Great technique for tender shrimp full of flavor: Oven-Roasted with Herbs & Garlic

This is more a technique than a recipe. I stumbled on it through Fine Cooking and it is so simple and efficient. Infuse olive oil with fresh herbs for 10 minutes in a hot oven, then add the shrimp and roast them for another 10 minutes.

This dish resembles Gambas al Ajillo, but it is much more hands-off and the shrimp comes out perfectly tender, which is a tricky thing to achieve in a saute pan. It’s like an Italian tapa…my favorite kind of food. You’ll be sopping up the olive oil with crusty bread just like a Spaniard.

Roasted Shrimp with Garlic and Herbs
adapted from finecooking.com
serves 2 (but easily scaleable)

Ingredients
3 tblsp extra virgin olive oil
3 sprigs of fresh thyme
2 sprigs fresh rosemary
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
zest of 1 lemon
large pinch red pepper flakes
8-10 extra large shrimp, peeled and deveined
salt and fresh black pepper
juice of 1 lemon

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Combine the olive oil, thyme, rosemary, garlic, lemon zest, red pepper flakes and a twist of cracked black pepper in a baking dish. Place in the center of the oven and roast until the oil is fragrant, about 10 minutes.

2. Add the shrimp and toss with tongs until coated. Roast until the shrimp are pink and firm, about 10 more minutes.

3. Remove from oven, squeeze the lemon juice over the shrimp, season with salt and more pepper. Toss and serve with crusty bread.