Mark Bittman on Shine: Simplest and Best Shrimp Dish
I'm Mark Bittman, and I'm thrilled to be joining the Yahoo! Shine community. I'm here because making healthy homemade meals for your family should be simple, inexpensive, and fun, and I think I can help. I know you're busy-I am, too-but the payoff is enormous when you invest the time and energy it takes to cook from scratch.
I'll be sharing some of my favorite weeknight recipes with you, the ones that rely on straightforward techniques and good, straightforward ingredients to help you get dinner on the table quickly, and with little fuss. They're all easy to make, good for you, and delicious. Onward!
The Simplest and Best Shrimp Dish
Makes: 4 servings
Time: About 30 minutes
Excuse the superlatives; this spin on a Spanish tapa is my favorite, and everyone I serve it to loves it. The shrimp juices infuse the oil, and the sum is beyond delicious. It's good with bread, over rice, tossed with pasta, or stuffed into tacos.
Other seafood you can use: similar-sized scallops (or larger, though they'll take longer to cook).
Recipe from How to Cook Everything.
Ingredients:
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil, or more as needed
3 or 4 big cloves garlic, cut into slivers
About 11/2 pounds shrimp, 20 to 30 per pound, peeled, rinsed, and dried
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon ground cumin
11/2 teaspoons hot paprika
Chopped fresh parsley leaves for garnish
Directions:
1. Warm the olive oil in a large, broad ovenproof skillet or heatproof baking pan over low heat. There should be enough olive oil to cover the bottom of the pan; don't skimp. Add the garlic and cook until it turns golden, a few minutes.
2. Raise the heat to medium-high and add the shrimp, some salt and pepper, the cumin, and the paprika. Stir to blend and continue to cook, shaking the pan once or twice and turning the shrimp once or twice, until they are pink all over and the mixture is bubbly, 5 to 10 minutes. Garnish and serve immediately.
Mark Bittman's award-winning How to Cook Everything has helped countless home cooks discover the rewards of simple cooking. Now the ultimate cookbook has been revised and expanded (almost half the material is new), making it absolutely indispensable for anyone who cooks-or wants to. With Bittman's straightforward instructions and advice, you'll make crowd-pleasing food using fresh, natural ingredients; simple techniques; and basic equipment. Even better, you'll discover how to relax and enjoy yourself in the kitchen as you prepare delicious meals for every occasion.
