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How to make Spanish garlic shrimp

Step 1 – Prepare shrimp

• First, peel and devein the shrimp (here’s a short video showing how). As an option, leave the last section of the tail shell on to help with serving as finger food. 
• Once ready, clean in some fresh water. Pat dry shrimp with a paper towel and season lightly with some crushed sea salt. 

Step 2 – Fry shrimp

• On high heat, add the olive oil to a pan, and when hot, add the shrimp. 
• Cook shrimp for 1-2 minutes per side. You should see the shrimp start to change to an orange color.

Step 3 – Add garlic and other ingredients

• Next add the sliced garlic and stir through. Immediately after adding the garlic, reduce heat to medium. 
• After 1-2 minutes, add the sweet paprika, lemon juice, sherry, and rosemary (chopped and the whole sprig). Stir through and cook for another 1-2 minutes or until the shrimp look fully cooked. 

Step 4 – Serve

• Transfer into an earthenware dish (or serve straight out of the pan) and season to taste with some salt and cracked black pepper. 
• Garnish with a few manchego shavings.
• Serve with plenty of fresh bread to soak up the delicious oil.

Spanish Garlic Shrimp

Known as Gambas al Ajillo throughout Spain, this dish is perhaps the most iconic and widely eaten tapas recipe on the Iberian Peninsula (alongside the humble Tortilla of course!). 

Traditional Gambas recipes are nearly always served as tapas in an earthenware dish and combine a few simple ingredients, including shrimp, garlic, olive oil, and parsley. Other recipes include the addition of sweet or smoked paprika, chili (fresh or powder), and lemon. 

Garlic Shrimp and Manchego with rosemary 

Another fantastic flavor combination is to add two Spanish staples, Manchego cheese from Spain’s Castile-La Mancha region, and the humble herb, rosemary.

Rosemary instead of parsley

In Spain, we are lucky to have rosemary grow wild, and with a short walk into most national reserves or mountainous regions, you’ll find huge wild rosemary bushes that are perfect for use in cooking. 

When using fresh rosemary for this recipe instead of parsley. Be sure to chop it super fine so that when it cooks, it releases plenty of flavor. You can also add whole sprigs of rosemary to dishes. Whole sprigs not only look great, but they will also release a subtle flavor to oil, baked, or stewed.

Manchego cheese

Manchego cheese is a hard cheese variety from Spain with a distinctive brown dimpled skin. It’s made with milk from the Manchega breed of sheep and is typically aged from 60 days to 2 years. 

Sadly it doesn’t grow as abundantly as rosemary, although it’s still pretty easy to find in supermarkets or cheese stores in Spain and most internationally. Manchego is prized for its distinctive rich, buttery flavor and is undoubtedly Spain’s most popular cheese export.

Best shrimp to use

Use fresh uncooked shrimp from your local fishmonger. When buying supermarket shrimp, check they are as fresh as possible. 

Uncooked shrimp will be a blue or slightly opaque color as opposed to cooked shrimp which are always red or orange in color. 

Shrimp Sizing

Shrimp sizing can seem a little confusing at first, but don’t worry, we got you, and with the info below, you’ll be buying shrimp with confidence in no time.

Shrimp numbering scale

When you purchase shrimp at any supermarket or fishmonger, shrimp sizing is denoted in numbers such as 31/35 or U/10. The slash between the numbers notes the amount of shrimp per pound (lb). 

For example, 31/35 means there will be between 31 to 35 shrimp per lb (16 oz.).

The U stands for ‘under’ and notes that the shrimp will be a certain size ‘or under’. This U value will usually be associated with Colossal shrimp sizes or larger. 

For example, U/15 will be ‘less than’ 15 shrimp per pound. 

Best shrimp sizes to use

Most recipes call for a reasonably large-sized shrimp, and we prefer to stay in the medium-large (36-40) to Colossal range (U/15). These shrimp work well in most recipes, they are easy to peel and prepare and have the best flavor.

How to peel and devein shrimp (the easy way!)

When using raw shrimp, there’s always a little prep work you can’t avoid. You’ll need to peel and devein the shrimp before cooking with them. This should take around 5 minutes for 1lb (450g) of shrimp used in this recipe

Never peeled or deveined a shrimp before? Don’t worry, it’s not too difficult. 

Here’s a short step-by-step video guide on how to peel and devein shrimp before cooking with them.

Nutrition facts

More Shrimp Recipes

How long does Spanish garlic shrimp take to make?

• Prep time: 5 minutes
• Cook time: 10 minutes
• Total time: 15 minutes

Can I use frozen shrimp?

Yep, you sure can. You’ll just need to thaw the shrimp first and follow the steps on how to peel and devein the shrimp as mentioned above. 

What is the best shrimp size to use?

Use a large shrimp size, somewhere between medium-large (36-40) and Colossal (U/15). 

Can I use a different cheese instead of Manchego?

Use parmesan or any hard cheese for a similar flavor and texture, although you can’t beat manchego cheese for flavor!