My take on the Gambas Pil Pil served in Spain and Portugal – probably the most beloved tapas dish of all. Feel free to add a little sweet or smoked paprika, or even a handful of diced chorizo, though I just love this dish with the flavour that a good chunk of Irish butter brings to it.
Ingredients
Serves 4
- 1kg raw peeled prawns, thawed if frozen
- 100ml olive oil
- 50g butter
- 4 garlic cloves, crushed
- 2 red chillies, seeded and finely chopped
- juice of ½ lemon, plus extra wedges to serve
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 sourdough baguette, cut into slices, to serve
Method
- Pat the prawns dry with kitchen paper, and warm some tapas-style dishes in the oven.
- Heat a large heavy-based sauté pan until smoking hot.
- Add the oil and butter, and when it starts to foam, carefully add the prawns and season them generously.
- Cook for 2–3 minutes until the prawns turn pink and start to curl. Just before serving, toss the garlic and chilli over the prawns, tossing to coat.
- Season with salt and add a good squeeze of lemon juice.
- Scatter over the parsley and give a final toss, then spoon the mixture into the warmed tapas dishes.
- Serve with lemon wedges and plenty of sourdough bread to mop up all the succulent juices.
Serve with: I would love a plate of these at literally every meal! They are perfect as part of the Spanish Tapas spread, but if you fancy making a meal out of them, try them with Chargrilled Tenderstem Broccoli with Caesar Dressing or simply fold them into some fresh pasta.
