The Bazaar's Gambas Al Ajillo: An Easy-to-Make Tapas Recipe

It may not always look like it, with the limos circling the driveway and the fashion-intensive hotel guests filling the 'indoor piazza' and an interior design that resembles an unlikely confluence of Salvador Dali and Monty Python, but The Bazaar is at heart a tapas restaurant. And on the menu, in addition to miso linguini and 'Hilly cheesesteak,' you will find a plate of simple sautéed garlic shrimp. The dish, which has been on the menu at The Bazaar since it opened--and on the menu at José Andrés' Washington, D.C. restaurant Jaleo for about the last 15 years--takes less than 15 minutes to make and requires the kind of basic ingredients that you can pick up at any Latin market or Vons.

Sous chef Michael Turner, who has also been at The Bazaar since it opened and who was on hand for a quick cooking demo yesterday, says that the trick to the dish is not to overcook the shrimp. As far as garnishing the seafood, which at the restaurant is served over pretty dots of parsley purée and confit garlic purée, Turner says that "we just try and elevate it. At home, just add a bit of parsley at the end." You can always order it at the The Bazaar ("that's the one dish that's never leaving"), but try making it at home. Dress up in a little Balenciaga number and get some dry ice for the bar if you need a little more atmosphere. The recipe is after the jump.

Photo credit: Amy Scattergood

Gambas al ajillo at The Bazaar

Photo credit: Amy Scattergood

chile de arbol

Photo credit: Amy Scattergood

Salt the shrimp

Photo credit: Amy Scattergood

Saute the garlic and chile

Photo credit: Amy Scattergood

At the restaurant, a bit of fancy plating

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