As a vegetarian who can barely remember what shrimp even tastes like, I have seen shrimp-like substitutes made with slices of baked acorn squash. I suppose you could use any thin-skinned winter squash with a good carotene-y color.
- Cut squash in half, scoop out the seeds, place the halves open side down in a baking dish, in ~ 1" of water. Bake at 350°F (time will depend on size of squash) until slightly underdone.
- Pull the hot squash out, the liquid likely having already evaporated. Leave the oven on. Slice the squash into shrimp-size pieces and place back in the baking dish, skin side down.
- Finish baking, hopefully slightly browning the edges and sides of the slices. Some people spray a wee bit of olive oil on the slices. They will be fragile so tossing in oilve oil is not recommended, unless you pull the baking squash early enough (and underdone enough) to have a harder, denser material to work with.
- Cool before putting in tacos etc. Seasoning is encouraged but not necessary esp. if properly (lightly) browned.
I have used these fake shrimps in spring rolls for the hard core shrimp missers.
ETA: this is probably all different if you have an air fryer (I don’t)… you could probably cut the squash into french fries or chips or whatever, and follow the typical directions for making those… ?
