Gambas al Ajillo
The Madrid tapas-bar essential: whole peeled prawns sizzled in olive oil with sliced garlic and dried chilli. Bread alongside to soak the oil.
Overview
Sliced garlic (lots, like 8 cloves for a small dish) cooks slowly in olive oil till just turning gold. Dried chilli flakes go in. Heat goes up; peeled raw prawns join. Sizzles 2-3 minutes till the prawns turn pink and curl. A splash of sherry or sherry vinegar at the end. Parsley showers over. Served at the table still bubbling. Bread is essential, half the dish is the garlic oil.
Ingredients
- 400 g raw peeled prawns (medium, about 200-250 per kg)
- 8 garlic cloves (sliced 2 mm)
- 1 dried red chilli (small, broken into pieces, or ½ teaspoon chilli flakes)
- 100 ml olive oil (good quality - this is the dish)
- 1 tablespoon dry sherry (fino or manzanilla, optional but classic)
- 1 teaspoon flaky sea salt
- 2 tablespoons fresh flat-leaf parsley (finely chopped)
- Crusty bread (essential, for serving)
Method
Stage 1 - Prep
- Pat the prawns dry on paper towels (wet prawns won't sizzle; they steam).
- Slice the garlic 2 mm thick.
Stage 2 - Garlic infusion
- Heat the olive oil in a small heavy pan (a Spanish cazuela is ideal - small clay dish 18 cm across) over medium-low heat.
- Add the sliced garlic; cook 3-4 minutes, stirring, until pale gold (not browned - burnt garlic ruins the dish).
- Add the broken dried chilli; cook 20 seconds.
Stage 3 - Sizzle the prawns
- Turn the heat up to medium-high.
- Tip in the prawns; salt them.
- Stir; cook 2-3 minutes until they turn opaque pink and curl into commas.
Stage 4 - Finish
- Splash in the sherry; let bubble 30 seconds.
- Off heat; shower with chopped parsley.
Stage 5 - Serve
- Bring the pan straight to the table - the oil should still be bubbling at the edges.
- Serve with crusty bread and small forks or cocktail sticks.
- The oil at the bottom IS the dish - make sure people get bread to soak it up.
Notes
- Sliced garlic, not minced: sliced garlic stays distinct in the oil; minced garlic turns to paste and burns easily. The garlic is meant to be a visible and edible component.
- Pat the prawns dry: wet prawns turn the sizzle into a steam, the garlic oil splashes everywhere, and you lose the iconic crackle.
- Small pan = high temperature: a small dish concentrates the heat. A large pan distributes the prawns too thinly and they stew.
- Bread is not optional: the leftover garlic oil at the bottom is half the joy. Provide enough bread.
Storage
- Eats immediately - no leftovers.
- If you have leftover oil, it keeps 3 days refrigerated and is glorious tossed with pasta or rice.
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