Easy Shrimp Sauté

Less is better.   

I find myself betwixt and between the state of being a minimalist and immoderate.  I am in the habit of accumulating things but I hate clutter.  It's a lifelong personal predicament I live with and cannot shake off.  Fortunately, my cooking did not inherit this side of me. I love minimizing my cooking to the least possible ingredients.  I learned that in Italian cooking.  The less ingredients you put, the better the food will taste and the healthier it will come out. 

Meno é meglio. 

If you have garlic, extra virgin olive oil, salt & pepper, a few minutes to spare and of course, the main protagonists, the shrimps, then you can come up with these simple sauteed shrimp in no time.  If you can spruce them up with toasted black sesame seeds and chives then you can catch this recipe perfectly.  I have two favorite shrimp recipes.  This is one and the other version is much, much simpler.  Tossing them on the grill without anything, not even salt. Nothing can be less than that.

I don't need to remind you that the better the quality of the shrimp are, then the better this dish would come out.  Fresh or frozen are fine.  I have tried this recipe with good frozen shrimp and they came out almost equally delicious as its fresh counterpart.  Just don't overcook them or you will end up with dry shrimp.

I serve these shrimp in two ways, representing the two sides of my household.   The European version goes well with a heaping plate of salad dressed with a simple vinaigrette.  Whereas the Asian version calls for steamed white rice and a shrimp dipping sauce of vinegar, chives (if they are available), salt & pepper. 

Easy, isn't it?  Enjoy your weekend everyone!

Easy Shrimp Sauté

Ingredients:
Serves 4

• 1 kilo (or more) shrimp, shelled & deveined leaving the heads on
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• extra virgin olive oil
• salt & pepper
• black sesame seeds
• chives, chopped finely

Directions:

1. In a small skillet, toast sesame seeds.  Set aside.
2. Warm up a saucepan with extra virgin olive oil.
3. Add garlic and toast until golden.  Discard the garlic.
4. Add shrimp, moving them carefully so that the heads stay attached.  Brown both sides.  Don't overcook.  Depending on the size, about 4 - 6 minutes each side on the average.
5. Season with salt & pepper when almost cooked.
6. After turning off the fire, sprinkle with sesame seeds and finely chopped chives.  Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil.  Serve hot with salad or steamed white rice.