In this dish, high heat and speed are essential. Make sure the pan is good and hot when you add the shrimp and that it is wide enough to hold all the shrimp pieces in a single layer (so the pan doesn’t cool down as the shrimp go in). And be sure to have all your ingredients right by the stove—once the shrimp go into the pan, it’s “full speed ahead.”

　　

Ingredients

makes 6 servings

　　3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for finishing dish

　　3 cloves garlic, chopped fine

　　1 pound extra-large (about 25 to the pound) shrimp, completely shelled, deveined, and cut crosswise into 3 pieces

　　1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives

　　1/2 cup dry white wine

　　4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces

　　1 tablespoon lemon juice

　　1 tablespoon chopped fresh Italian parsley

　　1/2 teaspoon crushed hot red pepper

　　Salt

　　6 slices Italian bread (about 1/4 inch thick and 2 1/2 inches wide), toasted and kept warm

　　1 lemon, cut into slices

　　Whole chives and/or parsley sprigs, optional

　　

Step 1

Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet, over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook, shaking the pan, until light golden, about 2 minutes. Raise the heat to high, add the shrimp, and toss until they are bright pink and seared on all sides, about 2 minutes. Stir in the chopped chives, then add the wine, butter, and lemon juice. Bring to a boil, and boil until the shrimp are barely opaque in the center and the sauce is reduced by half, about 2 minutes. Stir in the chopped parsley and crushed red pepper. Season with salt.

　　

Step 2

Place a piece of warm toast in the center of each of six warm plates. Spoon the shrimp and sauce over the toast, drizzling some of the sauce around the toast. Decorate the plates with lemon slices, and with the parsley sprigs and/or whole chives, if using.

　　From Lidia's Italian-American Kitchen by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich Copyright © 2001 by A La Carte Communications and Tutti a Tavola, LLC. Published by arrangement with Alfred A. Knopf, an imprint of The Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC.Buy the full book from Amazon.