Gambas al Ajillo (Garlic Shrimp)

Ingredients

• Shrimp · peeled and deveined250 g
• Garlic · sliced8 cloves
• Olive oil · enough to half-submerge the shrimp0.5 cup
• Dried chilies · peperoncino, or flakes3
• Parsley · chopped1 handful
• Baguette · to serve
• Seasoning
• Salt0.5 tsp
• Paprika · pimenton, optional0.5 tsp
• White wine · optional1 tbsp

Steps

1. Peel and devein the shrimp, pat them dry, and season with salt.

   ⏲ 2 min

2. In a small pan or cast-iron pot, gently heat the olive oil with the sliced garlic and dried chilies over low heat to infuse the oil. Don't burn the garlic.

   ⏲ 4 min

3. Once the garlic turns golden and the oil is fragrant, add the shrimp and cook over medium-low.

   ⏲ 3 min

4. When the shrimp turn pink, add the paprika (and white wine) and bubble briefly. Taste for salt.

   ⏲ 1 min

5. Off the heat, scatter parsley. Serve still sizzling, with baguette to soak up the garlic oil.

Tips & Variations

The basics behind this dish

• Knife Skills: Grip, Cuts, and Why Size MattersHow you hold the knife matters more than how fast you cut. The pinch grip, the claw hand, and why uniform size is a cooking decision rather than a cosmetic one.
• Salt: When You Add It Matters More Than How MuchThe same amount of salt either draws water out or seasons all the way through, depending on when it goes in. Osmosis, seasoning in layers, and why salt types are not interchangeable by volume.
• Heat Control: Preheating, Oil, and Reading the PanThe same ingredients become a different dish depending on pan temperature. When to add the oil, how to read heat by sound, and which dishes want low heat instead.