I love garlic, and I love shrimp. That should be obvious from the previous posts I’ve had on what we call Camarones con Ajo , or Garlic with Shrimp (10/2717 and 03/01/18). In both case it was shrimp cooked the Nuyorican way, with the usual condiments: garlic, salt, pepper, oregano, and a touch of brandy. This is a different garlic shrimp recipe. It comes from the Solera restaurant, now closed, that was on East 53rd Street in New York. The restaurant offered Iberian style cuisine, and tapas. among them Garlic Shrimp tapas.

I miss the restaurant, but I did get their recipe for Garlic Shrimp. And it’s a eye opener, and a joy. It’s spicier than the usual Camarones con Ajo, but great nevertheless, with nuances of flavor that just enlighten the taste buds. Though it may be a tapas dish, it goes good with rice as a main  dish, or any other grain of choice. I served it atop whole wheat linguine. It did not disappoint.

Ingredients:

½ cup olive oil
2 large garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced
1 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes
28 to 32 large shrimp, peeled and deveined
½ teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
½ teaspoon paprika
bay leaf
6 tablespoons shrimp or chicken broth
½ teaspoon lemon juice
2 teaspoons chopped parsley

Instructions:

  1. Heat olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and pepper flakes. Cook until the garlic is sizzling (reduce heat if garlic colors too quickly), about 1 minute.
  2. Season shrimp with salt and pepper and add to pan. Add paprika and bay leaf. Sauté until opaque on the bottom, about 1 minute. Turn shrimp over. Cook about 10 seconds.
  3. Add broth. Simmer until shrimp are cooked, about 1 minute. Remove shrimp from pan with a slotted spoon and keep warm. Add lemon juice to cooking liquid. Taste and correct seasonings.
  4. Spoon sauce and sprinkle the parsley over the shrimp. Serve immediately.
    Yield: 4 servings.