How To Grill Jumbo Shrimp: All The Information You Need.

Ingredients For Cooking

• 2-3 pounds of fresh jumbo shrimp 
• One-fourth cup of olive oil 
• Half a cup of diced shallot
• 2-3 cloves of garlic, minced.
• The juice of 1 large lemon 
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Optional: other herbs like cilantro and basil, freshly chopped.
• A sealable plastic bag to pour the marinade. 

With all your ingredients prepped, you are now ready to grill the shrimp. 

Method

Serves: 5-6 people 

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 15 minutes

Difficulty: Easy 

In six easy steps, you can cook your jumbo shrimp to perfection. 

Step 1: Prep The Shrimp

Pull the shrimp out of the freezer and let it completely defrost. Once the shrimp has thawed, you need to peel and devein the shrimp. Finally, blot the shrimp dry with paper towels and place them in a plastic bag. The end of this article has some useful tips on prepping the shrimp. 

Step 2: Preparing The Marinade

Combine all the ingredients listed for the marinade into a bowl and mix thoroughly – taste to adjust the seasoning accordingly. 

Step 3: Mixing The Shrimp And The Marinade

Once the shrimp and the marinade are prepped individually, it is time to combine them. Pour the marinade into the sealable plastic bag with the shrimp. Close the bag and place it in the fridge for about 40 minutes. Don’t forget to take it out because the acid in the marinade will start to disintegrate the shrimp. 

Step 4: Preparing The Grill

Once your shrimp is ready to cook, you need to fire up your grill or skillet to cook the shrimp. Bring the grill up to medium-high heat and oil the grill with paper towels or a non-stick spray. Make sure you have a proper non-stick before you place the shrimp on the grill. 

Step 5: Grilling The Shrimp

Take the shrimp from the bag and throw the marinade away. Place the shrimp on the grill and cook them for 2-3 minutes on each side. The sign of a cooked shrimp is when the meat looks light pink and is firm to touch. 

Step 6: Serve

Once the shrimp has been grilled to perfection, remove them from the heat. Set the pieces on a serving platter and chopped herbs and lemon as a garnish. Alternatively, you can serve the cooked shrimp with some cocktail sauce. 

With this simple recipe, you can easily grill jumbo shrimp for everyone to enjoy. Once you have mastered the basics of grilling shrimp, you should look into diversifying your flavor and skill set in cooking the shrimp. 

Tips To Make The Best Grilled Jumbo Shrimp

Here are some tips and tricks that can elevate your skills to give you the ultimate grilled shrimp experience: 

1. Makes sure you buy your jumbo shrimp fresh for the best dining experience. Seafood like shrimp should be bought on the day of the day before it is cooked. 
2. While shrimp can be cooked without their shells, it is better to peel and devein the shrimp to ensure that they are clean. Moreover, peeling the shrimp allows the marinade to seep into the meat, making the shrimp more flavorful. You can use the shrimp shells in other dishes to add flavor.
3. You can choose to skewer your shrimp to make the grilling process and faster. Use a metal or a wooden skewer for the job. 
4. Consider other variations for the marinade. Use other herbs and spices like parsley, lime, paprika, or cayenne pepper to experiment with the taste. Consider using chopped green onions and butter sauce as a garnish for your dish. 
5. You can serve shrimp with cocktail sauce, pico de gallo, or herb butter sauce. 
6. Basting the shrimp in butter makes the shrimp extremely luxurious and sophisticated. If you want to elevate your shrimp dish, consider making a butter and rosemary sauce basting your shrimp. 
7. Shrimp cooks fast, make sure you keep an eye out while cooking to ensure that you don’t overcook it. Overcooked shrimp has a rubbery texture, which can be quite unpleasant. 
8. If you are making a grand dinner with jumbo shrimp as the main course, be sure to have some complementary sides. This can include a light vegetable salad, pasta, garlic bread, etc. 
9. Along with side dishes, having the perfect drink to go with the shrimp is very important. White wine and gin cocktails go beautifully with the delicate flavor of shrimp. 

Extra Tips On Prepping The Shrimp

1. Deveining the shrimp implies removing the thin, black string down the back of the body. This is the digestive tract of the shrimp, which may have some grit and gunk. It is better to remove it to have clean meat to work with. 
2. Use a sharp knife to devein the shrimp. Make a small cut down the back of the shrimp to reveal the back veins. These are very visible in jumbo shrimps, making it easy to prep the shrimp. 
3. Once you have cut, you can use your hands to gently pull out the veins and digestive tract of the shrimp. Once you are done, wash and blot the shrimp dry for cooking. 

Your Turn

So, this is how you can grill jumbo shrimp on the go. Another cool idea, how about a BBQ party in your backyard? Do you have any queries? Or are you stuck anywhere? Let us know in the comments below.