Shrimp in Purgatory
Published May 24, 2021
- Total Time
- 25 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- 3tablespoons olive oil
- 1yellow or red onion, minced
- Kosher salt and black pepper
- 8garlic cloves, minced
- 1teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ to 1teaspoon red-pepper flakes, plus more for serving
- ½teaspoon fennel seeds
- 2tablespoons minced jarred Calabrian chiles or minced jarred cherry peppers, stems removed, or cherry pepper relish
- 8ounces roasted red peppers, drained and chopped (about 1 cup)
- 1(14-ounce) can whole or crushed tomatoes
- 1 to 1½pounds peeled, deveined shrimp
- 2scallions, thinly sliced
- 1tablespoon capers, drained
- ½cup grated Parmesan, plus more for serving
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
355 calories; 16 grams fat; 4 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 9 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 17 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams dietary fiber; 8 grams sugars; 38 grams protein; 828 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Warm the olive oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high. Add the onion, season generously with salt, and cook, stirring, until the onion is translucent, soft and starting to turn golden, 7 or 8 minutes. If necessary, decrease the heat to medium to prevent scorching.
- Step 2
Add the garlic and cook until fragrant and softened, about 2 minutes. Stir in the oregano, red-pepper flakes and fennel seeds, then the Calabrian chiles, roasted red peppers and tomatoes. (Crush the tomatoes by hand, if using whole.) Season with salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer, adjust the heat to maintain a simmer, and cook for about 5 minutes to slightly reduce the sauce and blend the flavors.
- Step 3
Add the shrimp, scallions and capers, and cook until the shrimp are curled, pink and opaque, 3 to 7 minutes, depending on size and quantity. Turn off the heat and taste the sauce. Add more red-pepper flakes, salt and pepper, if you like. Sprinkle the cheese over the top and serve, passing more Parmesan and red-pepper flakes at the table.
Private Notes
Comments
Really, Susan, the point of the dish is the chiles, so why should you "caution" us? And if you don't think the oregano, scallions and capers add flavor, leave them out and see what you get. Substitute chicken for shrimp? O.k. but, is that about cost or taste, or making an entirely different dish?
Calabrian peppers are just small hot red peppers--not as small or hot as Thai bird chiles, about 1.5 to 2 inches long. Just buy any fresh hot red varieties. Likewise use fresh sweet red peppers, frying them with the onions as they do in Calabria. Italians would never use this much garlic--maybe three whole cloves which would then be removed before serving. Red pepper flakes are served at table, not added during cooking. Only Calabrians would add more. Cheese with shrimp? A felony here.
One of the best recipes from the Times I have ever had..I followed recipe best I could..only heard of Calibrian peppers from Bobby Flay..couldn't find them went with cherry peppers..this has serious heat..served over Jasimine Rice. This is Crazy..Crazy good..!!!!
Second time I've made this. Didn't use polenta or any other starch, but stirred in 5 oz. spinach and let it wilt. Mopped up the sauce with garlic bread. Good stuff.
I’m always glad I read through comments before starting a recipe, and regret it when I don’t. This time I learned to leave out the cheese and the red pepper flakes, and substantially reduce the garlic. I also added very little salt and found it quite salty enough. Obviously adding the red pepper flakes is a personal taste thing, but I feared it would be too spicy for me and the calabrian chiles made it just pleasantly spicy. I added three whole garlic cloves with the intent of removing them, but ended up squishing them with a fork and stirring them in instead, which gave the dish nice little garlicky pops of flavour without overwhelming it. Eight cloves is seriously garlicky for a dish this size. I served it over spaghetti. I think even without the shrimp, and with the addition of some anchovies, it would make a nice puttanesca-ish pasta sauce.
Italian dishes featuring seafood do NOT add Parmesan cheese. That's one way I decide whether an Italian restaurant in the US is worth trying -- look at their menu, and if they have seafood dishes that include cheese, I give them a pass.
@Lizzie In southern Italy, seafood dishes are frequently served with cheese. Italy may not be the largest country, but its 20+ regions do things very differently from one another and to make generalizations about Italian food/cooking does it a disservice and is blatant misinformation.