Great thing about your favorite recipes is that you can prepare them anytime that craving strikes. In this case, I had prepared this recipe for Camarones a la Plancha a few times, but never documented the exact recipe. As a foodie, we love to share our pictures on social media. In turn, we get asked to share the recipes all the time. Long story short, in order to get better pictures, share the recipe and show how delicious and simple this dish of Camarones a la Plancha was, a do-over was a must! If you have never prepared a garlic mojo sauce that has been slowly poached in oil, you will want to try this. The best garlic mojo sauce recipe I have ever tried was from my favorite chef Rick Bayless. Only bad part, is that I should have prepared a double batch! I used it for chicken, pork, seafood and even vegetables. And a little goes a long way. For this version of garlic mojo, I added a good amount of fresh jalapeños. The sauce has a kick to it, but not as bad as you would think. Both the garlic and jalapeño mellow out after being poached in the olive oil. And if you do not have a cast iron pan yet, that is a must as well!
Jalapeño Garlic Mojo
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon oregano, crushed
1 teaspoon cumin seeds, crushed
3/4 cup olive oil
Juice of 2 large limes
salt and pepper to taste
- 1 pound large shrimp, peeled and cleaned
Directions
1. Prep your ingredients fresh ingredients. In a small saucepan, add the jalapeños, garlic, cumin, oregano, olive oil and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Cook for 10 to 15 minutes and a low and steady simmer, stirring now and then. Do not boil. Add the lime juice. Stir well to combine, taste for salt. Cook for another 10 minutes. Let cool at room temperature. You can leave the mojo as is, or you can pulse it in the blender for a smoother finish.
2. Once mojo has cooled, 3/4 of the mojo to your cleaned shrimp and marinate for 20 to 30 minutes at room temperature. Preheat your pan or plancha to medium heat for 3-5 minutes. When hot, drizzle a light coating of olive oil onto hot surface. Quickly add the shrimp, spreading out evenly. Cook for about 5-6 minutes, turning halfway through cooking time or until shrimp are pink and opaque throught he middle. Serve right away and drizzle with extra mojo sauce. I like to serve with corn tostadas or chips topped with avocado, jalapeño-garlic mojo shrimp, sliced chiles, lime and cilantro. Yields 4 servings.
Tips~ For best results, cook the shrimp in a cast iron pan. Do not overcrowd the pan. Cook in batches if needed. If you have a large cast iron griddle, that works the best! If your shrimp are exlarge and thick in the middle, I would suggest covering them with a lid during the last minute of cooking time. The steam helps them cook all the way through,
This mojo can be prepared with your favorite chile pepper or even sweet peppers. If lime is not available, you can substitute with white vinegar.
After you clean the shrimp, blot off excess water with paper towels before marinating in mojo sauce
On this day, I had exlarge shrimp and I only used 6 and only used 1/3 of the mojo sauce. I used a small cast iron plancha(pan) to cook them.
I was fortunate enough to find these beautiful vintage Mexican plates at the local thrift/boutique shop for a reasonable price.
Camarones a la Plancha~Jalapeño Garlic Mojo Shrimp
Would Love to Hear From You