This shrimp recipe from NY Times Cooking looked so easy and good, I got some shrimp, pulled out a grill pan and gave it a try. Serves 4:
Grilled Shrimp with Chile and Garlic
- 6 garlic cloves
- ½ to 1 jalapeño (depending on your heat tolerance)
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Heaping 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 ½ pounds large shrimp, peeled and deveined
Prepare a charcoal or gas grill for high heat. If you don’t have a grill, use a cast-iron skillet over high heat, or grill pan.
Using a microplane or the small holes of a box grater, grate the garlic and jalapeño into a medium bowl. Stir in the mayonnaise, salt and baking soda. Add the shrimp and stir to combine. Refrigerate for 15 to 30 minutes.
Grill the shrimp until well-browned, 2 to 4 minutes. Flip and cook until opaque throughout, 1 to 2 minutes. Serve and enjoy!
My Verdict:
Not having a grill is one of the things we miss the most, but the grill pan did a good job with the shrimp, just watch your timing as they were slightly overcooked. I tossed the garlic and jalapeño in my mini-chopper and that was faster and easier than grating them. The shrimp were good but lacking something. I squirted some lime juice on mine and Frank added hot sauce. There was a bit too much garlic and not enough heat from the jalapeño. What worked here was the mayo marinade with the baking soda, so it’s time to play with that, maybe some lemon or lime zest and juice, cumin, sriracha—lots of possibilities.
It also needs something to go with it. We were thinking it might make great shrimp tacos, like I had recently at Los Jalapeños in New Paltz. Or, going in a different direction, maybe on top of linguini or even rice noodles.
What would you serve them with?
