Imagine yourself at a beautiful two person mosaic tiled table, in a Greek cafe, leaning back against the cool of the white washed plaster wall, in the shade, away from the blazing sun. There is a glass of ice cold crisp local white wine in your hand, or maybe some tangy ouzo… and across from you is the love of your life. You turn slightly and look out at the turquoise blue sea, the briny air penetrating and clean… carrying the scent of the wild thyme and mint on the hillsides. The waiter with the white apron brings two plates of the house specialty, Greek Shrimp, fresh from the sea. And on the side, marinated gigantes beans and seared arugula. Sometimes life is perfect.
This dish is one of our most fun and lunch lovely, so fresh and light, it tastes like a sunny summer day in Greece. It’s garlicky, salty, tangy, spicy, with chunks of fresh lemon, lots of Greek oregano, multi colored baby bell peppers with a couple of thinly sliced jalapeños, and everything flash fried.
Once our Argentinian Red Shrimp are plump and juicy we just shut down the heat and serve. Using some crusty bread to soak up the savory juices it’s just fabulous. What could be easier and more natural?
Like most Greek, Italian or Spanish dishes, it all depends on the quality of the ingredients. Pour all your resources into a super high quality olive oil and the type of wild caught shrimp and you will be thrilled. Enjoy!
Ingredients…
1 pound of wild caught shrimp, shells and heads off, deveined (we use colossal Argentinian Red Shrimp, pink or while Gulf shrimp, or pink Key West shrimp)
1/2 pound red bell peppers or multi colored mini peppers, sliced
2 jalapeño peppers or serrano peppers, sliced
4 tablespoons extra virgin Italian olive oil
4 to 5 cloves garlic, crushed or minced
1 large juicy lemon, cut into small chunks
1/2 cup Italian parsley, roughly cut
1 tablespoon Greek Oregano (very pungent with a wonderful anise flavor, and much better than the common oregano, which is called Mexican oregano)
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
Cooking…
In a twelve inch saute pan, pour the olive oil into the cold pan and place the crushed garlic into the olive oil, mixing them together as you warm up the oil. So rather than seared garlic you have garlic infused oil. When hot and sizzling, add the red bell peppers and the jalapeño peppers. Sear them until they just begin to soften.
Add the shrimp and the fresh lemons, stir often and sear until the shrimp is just becoming plump and the color changes. Add the salt, pepper, oregano and Italian parsley and stir together until everything is coated with oils and oregano.
Remove from the heat and serve with crusty bread to soak up the hot tasty oils. Enjoy!
