Sunday, July 3, 2016

Spiced Shrimp and Tomato Kebabs

If you follow this blog long enough, you will learn that I love to make kebab recipes.  I have a special fondness for Persian kebabs, such as Kebab e Chenjeh or Advieh-e Khoresh kebabs.  I even search out relatively obscure kebab recipes, such as the Uighur Lamb Kebabs. Truth be told: kebabs are becoming my most favorite kind of food.

The only drawback to kebabs is that my beautiful Angel, Clare, does not eat red meat or even most meat.  This leads me to search for different kinds of kebabs to make.  I could make vegetable kebabs, but who wants a skewer with a bunch of plants?  A skewer that goes over a fire should have meat on it, at least in my humble opinion.  In any event, I look for different things that I know my Angel will eat ... like shrimp.

That led me to this recipe from Food & Wine magazine for Spiced Shrimp and Tomato Kebabs. The key to this recipe is the marinade, which combines a lot of flavors -- ginger, cilantro, basil, mint, cayenne pepper, paprika, lime and honey.  This marinade combines some heat with sweet, and herbal with citrus.  With the use of that citrus (lime juice, I erred on a shorter period of marinating time (about an hour to an hour and one half).  After all, I want kebabs, not ceviche.

The best thing about kebabs is how easy they are to make once the meat is marinated.  Just thread some sticks and throw them on the grill.  Add a side dish, such as the saffron rice that I used in this instance, and you have the makings of a delicious and fast dinner during the week. 


SPICED SHRIMP AND TOMATO KEBABS
Recipe from Food & Wine
Serves 10

Ingredients
1/4 cup thinly sliced peeled ginger
4 garlic cloves
1/4 cup packed cilantro leaves
2 tablespoons packed basil leaves
1 tablespoon packed mint leaves
1 teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
2 tablespoons lime juice
2 teaspoons honey
2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
40 large shrimp (about 2 pounds), shelled and deveined
1 pint grape tomatoes

Directions:
1.  Prepare the marinade. In a food processor, combine the ginger with the garlic, cilantro, basil, mint, cayenne pepper, paprika, lime juice, honey, salt and 2 tablespoons of olive oil and puree.  Scrape the marinade into a large bowl, add the shrimp, and toss to coat.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or up to 4 hours. 

2.  Prepare the skewers.  Thread the shrimp and tomatoes onto skewers.

3.  Grill the skewers. Light a grill and oil the grates.  Grill the skewers over high heart, turning once, until the shrimp are lightly charred and cooked through and the tomatoes are just beginning to burst, about 6 minutes.  Serve right away.

ENJOY!

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