Jose Andres' Garlic Shrimp

 

Today I'm sharing Jose Andres' Gambas al Ajillo, also known as Garlic Shrimp. 

I've made a lot of garlicky shrimp recipes with chiles:

Emeril's Garlicky Sizzling Shrimp

Giada's Calabrian Shrimp

Madhur Jaffrey's Shrimp with Garlic and Chiles

Half Baked Harvest's Jalapeno Garlic Butter Shrimp

Jose Andres' Garlic Shrimp

and...Rick Bayless' Quick Fried Shrimp with Sweet Toast Garlic

I can tell you that all the versions are similar. They all call for shrimp, garlic, chiles of some kind, and some kind of citrus.

Some versions of this dish have way more garlic and some have less. I prefer way more garlic. There's just something about that in your face garlic flavor that really makes the shrimp sing.

If you prefer a more mild garlic flavor, than Jose's recipe would be a good one to try. His version is a good solid recipe, but it definitely has mild flavors. You could always double the garlic for more garlic flavor, but I wanted to try it as written the first time around. 

Lately, I've been thinking about dishes I've made over the years and comparing them when I can. Hence, last week's throwdown. I have to say that if I'm going to make a garlicky shrimp then there's only one recipe out there for me.

It's Rick Bayless' Quick Fried Shrimp with Sweet Toasty Garlic - click here for the link-

Rick's version (pictured above) has two whole heads of garlic cooked down for 30 minutes until it gets all sweet and toasty. There is so much wonderful aromatic garlic flavor in each and every bite! I made it back in 2012 and I still remember eating it straight out of the pan!

Jose Andres' Garlic Shrimp

Adapted from People.com

by Jose Andres

Serves 1-4

1/4 cup Spanish or Italian extra virgin olive oil

4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

5 dried chilis de arbol or 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1 pound peeled and deveined raw shrimp with tails

5 tablespoons brandy

5 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (from about 2 lemons)

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the sliced garlic, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the garlic begins to sizzle, about 2 minutes. Add the chilis or crushed red pepper flakes, and cook stirring occasionally, 1 minute.

Increase heat to high, and add shrimp to skillet. When shrimp start to change color, about 1 minute, stir in brandy and lemon juice. remove from heat, and season shrimp with salt. Stir to combine. Sprinkle with chopped parsley, and serve immediately.

A Taste of Spain @ I Heart Cooking Clubs

From Spain: Tomato Bread with Iberico

Lately, I've been hooked on toast with all kinds of goodies piled on. I blame Ina. The addiction started when I made Ina's Butternut Squash & Ricotta Bruschetta. I love that dish and crave it regularly. When butternut squash went out of season I grew quite fond of avocado toast. After that addiction passed,  I topped my toast with refried beans, a fried egg, salsa and/or hot sauce. Then I made Giada's Burrata and Kale Salsa Verde Bruschetta and I looked for any and every excuse to eat burrata. I think I had toast with some kind of pesto and burrata for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

To be fair, I'm still into toast with pesto and burrata. It's crunchy, flavorful, and the burrata is so creamy and cloudlike. It satisfies about every craving I have. However, I'm willing to venture out, so this week it was either Eric Ripert's Tomato Bread with Iberico or his Green Olive Tapenade, on toast, of course.

I decided on the Tomato Bread with Iberico only because I had some Marcona almonds and Manchego cheese on hand and I thought it would be a perfect pairing! I was so glad I had the Manchego on hand because I found that I liked the Tomato Bread with Iberico ok, but I liked it much better with some of the cheese on top. This dish lacked that layer of creaminess, and while I would eat it if it were served to me, I'd rather have one of the other toasts mentioned above.

