Grilled Shrimp with Cilantro Pesto

5 from 6 votes

Grilled Shrimp with Cilantro Pesto

I realize that after Labor Day everyone basically stops wearing white and gears up for Pumpkin season – but I’m a rebel and I don’t subscribe to that notion! So I’m opting for some Grilled Shrimp with Cilantro Pesto and a side of grilled bread!!

Prep Time30

Cook Time6

Total Time36

Course: Main Course, Dinner

Cuisine: Mediterranean

Servings: servings

Author: Gaby Dalkin

Ingredients

For the Cilantro Sauce

1 shallot roughly chopped
2 cups tightly packed fresh cilantro leaves stems removed (about 4 ounces)
1 clove garlic
½ teaspoons red pepper flakes
½ cup olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon salt

For the Grilled Shrimp and Bread

2 lbs medium shrimp peeled and de-veined
Wooden skewers soaked in water or metal
1 loaf of bread sliced into 1 ½ inch pieces on a bias
1 lemon juiced
1 teaspoons red pepper flakes
kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper
olive oil for drizzling
3 lemons halved and grilled

Instructions

For the Cilantro Sauce

Combine all the ingredients in a high powered blender and blend for 60 seconds until very smooth. Taste and adjust salt and pepper as needed. Serve immediately. Or you can refrigerate the vinaigrette for up to 5 days.

For the Grilled Shrimp and Bread

Thread about 6 shrimp on each of the soaked wooden skewers and set them on a large plate of cutting board while skewering the rest.
Drizzle about ⅓ of the vinaigrette over the skewered shrimp along with the juice of the lemon, red pepper flakes and some salt and pepper. Set the shrimp aside to marinate for about 10-20 minutes while you prepare your grill.
Arrange the thick slices of bread on a large platter and drizzle liberally with olive oil.
Prepare your gas or charcoal grill to medium high heat. Place the pieces of bread over the heat and grill for a few moments on each side until the bread has grill marks. Using a pair of tongs, flip the bread over and let the other side grilled for a minute or so more until both sides have nice grill marks. Remove the bread from the grill and set aside.
Place the shrimp skewers on the grill over medium high heat and grill for about 2-3 minutes on each side until the shrimp are pink. Remove the skewers from the grill and set aside.
Serve the shrimp and bread with the remaining cilantro vinaigrette and grilled lemon halves.

Notes

Soak wooden skewers for at least 30 minutes before grilling. Dry wood ignites quickly over high heat and will burn before your shrimp are done. A good long soak keeps the skewers intact through the entire cook time.
Thread shrimp so they lay flat and snug on the skewer. Shrimp curls as it cooks, so threading through both the tail and the body keeps each piece flat against the grates. This gives you even contact with the heat and better grill marks.
Do not marinate the shrimp for longer than 20 minutes. The red wine vinegar in the cilantro sauce is acidic enough to start breaking down the proteins in the shrimp. Over-marinating will give you a mushy, mealy texture before the shrimp ever hits the grill.
Pat shrimp dry before skewering if they are very wet from the bag. Excess moisture creates steam on the grill instead of a sear. A quick pat with paper towels helps the marinade adhere and promotes charring rather than steaming.
Pull shrimp off the grill the moment they turn pink and opaque. Shrimp cook in 2 to 3 minutes per side over medium-high heat, and carry-over cooking continues after they leave the grill. Even 60 extra seconds will push them into rubbery territory.
Blend the cilantro pesto for a full 60 seconds without stopping. Cilantro leaves need sustained blending to fully break down and emulsify with the olive oil. A short pulse leaves the sauce grainy and the oil separated rather than smooth and cohesive.
Use the full half cup of olive oil in the pesto without cutting it back. The olive oil is what gives the pesto its silky, drizzleable consistency and helps it cling to the shrimp and bread. Reducing it makes the sauce too thick and the flavor too sharp from the vinegar.
Drizzle the bread with olive oil before it goes on the grill, not after. Oil applied before grilling penetrates the bread as it heats and creates a crisp, golden crust with deep grill marks. Oil added after just sits on the surface and makes the bread greasy.
Grill the lemon halves, cut-side down, over direct heat until charred. Heat caramelizes the natural sugars in the lemon and mellows the sharp acidity. Squeezing a grilled lemon over the finished shrimp adds a sweeter, more complex citrus note than raw lemon juice alone.
Reserve at least half of the cilantro pesto for serving rather than using it all as a marinade. Heat dulls bright herby flavors, so the pesto that goes on raw shrimp will taste muted after grilling. Finishing the dish with fresh, uncooked pesto is where all the vibrant flavor payoff comes from.
Make the cilantro pesto up to 5 days ahead and store it in the fridge. The olive oil and vinegar act as preservatives, and the flavors actually deepen as it sits. Having it ready in advance makes this a genuinely fast weeknight meal on grill night.
Use an indoor grill pan over medium-high heat if you do not have an outdoor grill. A cast-iron grill pan gets hot enough to char the bread and cook the shrimp through with proper grill marks. Keep the heat consistent and do not move the skewers around so you get a real sear instead of a steam.

Nutrition