Grilled (or Sautéed) Shrimp

This is a general guide to grilling shrimp. The flavors I use below are Mexican(ish) as I Iike to use them for shrimp tacos but don’t feel beholden to them.

For some science-y details, check out this site:

https://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2015/07/grilled-shrimp-garlic-lemon-food-lab-recipe.html

Ingredients

• 2 lbs large (15-20 per pound) shrimp, peeled and deveined. You can use peel-on shrimp if you want – they do turn out better but you’ll (presumably, I’m not judging) want to peel them after cooking
• ½ t baking soda (makes the shrimp snappier and juicier)
• 1 T kosher salt
• 1 T Mexican hot sauce (I like Valentina)
• 2 T lime juice (fresh, duh)
• 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 T olive oil
• 1 T honey
• Chopped cilantro and lime wedges for garnish

Instructions

• Mix shrimp with all other ingredients in a large bowl until well combined
• Place bowl in the fridge and let marinate for 1-2 hours
• Get your grill REALLY hot – like as hot as you can get it
• 5 minutes before you’re ready to cook, put a grill basket on the grill to pre-heat (or, even better, put them on double-pronged skewers)
• Spray the basket w/ grilling approved cooking spray (don’t use the regular stuff unless you’re impartial to your eyebrows)
• Have a serving dish ready to go
• Pour the shrimp into the basket. No need to drain the marinade – it will flare up for a second but that’s a good thing for charring
• Cook 3-4 minutes stirring regularly until shrimp is just done
• The shrimp is done when pink and just opaque
• Remove to the serving dish and garnish w/ cilantro and lime wedges
• Alternately – heat a skillet (cast-iron on nonstick) – on high heat, add 1 T of olive oil, add the shrimp and cook, stirring constantly, until just cooked through about 4 minutes.

Taco Thoughts

Serve the shrimp with warmed corn (or flour) tortillas, guacamole, crema (or sour cream), shredded cabbage (or slaw – that recipe is coming), pickled red onions (that recipe is coming, too), salsa, etc.

Other Flavors

If you don’t want Mexican(ish) shrimp you can just use garlic and lemon juice. You can go for an Asian vibe with soy sauce and Sriracha…really the world’s your oyster (or, in this case, shrimp).