Jumbo Shrimp with Fregola
3.8
(2)
Editor's note: This recipe is adapted from Sardinian chef Raffaele Solinas. Solinas also shared some helpful cooking tips exclusively with Epicurious, which we've added at the bottom of the page.
In this recipe, a simple fish broth enhances the flavor of the shrimp. Though head-on shrimp can be difficult to find, it's worth the extra effort to seek them out — they contribute depth and richness. The fregola should absorb enough broth to swell and soften, but the dish should retain a soupy consistency.
This dish is traditionally served with carta da musica, a crisp Sardinian flatbread, and accompanied by a flavorful dry white wine such as Vermentino.
• Fregola, a common Sardinian semolina pasta, consists of tiny balls that are flavored with saffron and resemble Israeli couscous. Simmered in broth or water, this versatile ingredient appears in soups, stews, and sides. Fregola is available at www.gourmetsardinia.com. • Special Note From Giuliano Bugialli's Foods of Sicily and Sardinia: To prepare fresh fregola, first preheat the oven to 150 degrees. Place 1 pound couscous (not the precooked variety) on a large serving platter and spread it all over. Mix 1 cup cold water with 1 extra-large egg, a pinch of salt and a large pinch ground saffron, preferably Sardinian (optional). Drizzle 2 tablespoons of the mixture over the couscous. Start rubbing the grains between the palms of your hands so the water is absorbed uniformly. Transfer the couscous to a jelly-roll pan and bake for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and let the couscous rest until cool, about 1 hour. Add 2 more tablespoons of the water mixture and repeat the same technique, adding more liquid and rubbing the grain again. Some tiny balls begin to form. Return to the oven for 15 minutes more, remove, let cool and with 2 more tablespoons of the liquid each time, repeat the procedure until all the liquid is used up. At that moment you have formed the fregola by attaching grains of couscous together in small balls. If you want to separate the larger ones — to be used boiled with a sauce — from the smaller ones used for broth, place all the fregola in a sifter and gently shake it; the small ones will pass through and the larger ones will remain in the sifter.
