Citrus and seafood are a match made in heaven. Not only are both delicious, but the acidity in citrus helps to neutralize the brininess in seafood allowing you to focus on the good flavors. This is why a filet of fish or your platter of fried calamari almost always includes a lemon wedge.
While you can always squeeze a little citrus on your seafood once it is ready to eat, today we are adding loads of those wonderful citrus flavors right into our shrimp while it cooks. This shrimp is light, tangy and subtly sweet and it is perfect for upcoming spring and summer grilling.
Let’s get started…
Begin by preparing your shrimp. You can use fresh or frozen shrimp for this recipe. Simply remove the shells and devein and clean the shrimp. You can cook or grill them with or without their tails, whichever you prefer.
If I am grilling indoors on a grill pan or cast iron skillet, I remove the tails, but if I am grilling outdoors, I usually leave the tails on for easier flipping on the grill.
Once the shrimp is all clean and ready to go, lay them out in a single layer and pat them dry with a paper towel. Season both sides with salt and black pepper and set them aside while you prepare the citrus glaze.
In a small bowl, whisk 1/3 cup of extra virgin olive oil with 2 tablespoons of fresh citrus juice, 2 teaspoons of fresh citrus zest, 2 teaspoons of honey or agave, 1 teaspoon of grated or pasted ginger and a pinch of salt and black pepper.
Now all we have to do is grill our shrimp!
You can do this on a cast iron skillet, like I am doing today or you can grill them on a grill pan or outdoor grill. You can skewer them too!
Grill your shrimp for a minute or two on the first side and then flip it over and brush generously with the citrus mixture. Jumbo shrimp is usually cooked in 6-8 minutes and no one likes overcooked shrimp, so flip and brush with the citrus mixture a few different times until the shrimp is cooked through and generously coated in that citrusy goodness.
As soon as you transfer the shrimp off of the heat, hit it with a little sea salt and dig in!
This citrus grilled shrimp is perfect over a bed of greens, in a wrap, in a rice bowl… there are so many ways to enjoy this bright, cheerful citrus shrimp. You are going to love it!
Citrus Grilled Shrimp
Ingredients
- 16 ounces of shrimp, shells removed, deveined and cleaned
- 1/3 cup of extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons of fresh citrus juice
- 2 teaspoons of fresh citrus zest
- 2 teaspoons of honey or agave
- 1 teaspoon of ginger, grated or pasted
- salt and black pepper
- fresh cilantro, finely chopped (garnish)
- citrus wedges (garnish)
Instructions
- In a small bowl, whisk 1/3 cup of extra virgin olive oil with 2 tablespoons of fresh citrus juice, 2 teaspoons of fresh citrus zest, 2 teaspoons of honey or agave, 1 teaspoon of grated or pasted ginger and a pinch of salt and black pepper and set aside for now
- Pat the shrimp dry with a paper towel and season with salt and black pepper
- Lightly oil your grill or a grill pan placed over medium to medium high heat
- Grill the shrimp on one side until seared then carefully flip the shrimp and brush with the citrus mixture
- Grill on the other side until seared and then flip and brush the other side with the citrus mixture
- Repeat flipping and brushing with the citrus mixture until the shrimp is cooked through and generously glazed (6-8 minutes total)
- Transfer the shrimp to a platter, sprinkle with salt and garnish with finely chopped cilantro and citrus wedges
