium high heat. Mix flour, breadcrumbs, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and cayenne pepper in a shallow bowl. Working in two batches, dip half the shrimp into the flour mixture, then in the beaten eggs, then back into the flour mixture, making sure to coat completely. Place shrimp in the hot oil; cook about 3 minutes on each side. Transfer to a plate covered with a paper towel to let the oil drip off. Repeat with remaining shrimp. Put shrimp into a large bowl, then pour sauce on top and toss to coat completely.