Also known as Pil Pil Prawns (shrimp) or Gambas al Ajillo. This is a simple and tasty Spanish tapas dish that can be prepared in just a few minutes. Let's find out how to make it!
It's definitely worth investing in quality peeled king prawns. If you're a fan of garlic and chilli - what's not to love? 😋
Gambas Pil Pil reminds me instantly of our holidays in Punta Umbria, Spain.
Punta UmbrÃa is a town and municipality in the province of Huelva, part of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia.
Tapas bars are everywhere, but the best one we found was when we went on a day trip to Seville, the capital of southern Spain’s Andalusia region.
Oh my goodness, I could have sat there all day eating tapas, drinking and watching the world go by.
We found the perfect bar among the winding, narrow cobbled streets of Santa Cruz, the central plaza where you'll find Seville’s mighty cathedral.
The colourful centre of old Seville is always packed with tourists but hasn't lost the small-town ambience that has defined it for centuries.
There is a maze of narrow cobbled streets and some of the city’s best tapas bars.
Just a heads-up, the first time you visit, you're almost guaranteed to get lost, but don't let that discourage you - it's all part of the adventure!
Seriously, you might get a bit disoriented in the maze of cobbled streets, but you’ll find your way (after all, we managed to make it back, so it can’t be that bad)!
In any case, there are lots of people around that you can always ask. Copy the following text into your phone, show it to someone, and you'll be fine.
Hola, ¿puedes decirnos el camino a la catedral?
Which, translated, means hello, can you tell us the way to the cathedral?
Once you are back at the Cathedral, you'll know where you are again! 😉
Visiting Seville in Spain
My top tip for visiting Seville is to avoid wearing heels, for goodness' sake, because trust me, you’ll undoubtedly end up falling over!
Seville experiences the hottest summer weather in continental Europe – it’s absolutely scorching!
Anyway, we found this seriously cute-looking tapas bar and ordered so much food we were stuffed.
There we were, sitting at a table with two of its legs propped up by wooden wedges to keep it somewhat level on the hill, staring at the menu and wondering where to start!
The food was so delicious that you couldn't stop eating until every last bite was gone.
We had plenty of time before our coach was scheduled to take us back to our hotel in Punta Umbria, so we weren’t worried and just appreciated the much-needed shade.
It was this tapas bar shown in the picture below. Sadly, I couldn't get a full picture since people were sitting at the tables, and it's not the done thing to take pictures of people so close up!
Gambas Pil Pil in that Tapas bar was the best ever had, and so yesterday I had a go at making it myself.
Armed with prawns but without a recipe, I knew what it should taste like, so I aimed for that.
Success. Yep, this was pretty much perfect, even if I do say so myself. Paul (the husband) will not eat prawns, so what's a girl to do other than eat them all 😊
You need raw prawns for any prawn dish because using pre-cooked ones means they'll be cooked twice, ending up tough and unpleasant.
Raw prawns, even this size, take just a couple of minutes to cook. If you've never cooked prawns before, you'll be surprised at how quick they are ready.
Raw prawns have a bluish colour, but when cooking, they are ready as soon as they turn pink—trust me. Cook them any longer, and they’ll be overdone.
Gambas Pil Pil is an easy and delicious Spanish tapas that you can rustle up in next to no time; you might want to buy tapas dishes.
To make 1 x tapas dish, you will need
- raw tiger prawns (shrimp)
- extra virgin olive oil
- garlic clove
- sweet smoked paprika as used by Gordon Ramsay and Jamie Oliver
- dried red chilli flakes
- flat-leaf parsley
- lemon
- sea salt
- fresh crusty bread for dipping and mopping
Method
Prepare the ingredients as they will cook fast!
Pat the prawns dry with kitchen paper, devein them by running the tip of a knife down the backs of the peeled prawns and pulling out and discarding the dark vein.
Heat the oil in a small frying pan over medium-high heat, add the garlic and chilli, and fry for 30 seconds to infuse the oil with flavour. Then, stir in the paprika.
Now add the prawns and cook for just 1 to 2 minutes on each side (depending on their size).
Add most of the parsley and squeeze over half the lemon juice. Then remove from the heat and sprinkle over the remaining parsley and a pinch of sea salt.
Serve hot with crusty bread for dipping and mopping, and the remaining lemon cut into wedges for squeezing over.
If you're looking for tapas recipes, you might like this tapas recipe for padron peppers.
Have you tried this recipe? Please leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ star rating in the recipe card below!
Gambas Pil Pil - Prawns in Garlic and Chilli
A delicious, quick and easy Spanish tapas recipe.
Ingredients
- 8-9 raw tiger prawns (shrimp) - deveined
- 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
- 1 large garlic clove - very finely chopped (I use a garlic press)
- 1 teaspoon sweet smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon dried red chilli flakes
- freshly chopped flat-leaf parsley (leaves only), enough to make 3 tablespoons
- 1 lemon
- sea salt
- fresh crusty bread for dipping and mopping
Instructions
- Pat the prawns dry with kitchen paper, devein them by running the tip of a knife down the backs of the peeled prawns and pulling out and discarding the dark vein.
- Heat the oil in a small frying pan over medium-high heat, add the garlic and chilli, and fry for 30 seconds to infuse the oil with flavour. Then, stir in the paprika.
- Now add the prawns and cook for just 1 to 2 minutes on each side (depending on their size).
- Add most of the parsley and squeeze over half the lemon juice. Then remove from the heat and sprinkle over the remaining parsley and a pinch of sea salt.
- Serve hot with crusty bread for dipping and mopping, and the remaining lemon cut into wedges for squeezing over.
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