Go Back
Print

Shrimp Pil Pil

An easy to whip up Spanish tapas dish of spicy garlic shrimp served with crusty bread to sop up the flavoured oil. It can also be dinner if served over pasta or polenta!
Course Appetizer, Main Course
Cuisine Spanish
Keyword paprika, pasta, shrimp
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 8 minutes
Servings 4

Ingredients

  • 1 lb large shrimp 16-20 size peeled and deveined
  • 3-4 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive oil the amount will depend on the size of the pan, and whether you are serving this as an appetizer or as a dinner over some type of carb. If it is a dinner, then you can use less oil.
  • 4-5 medium cloves of garlic sliced thinly
  • 4 tbsp fresh Parsley chopped, plus more for serving
  • 1/4-1/2 tsp chilli pepper flakes to your liking The dish shouldn't be shy!
  • 1 tsp Pimentón de La Vera dulce sweet paprika powder or more as desired.
  • Salt
  • 1 lemon cut into wedges

To serve over Pasta:

  • 8 oz of linguini or spaghetti cooked as per package instructions

Instructions

  1. Heat a medium cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Add the olive oil and warm it through.
  2. When the oil is hot, add the garlic, parsley, and chilli flakes. Reduce the heat if the garlic starts to char.
  3. Once all these ingredients are just slightly fried, add the peeled shrimp and cook them in the pot for three or four minutes, turning once until they have a pink colour. Don't overcook.
  4. If serving as a tapas appetizer, keep in mind that the cast iron skillet keeps the contents warm up to half an hour, so the shrimp will continue cooking once brought to the table.

  5. Sprinkle a teaspoon of paprika powder (spicy or sweet) over everything and some salt. Drizzle with more olive oil, parsley and serve with crusty bread.

  6. Very important: It should be served hot!

As a Pasta Dinner

  1. If serving this over pasta, have the pasta ready and drained. Remove the cast iron skillet from the heat and transfer the pasta over the shrimp. Toss to coat and serve with a sprinkling of parsley, and lemon wedges on the side

Recipe Notes

Feel free to add a bit more olive oil to the dish to make enough for sopping up. I will leave it to you to determine how much oil you want.  There is enough in the recipe to cook the shrimp etc.

I like the 16-20 sizing for shrimp. This gives you about 4-5 per person, just enough for an appetizer or meal, if purchasing 1 lb worth.  Of course you can increase the amount if so desired.