Margarita Grilled Shrimp
May 19, 2016 By Cathy — 10 CommentsEasy and healthy margarita grilled shrimp will be your summer grilling staple.
Summer is all about grilling fast, easy and flavorful meals. And it doesn’t hurt when they’re easy on the waistline and pair well with a tasty cocktail. Grilled shrimp is often on my summer menu. A simple shrimp salad topped with avocado is a favorite weeknight dinner or grilled shrimp skewers and marinated skirt steak make for a quick and satisfying surf and turf dinner for a crowd.
But let’s be honest. Summer is also about taking it a little bit easy. Lazy summer nights, cool cocktails, sun and sand. It’s the time of year when I dust off my margarita glasses and buy limes by the bagful. The blender isn’t just for AM smoothies, but late night libations. But the absolute best part of summer for me is relaxing with friends and watching my two little guys just be.
I remember summer days as a kid. Taking shortcuts through all the neighbors’ backyards, playing Spud at dusk in the street and running out the door in the morning and not returning until dinner. Of course times have changed…the word “playdate” makes me shudder and is something we would have laughed off as kids. But busy schedules and constant activities now make scheduling time to play a must during the school year. But ahhhh summer.
It’s the time of year when I purposely under-schedule my kids’ lives and encourage bare feet 24/7. Ice cream is part of just about everyday for them and well…bedtime/schmedtime. I want their memories of summer to be of carefree days and flip-flops; evenings where the most pressing decision is which side of the cone to lick as the ice cream drips down the sides. I want it to be easy.
So with easy in mind, today I’m sharing my recipe for margarita grilled shrimp. This encompasses all of my summertime favorites and ideals on one plate. This recipe is simple enough for a Monday, but pretty enough for a party. It has all the ingredients of a classic margarita cocktail, so of course it begs to be served alongside one. And the trick to making these shrimp extra juicy and tasty is the salt. Before dunking them into a quick margarita marinade, the uncooked shrimped get tossed into a dry brine of salt and sugar. This is ensures a tender bite, instead of a rubbery mess.
These grill up super quick and most of the time spent on this dish is inactive…you just have to give the shrimp some time to soak up all those flavors and tenderizers from the brine and marinade. Of course that works just fine for me. It gives me extra time to soak up a little late day sunshine, watch my boys kick the ball around and maybe mix up a pitcher of margaritas. After all, it’s summertime and salt isn’t just for the shrimp!
- 1 ½ Tbsp kosher salt
- 1 ½ Tbsp sugar
- 1 ½ lbs peeled, deveined shrimp (about 36 shrimp)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- ⅓ cup cilantro, chopped
- 1 jalapeno, seeded and diced
- 2 limes, zested
- 2 oz tequila
- 2 oz triple sec
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- lime wedges and chopped cilantro for serving
- *metal skewers or bamboo skewers soaked for 30 mins
- Mix together the salt and sugar in a medium bowl and add the shrimp. Turn well to coat and cover with plastic wrap and chill in refrigerator for one hour.
- In a separate medium bowl, mix together the garlic, cilantro, jalapeño, lime zest, tequila, triple sec, olive oil and pepper.
- After an hour, remove the shrimp from the frig and place in a colander. Rinse well with cool water, pat dry and add to the bowl with the garlic mixture. Turn to coat, cover and place in refrigerator for 30 mins -1 hour.
- Turn grill to high, skewer shrimp (threading through the head and the tail) and grill for about 4 mins or until just cooked through.
- Garnish with chopped cilantro and serve with lime wedges.
What an awesome recipe for summer grilling Cathy! I’m always looking for quick and tasty recipes for summer entertaining! Thanks so much for sharing this one!
It’s all about easy and tasty in the summer for me. Leaves more time to stick my toes in the sand!
These look so yummy! We’ve been enjoying a lot of grilled shrimp lately too. Now that we finally have a BBQ again, we’ve been going a little crazy, but that’s ok. I just love summer.
me too Natasha. so good to be grilling again. i would grill every meal if i could!
Shrimp AND margaritas?! I’m in! This looks like the perfect summer dinner to cook up on a hot night here in Portland. Saved it to Pinterest to try it out!
Great Candice! And can’t have margarita shrimp with our a margarita on the side! Cheers!
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This is my kind of recipe!!!! I can’t wait to try this! Pinning now! and share with my social profile.
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So glad to hear! Let me know if you make it and what you think.
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