Hugo’s Camarones al Mojo de Ajo

Mojo de Ajo

6 dried chipotle chiles
1 cup extra-virgin olive oil, preferably Spanish
1 1/2 cups chopped garlic
juice of 5 Mexican limes (or Key limes)
1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste

Reconstitute the chipotles by soaking for a few minutes in just enough very hot water to cover. Then seed them and cut into thin strips. In a large sauté or frying pan heat oil over low heat. Add garlic and cook until golden brown, about 4 to 5 minutes. Add lime juice and strips of chipotle and cook 5 more minutes. Season to taste. Strain the garlic oil into a bowl and reserve both it and the chopped garlic-chipotle mixture.

Camarones

3 pounds small shrimp (26-to-30-per-pound size), peeled and deveined, tail on
garlic oil (see instructions in previous recipe)
garlic-chipotle mixture (see instructions in previous recipe)
6 jumbo shrimp, head on, for garnish

Divide the small shrimp into several batches and sauté one batch at a time over medium heat in the garlic oil until shrimp are opaque, about 30 seconds to 1 minute per side. Add 2 tablespoons of the garlic-chipotle mixture to each batch, stir in, and quickly heat through. When finished, sauté the jumbo shrimp. Do not remove head. Set aside.

Rice

2 cups uncooked white rice
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 cups chicken stock
1 cup chipiles, a type of Mexican green, trimmed (you may substitute 1/2 to 3/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley or spinach)

Fry rice in olive oil until light brown in color, a few minutes. Add stock and simmer, covered, according to package directions, until cooked through. Drain and stir in chipiles.

To serve, mound rice on plate and place shrimp around the rice or on top of it. Garnish each plate with a large shrimp. If desired, sprinkle any of the remaining flavored garlic oil on the shrimp. Serves 6.