Gambas al Ajillo - AKA Garlic Shrimp

There are many variations on recipes for gambas, a Spanish tapa. I would call the following the sparest I've encountered. There are only 4 ingredients in my recipe: shrimp, minced garlic, chili flakes and olive oil. Essential to eating gambas is a fresh baguette or similar loaf of chewy bread for dipping in the garlic-infused oil. I use a cast iron skillet for cooking and serving the gambas. This is a great dish for sharing.

Ingredients:

• I used 300 grams of wild-caught raw shrimp, but use as many as easily fit into your skillet, and they should be deveined and shelled
• about a 1/3 cup of good quality olive oil
• a large pinch of chili pepper flakes
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced

Methods:
Use a large heavy-bottomed skillet to begin sauteing the garlic in the olive oil, being careful not to brown the garlic. When the garlic is mostly soft, add the shrimp and pepper flakes and saute for only a few minutes more until the shrimp have lost their translucence and turned pink. Cut up lots of bread and dig in while everything is piping hot. Sop up the garlic-infused oil with gusto.