Tomato Bread with Iberico

Adapted from Avec Eric

by Eric Ripert

Serves 1-6, depending

1/4 loaf crusty bread such as a country loaf, baguette, ciabatta

2 garlic cloves, peeled

2 ripe tomatoes, cut inhalf

1/2 pound thinly sliced Iberico ham or Serrano ham

extra virgin olive oil

coarse sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Cut the loaf of bread crosswise into 1/2" thick slices. Toaste the bread slices until they are golden brown (I placed my sliced bread into the oven for about 10 minutes at 350). Lightly rub the toasted bread with the garlic cloves, then rub the tomato, cut side down, thoroughly into the toasts. Top the toasts witha couple slices of Iberico ham, drizzle with a touch of olive oil, and season with a few flakes of coarse sea salt and pepper.

 

Theme: From The Mediterranean

White Bean and Chorizo Soup w/ Crostini

Happy New Year! Resolutions and goals are all the talk right now, and like I do every year, I've made one of my own.

Now this resolution has been a long time coming. If you know me personally then you'll understand, and if not, well let me just say I'm a little unorganized. I've always been a fly-by-the-seat-kinda girl and you know what? It worked well for me, all my life, until I had kids. After kids, well let's just say I've been in denial, about 15 years of denial to be exact. During this time I've refused to write anything down, insisting that I can simply remember every appointment, after school activity, and obligation for everyone in my household simply because I used to be able to back in the day. You can imagine how well this worked out for me!

So, after years of missing appointments and various deadlines, I've decided it is time to GET ORGANIZED! To help myself with this task I bought myself one of those fancy planners that all of my friends carry, and will therefore submit to being an adult who has to consult her planner, prior to making plans. Ugh!

Now while this planner is somewhat of a chore to me, the one thing I do like about it is the meal planning section.  Meal planning is something that I do like to do.

My current meal planning goal is to use up foods in my freezer and pantry.  So this week I have planned a menu that helps me to clear things out.  Lucky for me, there are a lot of special and unique things that I had been saving, so this menu plan was quite fun!

Spanish chorizo is hard to find around my parts, so when I was lucky enough to find some, I held on to it for way too long (I like to procrastinate too). Lucky for me it kept well and came in handy for making a recipe that had been on my to-do list forever, Curtis Stone's White Bean and Chorizo Soup.

A simple glance might have you thinking this is a tomato-based soup, but it is not! The soup gets its reddish color based solely on the chorizo itself - now how's that for flavor! The combination of the chorizo and the white beans is quite hearty and satisfying. We found this soup to be great right after it was made, but even better the next day! Perfect with a side of crusty bread for dunking.


Wishing everyone luck with their new year's resolutions!

White Bean & Chorizo Soup w/ Crostini

Adapted from Curtis Stone's Website

Serves 6

3 tablespoons olive oil

6 ounces smoked Spanish chorizo links, 

(casings removed, halved lengthwise and cut into 1/4" half moons)

1 yellow onion, finely chopped

2 carots, cut into 1/2 inch thick rounds

2 celery ribs, cut into 1/2 inch thick round slices

2 small fennel bulbs, trimmed and cut into 1/2 inch pieces (about 2 cups)

 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 large sprigs of fresh thyme

1 sprig of fresh rosemary

3/4 cup dry white wine

6 cups chicken broth

salt and pepper, to taste

Two (15-oz.) cans small white beans, drained and rinsed

demi baguette, cut on diagonal into 1/2 inch thick slices

extra virgin olive oil, for serving

Heat a large heavy pot over medium heat.  Add 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, then add the chorizo and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes, or until browned. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5minutes, or until tender. Add the carrots, celery, fennel, garlic, thyme, and rosemary, and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes, or until the vegetables begin to soften. Add the wine and bring to a simmer. Stir in the broth and season to taste with salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to medium low and simmer, uncovered, for about 20 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender. 

Stir in the beans and simmer gently for about 10 minutes to blend the flavors. Remove and discard the thyme and rosemary stems.

Meanwhile, brush the baguette slices with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and sprinkle with salt.  Toast in a toaster oven until golden brown, about 5 minutes.

