This is the most amazing grilled shrimp!! Have you ever tried grilled shrimp and its been burned to a crisp? Or if its cooked nicely it doesn't taste like it ever touched the grill? I have found the solution for those problems to give you the most perfectly grilled shrimp!! Its perfectly cooked and has a slight char on the outside.
The trick is all in the preparation of the shrimp before it even hits the grill. Because once the shrimp gets on the grill you will have just a few minutes to get those grill marks!
Here is where I found method and I've found it's truly amazing!! I follow it almost exactly and I think its amazing! See below for my slightly adapted version.
How to Prepare Shrimp for Grilling
So the prep involves a salt, sugar and baking soda rub over the cleaned and peeled shrimp.
- The sugar helps to brown the shrimp faster, which means you don't have to overcook the shrimp to get that nice char on the outside.
- The baking soda helps to retain the texture of the shrimp and also helps to brown the outside faster.
- The salt helps to retain the moisture of the shrimp as well as bring out the flavors of the shrimp.
Next step is to skewer the shrimp. This is necessary to cook the shrimp directly on the grill without losing any through the grates! Skewer the shrimp using two skewers through each one, so you can stabilize them. Also make sure they as close to each other as possible. I alternate each one from head to tail to get them closer. This helps to increase the cooking time, thereby providing more time to get that crucial char on the outside.
The last step in the prep, involves allowing the shrimp to dry out on the surface so they don't burn as soon as they hit the grill. Unfortunately the drying process takes time...luckily its only an hour!
Just lay the skewers on a tray so the shrimp are able to lay out without touching any surface. Let them dry for at least an hour in the refrigerator.
Once you're ready to grill, just brush the shrimp skewers with an oil based marinade and toss them on the grill until they're just slightly charred.
Grilled Shrimp Seasoning
One of my favorite marinades for shrimp is just butter, lemon and garlic!
Brush the shrimp skewers with some olive oil and garlic before grilling. Once the shrimp are fully cooked, remove from the skewers and toss them in some melted butter, fresh lemon juice, more garlic, parsley and cilantro! Just delicious!
(Note: Do not add salt!! There is enough salt in the prep process that you do not want to add any additional salt in the marinade)
If you've loving this perfectly grilled shrimp as much I do, also check out these other grilling recipes too!
Peruvian-Style Grilled Chicken
Grilled Schezwan Paneer Kati Roll
📖 Recipe
Perfectly Grilled Shrimp
Ingredients
- 2 lbs shrimp, peeled and deveined use large shrimp or larger
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 6 garlic cloves minced
- 2 tablespoon butter melted
- 1 lemon for zest and juice
- chopped fresh herbs like parsley and cilantro
Instructions
- Combine salt, sugar and baking soda together in a large mixing.
- Wash and dry shrimp. Add shrimp to the salt, sugar and baking soda mixture. Stir to thoroughly coat.
- Skewer the shrimp by threading shrimp on 2 skewers, head to tail. Alternate each shrimp (head to tail, tail to head) and make sure to push the shrimp together as close as possible. Leave enough room on the ends of the skewers to grab.
- Lay all of the skewers on a baking tray so the ends of the skewers sit end to end on the edge and the shrimp are able to dry. Let the shrimp dry out on the baking tray in the refrigerator for at least an hour.
- Combine melted butter, half of the minced garlic, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Set aside.
- Combine the olive oil with half of the minced garlic. Brush the garlic oil on the shrimp skewers.
- Grill the shrimp skewers on medium-high heat. Depending on the size of your shrimp, they should be cooked in 5-10 minutes total. Flipping halfway through. You can tell the shrimp are thoroughly cooked when opaque and pink and slightly charred on the exterior.
- Once cool, remove shrimp from skewers. Immediately toss in the butter garlic mixture. Garnish with chopped parsley and cilantro.
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