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Shrimp Pumpkin Bisque from Imperial Chinese Seafood Restaurant

Published April 4, 2007 at midnight

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On the Chinese New Year at the Imperial Chinese Seafood Restaurant, they served a pumpkin shrimp bisque that was delicious and perfectly seasoned. Would you please get the recipe? - Susan Brown

Johnny Hsu of the venerable Imperial Chinese Restaurant, 431 S. Broadway, 303-698-2800, and the Palace Chinese Restaurant, 6265 E. Evans Ave., 303-782-0300, was happy to send us the recipe. You'll find dried shrimp at Asian markets.

Send restaurant-recipe requests to Marty Meitus, Rocky Mountain News, 101 W. Colfax Ave., Suite 500, Denver, CO 80202 or .

Shrimp Pumpkin Bisque

Makes about 2 quarts of soup

4 pieces raw shrimp, medium size, with shell

1/2 ounce dried shrimp (available at Far East Market or other Asian grocers)

1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin

1 quart chicken broth

3/4 teaspoon salt

Pinch of ground white pepper

• In a heavy soup pot (about 4-quart size), place 3 cups of the chicken broth, reserving the remaining cup.

• Bring the broth to a boil, toss in the shrimp and blanch until color changes and shrimp is fully cooked.

• Remove cooked shrimp with a slotted spoon and put into a colander. (Turn down heat under broth to keep warm.)

• Rinse cooked shrimp in cold water and remove the shell but don't discard. Set shell aside; chop the shrimp into fine pieces. Reserve chopped shrimp.

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

• Roast the dried shrimp and the shrimp shells for about 10 minutes until shells completely dry.

• Bring chicken broth back to a boil, put roasted dried shrimp and shrimp shell into the broth, and simmer uncovered for about 15 minutes.

• Remove and discard shrimp shell using a small strainer or a slotted spoon, leaving the pieces of dried shrimp in the broth.

• Pour mixture into a food processor and blend in the pumpkin, creating a fine puree.

• Pour the puree back into the pot and stir in the remaining cup of chicken broth.

• Bring mixture to a gentle boil over medium heat.

• Add in the chopped, cooked shrimp and season soup with the salt and ground white pepper.

• Serve hot.

Nutritional information per cup: 47 cal., 1 g fat (0 sat.), 5 mg chol., 5 g carb., 614 mg sodium, 2 g fiber, 5 g pro.