Smoky Shrimp Saganaki
Inspired by Greek shrimp saganaki, this dish combines wonderfully sweet shrimp, tomatoes and feta with subtly smoky dried Mexican chiles. The aromatics — cherry tomatoes and garlic, plus an assortment of dried and fresh chiles — simmer and confit in oil in the oven, with shrimp and feta added toward the end of cooking, broiling quickly, to create a wonderfully oozy, charred dish. It’s a simple, one-pan weeknight meal that cooks in just 30 minutes. This recipe allows flexibility in your choice of chiles; whichever you choose, the gentle confiting of the chiles releases their flavors, adding nuanced heat to complement the bright and tangy tomatoes and feta. You can switch out the ancho chile for pasilla chile, or dial up the heat with a fruity Scotch bonnet. Enjoy this dish straight from the pan, mopped up with a piece of crusty bread. Any leftovers can be easily turned into a show-stopping pasta sauce, making this recipe a versatile addition to any recipe collection.
- Preparation:
- Cooking:
- Total:
- Serves: 4 persons
Ingredients
- 1chipotle chile (or similar), stem and seeds removed
- 1ancho chile (or similar), stem and seeds removed
- 2fresh long red chiles (or similar), split open lengthwise with the stem intact
- 1head garlic (1 clove minced, the rest separated but left skin-on and whole)
- 24ounces cherry tomatoes
- ¾cup extra-virgin olive oil
- Fine sea salt and black pepper
- 1(8-ounce) block feta
- ½pound peeled and deveined medium shrimp
- ½cup roughly chopped fresh cilantro
- Crusty bread, for serving
Instructions
Step 1
Heat the oven to 425 degrees.Step 2
Add the chipotle chile, ancho chile, fresh chiles, whole garlic cloves, cherry tomatoes, oil, 1 teaspoon of salt and a good grind of pepper to a 10-inch cast-iron pan or an 8-by-11-inch broiler-safe baking dish. Tuck the dried chiles underneath so that they are submerged in oil to avoid burning. Bake for 10 minutes, then stir, keeping the dried chiles submerged in oil.Step 3
Nestle the feta into the middle of the mixture, and return to the oven for 15 minutes, until the tomatoes are nicely charred and the feta has softened, then remove from the oven.Step 4
While the feta cooks, delicately butterfly the shrimp by making a shallow cut using a sharp paring knife along the back of each shrimp from head to tail.Step 5
Set the broiler to the highest setting and let it heat up for 5 minutes.Step 6
Stir the shrimp and the crushed garlic into the tomato mixture, leaving the feta whole in the middle. Broil on the top rack for 3 to 5 minutes, until the shrimp is cooked through and the feta is golden brown.Step 7
To serve, spoon some of the tomato mixture on top of the feta, then sprinkle over the cilantro. Serve with crusty bread.