Grilled Shrimp

[JSD]

I just bought some large shrimp and want to grill them on skewers. So far, I have the skewers soaking, but no other fixed plans. What sounds good? I was thinking of something with lime juice. They are not peeled, but don't have their heads. Should I peel them before or after grilling?

[=Mark]

Depends what you've got available. My recent forays into grilling shrimp involve a Thai style marinade and dipping sauce that contains lime juice, coconut milk, lemongrass, coriander, black pepper and minced scotch bonnet peppers. Just remember that when using acidic marinades like lime juice to limit the marinating to less than half an hour or you'll end up with skewared ceviche!

[Brad S]

Hi JSD,

Cooking shrimp with their shells on always imparts more flavor. So if you and your guests don't mind peeling them as you eat them,leave them on.

Lime is great with cilantro in a marinade with some minced shallot and evoo,S&P.

Maybe use some pinapple,poblonos and red onions on the skewers and then boil and strain your marinade to pour over the kebobs.

If you have what you need for a tandoori style that's always yummy served with some basmati with pistachios and golden rasins and mint.

A grilled bronzed shrimp with jasmine rice is great also..kind of a vietnamese flavor with hot chilies,garlic,shallots,cilantro nuoc mam and scallions as your flavors

Teriyaki grilled shrimp with a soba noodle salad with crunchy ingredients like jicama,scallions,bean sprouts,water chesnuts.

I dress the soba noodles with a little japenese glazing sauce

rice vinegar,sesame oil,canola oil,crushed garlic a little hoisin and thai chili sauce.

I don'y know what you have around the house,but use your imagination and be creative.

A Note: if you plain to use any pineapple juice in your marinades be careful not to use to much and for to long as it will break down the protiens and make your shrimp mealy (same for chicken)

[Suzanne F]

Both Mark and CC have given you good advice. Remember, too, that when you leave the shells on, you can char the shells delicously without over-cooking the shrimp -- and then everyone eats the shells and there's less garbage to throw out!

[Beachfan]

What about a mixture of red wine, tamari, curry powder, ginger, mustard, black pepper? It used to work great for me, but lately I must have the timing or proportions off, any suggestions?

Specifics welcomed. I grill in three hours!

[Bux]

I'd keep the shells on for the richer flavor whether or not my guess would eat the shells. I suspect they won't and you'll need some towels or napkins. Fresh lemons to squeeze on the cooked shrimp is a good idea, but keep the juice out of the marinade if you don't want it to cook and over tenderize the shrimp before it reaches the grill. The trick with grilled seafood is not to overcook it. I've had great success with a simple marinade of olive oil, garlic and some fresh herbs that I got out of a French cooking magazine in the sixties. It requires good shrimp with their own flavor and it won't impress anyone who doesn't like shrimp or who thinks shrimp cocktail is what shrimp should taste like.

[tommy]

i always enjoy the thai influenced combination of cilantro, mint (just a tad), garlic, fish sauce, sugar, and powered white pepper. make a paste and marinate and grill. serve with a side of sliced cucumbers with thinly sliced red onion dressed with rice wine vinegar, sugar and salt.

let us know how it goes.

[=Mark]

Grilled Spicy Shrimp

1 lb large or jumbo shrimp

Marinade:

2 or 3 roasted jalepenos

1 cup V8 juice

1/2 cup cider vinegar

juice of 1 lemon

juice of 1 lime

1 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp coriander

salt & pepper to taste

Place all marinade ingredients in food processor and process till smooth.

Peel and clean shrimp. place in a 1 quart ziplock bag and add marinade. Press out excess air and close. Squeeze shrimp around and insure it is thoroughly distributed within the marinade.

Refrigerate for 1/2 hour.

Place onto skewars that have been soaked for at least 2 hours (I use 2 skewars per kabab to keep shrimp secure).

Place on a hot grill and cook for 2 or 3 minutes per side.

Serves 2 as an entree or 4 as an appetizer.

[JSD]

Ok, I went to the store and bought cilantro, pasilla peppers (couldn't find poblanos, and MarkStevens' scotch bonnets and habaneros scare me), jalapenos, lots of limes, garlic, and pineapple. Caped Chef, I'm going to try your idea, leaving the shells on, and also have corn on the cob with lime and cayenne butter. SusanneF, good to know about charring.

[Brad S]

JSD,

That sounds great!!!

I hope you have a wonderful time with your friends and family.

BTW..what's your beverage of choice with the shrimp?

[Vivian]

I have tried mstevens recipe the other day and it was very good.

Of course I didn't use cumin AND oregano :-)

We drunk ouzo with this fine dish. Ouzo is a good marinade for shrimps anyway.

[JSD]

The shrimp turned out great. It was fingerlickin good. We put the peppers, pineapple and onions on skewers too, and grilled them. I had reserved some of the marinade and poured some of it on the veggies and the shrimp after grilling. The corn was good. We had Sam Adams Summer Ale with it. It was a delicious meal. I would never have thought of boiling the marinade and then straining it.

[Beachfan]

I did half the shrimp peeled, with lemon in the marinade (20 minutes), half the shrimp with the shell on, no lemon (just oil, thyme, salt, pepper).

There wasn't any perceptible difference between the two. Perhaps there is more of a possibility to overcook the shrimp if it's peeled, but I'm pretty careful.

Next time, they will be all peeled. It wasn't worth the trouble to peel them at the dinner table.

[tommy]

Next time, they will be all peeled.  It wasn't worth the trouble to peel them at the dinner table.

i'm with beachfan on this one. it's just a pain in the ass to peel shrimp when you wnat to eat them. sure, it is suggested that grilling with the shells keeps in moisture and adds to flavor, but at the expense of good eats. peel them before you serve. don't put your guests through that! afterall, i eat the shells, but most normal humans don't. their loss, but it is what it is.

[JSD]

Well, it was pretty messy peeling the shrimp at the table, but it was delicious.

[tommy]

Well, it was pretty messy peeling the shrimp at the table, but it was delicious.

i'm with ya kid! i suppose it all depends on your audience. fair enough. god knows i put my guests through crap they'd just as soon not have to deal with. but, it's for their own good!

more importantly, when are we invited over?

[stagis]

My favorite is pretty simple: marinate peeled shrimp in lime juice (maybe half lime juice and half takillya is I've got it) for 15 minutes or so, skewer them on twin skewers for ease of handling, salt and pepper pretty heavily, then grill with a watchful eye......

[=Mark]

Cooking the shrimp unpeeled may retain some of the moisture, but I've found they don't retain the flavor from the marinade as well. Of course this is countered by being able to lick the marinade off ones fingers after peeling them...