Shrimp Scampi

Shrimp Scampi

I was on the phone with my daughter last night and we were discussing food, what else, right?? She made Shrimp Scampi and it sounded so delicious that I had to have some too! I had 18 colossal shrimp just waiting to be eaten. These shrimp are the size of small lobsters, you don’t have to use shrimp that big but I do recommend a larger size shrimp. This took me about 25 minutes to put together and I plan on enjoying it with some bread and a glass of Rose’. You can of course eat this with Pasta which is fairly traditional, I would do a simple garlic and olive oil sauce for the pasta.

Makes: Two large or 4 smaller servings

12-18 fresh large shrimp peeled and deveined

1 large garlic clove peeled

1/4 cup olive oil

1 tsp lemon zest

pinch of sea salt

Clean and devein your shrimp. Lay them on paper towels to dry (Its important that they be as dry as possible) I pat them dry then lay them on fresh dry paper towels for 15-30 minutes.

Peel your garlic clove and slice, place in mortar with a pinch of sea salt and smash it, add some of the olive oil and mix it up. Place shrimp either in bowl or ziplock bag, pour the garlic and oil from the mortar onto the shrimp, add the rest of the oil and the lemon zest. Refrigerate for 30 minutes Smoosh the bag around to make sure the shrimp are coated with the marinade.

Preparing the dish:

4 tbs butter

juice of 1 lemon

handful of parsley chopped

splash of olive oil

Turn broiler on and position rack in second rung closest to the flame. Heat skillet so that its very hot. Place some shrimp (I do 6 at a time) in the very hot pan and sear them just about a minute or less on each side (this will depend on the size of the shrimp). Immediately remove to a plate and add more shrimp. Continue until all the shrimp are seared. They will not be cooked through. You may have a little olive oil and garlic left from the marinade. I just dumped it in the skillet after the shrimp were cooked and quickly browned the garlic and poured it over the shrimp.

You will either need an oval gratin pan or a baking dish. Add the butter, splash of olive oil and lemon juice and place in the oven for a few minutes so that the butter melts. Remove from the oven place the shrimp in the baking pan or pans, spoon some of the butter/olive oil/lemon juice on top of shrimp and place them in the oven for 5 minutes. Remove, check for doneness. Sprinkle with the chopped parsley, a pinch of sea salt and some pepper.