Baked Shrimp with Feta Cheese
Garides me Feta
Region: Greece
Category: Seafood
Season: Any
Difficulty: Easy

Garides me feta, shrimp with feta, is usually cooked in an earthenware casserole called youvetsi (or giouvetsi), derived from the Turkish; it is just like a Spanish cazuela. It is a taverna type of dish popular in the islands. Diane Kochilas, author of The Food and Wine of Greece, told me that it is a specialty from Thessaloniki, but it is also well known among the tavernas around Piraeus, the port of Athens. Some people add ouzo or replace the white wine with retsina. This is one of my favorite shrimp dishes and it is easy to prepare at home.

Yield: Makes 4 to 6 servings
Preparation Time: 1 hour

4 pounds large fresh shrimp with their heads or 2 pounds headless, previously frozen large shrimp, heads and/or shells removed and saved for another purpose, deveined if necessary     2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice     1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil     1 medium-size onion or 3 shallots, finely chopped     5 scallions, white and light green parts only, finely chopped     2 pounds ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and chopped

1/3 cup dry white wine     2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped     3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley leaves       Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste     1/2 pound imported Greek or Bulgarian feta cheese, crumbled in large chunks       Fresh parsley leaves for garnish

1. Place the shrimp in a large bowl and pour the lemon juice over them. Toss and set aside.

2. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat, then cook the onion or shallots and scallions until translucent, about 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the tomatoes, wine, garlic, parsley and season with salt and pepper. Stir well, reduce the heat to low and simmer until dense, about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

3. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Spoon some sauce into a large baking dish. Spread the shrimp around the dish and cover with the remaining sauce. Spread the feta cheese around, pushing the chunks of cheese down into the sauce. Place in the oven and bake until the shrimp are cooked and the cheese melted, about 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and serve garnished with parsley leaves.

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Posted: 01/10/2007