Ladle the soup into soup bowls. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and serve with crostini.

Every Sunday @ Kahakai Kitchen

Theme: December Potluck!

One-Pot Wonders for I Heart Cooking Clubs: Spanish Omelette

I decided to take a break from my Food Show posts, and post about this week's theme for I Heart Cooking Clubs. This week's theme is one pot wonders, dishes that can be made in one pot. What's not to love about that concept? I knew instantly that I wanted to make Nigella's Spanish Omelette. Although the recipe does not call for it, I had some Spanish chorizo leftover that I've been wanting to use up. Additionally, my husband had off this past weekend. He has been working seven days a week for almost three months now and we have missed having breakfast together as a family. What man doesn't love an omelette stuffed with meat and potatoes?

I am really enjoying cooking from Nigella's recipes, mainly my copy of Nigella Express. Each new recipe truly is an adventure in the kitchen. Each week I am making something I haven't made before, or cooking with a new ingredient. I had never tried Halloumi before and found I loved it. I never thought to make risotto with cheddar cheese, but how familiar and comforting. And, while I always wanted to make rice crispy treats, I never got around to it until Nigella. The Croque Monsieur Bake was easy and delicious and great to throw together for a quick breakfast/brunch. I even worked with phyllo dough for the first time while making my version of Nigella's chocolate croissants.

This Spanish Omelette is another fun recipe for me. I had never bought Manchego cheese and cooked with it at home before. A quick trip to the Mousetrap, a fantastic local cheese shop, and I was ready to go. The Manchego was quite inexpensive. I was able to get about a quarter pound of El Trigal Manchego for under three dollars. Twenty dollars later, I left the cheese shop. I think that was using constraint, don't you? I bought the Manchego, some great 5-year aged Cheddar made in Quebec, and some fantastic hand & body lotion by The Naked Bee scented with Orange Blossom Honey. That lotion is terribly addictive and smells like the most brilliant and sunny oranges. I could bathe in it. You know you're really into food when you walk around smelling like it all day long :D

Spanish Omelette - adapated from Nigella Express by Nigella Lawson
8 oz. baby new potatoes, halved
4 eggs
1/2 cup grated Manchego or Cheddar cheese
1/3 cup chopped roasted red peppers from a jar (I subbed my Spanish chorizo for the red peppers)
3 scallions, finely sliced (I subbed fresh chives for the scallions)
salt and pepper
1 teaspoon butter
drop of oil

Turn on the broiler and let it heat up while you start off the omelette. Cook the new potatoes in boiling water for 15 minutes until cooked through, then drain. (In the spirit of one dish wonders, I had some boiled potatoes left over). Whisk the eggs in a bowl and then add the cheese, pepper, and scallions and season with salt and pepper. Heat the butter and oil in a small skillet, and once hot pour in the omelette mix and cook gently for 5 minutes. By this time, the bottom of the omelet should be set and rather than turn it, simply sit the skillet under the broiler for a few minutes to set the top. Turn the omelet upside down onto a plate to let cool. Don't worry if it feels a little wibbly-wobbly in the middle, as it will carry on cooking as it cools. Once cool. slice into 4 large or 8 smaller wedges.

Serves 4 or more, depending on what else is available to eat at the same time.

Notes/Results: If served alone, with no other accompaniments, it will be happily gobbled up by two people! This was a quick and simple breakfast that was delicious and unique at the same time. We really enjoyed it, all on it's own, for breakfast Sunday morning. I would make it again, especially if I had Spanish chorizo or Manchego on hand.
Head on over to I Heart Cooking Clubs this week to see what other one pot wonders everyone else came up with. You are sure to find something quick and easy to suit your palate!! Better yet, join us and make your own one pot wonder. Next week's theme is Midnight Sneaks. How fun! I love those episodes of Nigella where she is sneaking downstairs at night, in her robe, eating straight from the fridge.