Editor's note: Chef, nutritionist, and cooking teacher Lourdes Castro shared this recipe from her cookbook, Latin Grilling. It's the first course in a festive Cuban party menu she created for Epicurious.
Here I have taken a Cuban classic, camarones al ajillo (shrimp in garlic sauce), and adapted it for backyard entertaining. I was also inspired by the crowd-pleasing mounds of cold poached shrimp with sides of cocktail sauce you see at buffets. So I grilled jumbo shrimp, piled them on a platter, and served them with mojo, the addictively delicious citrus-garlic sauce that has become synonymous with Cuban cooking.
Ingredients
Mojo
Pronounced MOH-hoh, mojo is the condiment most often used in Cuban cooking—it can be used as a marinade or a dipping sauce. (Note that while the name of the sauce is similar to that of the mojito cocktail, the two concoctions have no other similarities.) Mojos are always oil-based and always contain citrus juice. This recipe is for the version used as a dipping sauce; those used for marinades contain ground cumin and/or dried oregano.
Techique
Butterflied shrimp
A butterflied shrimp has been evenly split lengthwise down its center and cut almost all the way through (note that sometimes it is cut all the way through, into two pieces). When opened, it has the shape of a butterfly. I like to use this technique on shrimp so that it cooks evenly and quickly (shrimp easily overcook and can turn tough and rubbery).
Place the tip of your knife blade in the indentation created on the shrimp's back by the deveining process. Slice the shrimp 3/4 of the way through, so that the flesh is still connected on one side.
Advance preparation
The mojo can be made a day in advance and kept refrigerated. Heat over medium heat in a saucepan until warm before serving.
