The Seafood And Chocolate Pairing You Would Never Have Expected To Work So Well

Cookies and milk, red wine and steak — some food pairings are classic and timeless. Others, like watermelon and chicken thighs, or sparkling wine and French fries, are more surprising. If you're the type of person who loves an unexpected pairing that works well against all odds, you might want to consider adding dark chocolate to your shrimp. Before you close this tab in an angry huff, hear us out. Or rather, listen to Pepe Moncayo, Barcelona native and Executive Chef at Cranes in Washington, D.C. He tells The Takeout about how the restaurant makes this unusual yet flavorful pairing work.

As Moncayo explains, "Instead of building the [shrimp] sauce with wine, we start with a base of shrimp shells, a little miso, and sake — it gives you that umami backbone. Then we blend a picada, the Catalan secret weapon: toasted almonds, garlic, and a small piece of dark chocolate. The shrimp are then grilled quickly on the yakitori grill, and everything is finished with a squeeze of citrus and a hint of yuzu zest." 

For this recipe, the secret is knowing that a little goes a long way. You don't need to add too much chocolate to the sauce; a small piece, along with the other ingredients, gives a bit of depth to the shrimp sauce. You likely won't even be able to tell the chocolate is there, but you'll perceive that something is different. This subtlety can wake up your tastebuds and spark curiosity.

Delving further into why this pairing works, Moncayo says, "The main reason why some chefs add chocolate to sauces is to give [dishes] depth, roundness, and that earthy warmth that somehow makes everything taste like home. Picada is one of the main sauces of Catalan cuisine, and chocolate plays a vital role in it."

That said, it's important to understand that dark chocolate is not as sweet as the chocolate most of us are used to eating. Dark chocolate is defined by having 50 to 90% cocoa solids and butter, and it should have no milk or sugar. In other words, it's not the gooey, sugary chocolate you'll taste in a Snickers or Hershey's bar, but instead, it's somewhat bitter. This makes a big difference. Would shrimp go well with a sugary Snickers? We'd bet our money against it. But the deep, velvety sophistication of dark chocolate could bring just the right amount of bitterness to the shrimp sauce and make it even more interesting. As Moncayo states, "It's not dessert, and it's not what people expect when they read 'chocolate,' but it is delicious."

If you want to try this out at home, make sure to get a bar of dark chocolate. Add a tiny bit at first and then keep increasing the amount until you find the perfect point that suits your tastes.