Mediterranean Shrimp with Tomatoes and Feta

Mediterranean Shrimp with Tomatoes and Feta is based on a classic Greek dish, Shrimp Saganaki. In Greece it’s predominantly served as an appetizer, often as part of a mezze (i.e., appetizer) platter. The word “saganaki” refers to the two handled-pan typically used to cook these gorgeous shrimp.

The first time I had Shrimp Saganaki was in Toronto more than twenty years ago. (I was young–very, very, young.) Anyway, I was in a Greek restaurant in Greektown. My waiter asked me where I was from–understandable, many of you have heard me talk–and after we discussed where the heck Fairhope, Alabama was, he recommended the Shrimp Saganaki. I have no idea where they got the shrimp, but it was excellent. It arrived in a hot pan, and he topped it off with ouzo, tableside. Now, I’m not a big ouzo enthusiast, but the drizzle he added was nice. My Toronto Shrimp Saganaki was served with toasted hunks of crusty bread for scooping. I loved it.

Fast forward a few years. I’ve pretty much stopped frying shrimp at home although fried shrimp may be my very favorite food. I could tell you that’s a health thing, but mostly it’s a lazy thing, or maybe a frugality thing. Having worked in restaurants, I HATE cleaning up after frying. And being a minor-league health nut, I don’t reuse oil. I know you can see where I’m going with this.

So I’m always on the lookout for great shrimp dishes to cook at home, and there I was, still thinking about that shrimp at the Greek place in Toronto years and years later. I couldn’t remember the name of the dish, but Google and I figured it out fairly quickly. As usual I looked up a slew of recipes, kept what I liked, ditched what I didn’t, and tested and fiddled until I arrived at one that hit all my YAY! buttons. You know me, I’m looking for big restaurant-worthy flavors with no weird ingredients, and no over-wrought cooking maneuvers. Thankfully, Shrimp Saganaki in general is pretty straightforward, and surprisingly easy.

My Mediterranean Shrimp with Tomatoes and Feta can be served over rice or pasta, but I like the punchiness of flavor with the scooping method, and I love that I can serve it right from the pan. And I like torn crusty bread with it, but toasted baguette slices work just as well. You might want a fork to assist the beautiful, fat, saucy shrimp onto your bread if you’re scooping, or you might want to cut the shrimp in half or thirds if they’re too big to scoop.

Let’s go back to that tableside-drizzled ouzo for a minute. If you have ouzo in your liquor cabinet and you like ouzo, by all means, drizzle on ouzo the traditional way just before serving. If not, you can skip it altogether or do what I’ve been doing–using a bit of tarragon vinegar instead. (Actually, if you’d rather substitute a sprinkle of parmesan and a squeeze of lemon juice, I won’t tell anybody.)

Pro Tip: Mediterranean Shrimp with Tomatoes and Feta served with torn bread makes a great date night dinner.

YUM!

Print Recipe

Mediterranean Shrimp with Tomatoes and Feta

Ingredients

• 1 lb. shrimp, peeled and deveined
• olive oil
• salt and pepper
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 t. dried oregano
• 1 t. smoked paprika
• ½ medium onion, sliced thinly into threads
• 2 cans fire roasted tomatoes, undrained
• 1 pinch of red pepper flakes
• ½-¾ cup crumbled feta cheese
• 1 T 1 T. chopped fresh parsley
• Drizzle of ouzo, or tarragon vinegar, or ½ t. dried tarragon steeped in 2 T. white wine vinegar for 5 minutes

Instructions

• Drizzle the shrimp with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.  Add half the garlic, oregano, and paprika.  Toss together well.  Allow shrimp to marinate for 10 minutes.
• In an oven-proof skillet, braiser, or Dutch oven, sauté the onion threads in the olive oil over medium heat until very soft and beginning to take on a little color.  Stir in the rest of the garlic, the oregano, the paprika and the red pepper flakes. Cook for a minute, then stir in the tomatoes and their juices.  Bring to a simmer, turn the heat to medium low and allow to simmer for about 15 minutes while the sauce thickens. While the sauce is cooking, preheat the broiler.
• Add the shrimp and any collected juices to the bubbling sauce and cook just until the shrimp are uniformly pink.  Remove from the heat. Taste for seasoning and correct if necessary. Sprinkle the feta over the shrimp and sauce and run under the broiler just until the feta begins to brown in spots.  Once out of the oven, scatter parsley over the top and drizzle with tarragon vinegar.
• Serve in the skillet with crusty bread.