Shrimp Mozambique

Simmer shrimp and peppers along with garlic, onion, olive oil, wine, and a pinch of saffron. That’s shrimp Mozambique. It’s rarely a mild dish. Its garlic and pepper mix delivers a knock-out punch. But for many at a Portuguese-accented table it provides the comfort-food satisfaction of a dish that speaks of history. Its name comes from the southeastern African country that secured independence from Portugal in 1975. Colonists cultivated the four-alarm piri-piri pepper that is its traditional heat source.

Today shrimp Mozambique stands as a signature menu item in many Portuguese restaurants along the south coast of Massachusetts. Cooks at the Roadfood-favorite Liberal Club in Fall River brighten their shrimp Mozambique’s garlic and pepper punch with a twist of lemon.

Here is the recipe for shrimp Mozambique.