Serves 4
Spend your time this Memorial Day weekend hanging out with your guests instead of tied up with meal prep. This super quick herb and spice marinade can be made in minutes and echoes the flavors in charmoula (sher-moo-lah), a classic North African sauce traditionally used as a marinade or condiment. Start with peeled shrimp; they're less expensive if you get them in the freezer section and defrost them yourself. Leave them in the marinade no longer than an hour or the shrimp can turn mushy. Thread them on two wooden skewers, which takes a bit more work up front but makes them much easier to turn on the grill, where they need only three minutes on a side. In the end, you haven't done much but you look brilliant.
| Grated rind and juice of 1 large lemon | |
| 1 | teaspoon ground cumin |
| 1 | teaspoon sweet paprika |
| ¼ | teaspoon cayenne pepper |
| ½ | teaspoon salt |
| ¼ | teaspoon black pepper |
| ⅓ | cup olive oil |
| 3 | tablespoons chopped fresh parsley |
| ¼ | cup chopped fresh cilantro |
| 1½ | pounds large shrimp, peeled and deveined |
| Vegetable or canola oil (for the grill) | |
| ½ | small red onion, cut into wedges, separated into layers, and cut into 1-inch pieces |
| Extra chopped fresh cilantro (for sprinkling) | |
| 1 | lemon, cut into wedges (for serving) |
1. Soak 8 bamboo skewers in cold water for 30 minutes.
2. In a large bowl, combine the lemon rind and juice, cumin, paprika, cayenne, salt, and pepper. Stir well. Stir in the olive oil, parsley, and the 1/4 cup cilantro.
3. Add the shrimp and turn them in the marinade until they are completely coated. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or for up to 1 hour.
4. Light a charcoal grill or turn a gas grill to medium-high. Brush the grill rack to clean it. With a wadded paper towel, quickly brush the grill grates with vegetable or canola oil.
5. Thread 1 shrimp with 2 skewers. Add 1 to 2 pieces of red onion. Continue alternating shrimp and onion until the skewer is full and the shrimp are close together. Do the same with the other skewers, shrimp, and onion, making 4 sets total.
6. Grill the shrimp for 3 minutes on a side, or until they are firm to the touch and cooked through. Serve on or off the skewers, sprinkled with chopped cilantro. Garnish with lemon.
Jill Gibson
Serves 4
Spend your time this Memorial Day weekend hanging out with your guests instead of tied up with meal prep. This super quick herb and spice marinade can be made in minutes and echoes the flavors in charmoula (sher-moo-lah), a classic North African sauce traditionally used as a marinade or condiment. Start with peeled shrimp; they're less expensive if you get them in the freezer section and defrost them yourself. Leave them in the marinade no longer than an hour or the shrimp can turn mushy. Thread them on two wooden skewers, which takes a bit more work up front but makes them much easier to turn on the grill, where they need only three minutes on a side. In the end, you haven't done much but you look brilliant.
| Grated rind and juice of 1 large lemon | |
| 1 | teaspoon ground cumin |
| 1 | teaspoon sweet paprika |
| ¼ | teaspoon cayenne pepper |
| ½ | teaspoon salt |
| ¼ | teaspoon black pepper |
| ⅓ | cup olive oil |
| 3 | tablespoons chopped fresh parsley |
| ¼ | cup chopped fresh cilantro |
| 1½ | pounds large shrimp, peeled and deveined |
| Vegetable or canola oil (for the grill) | |
| ½ | small red onion, cut into wedges, separated into layers, and cut into 1-inch pieces |
| Extra chopped fresh cilantro (for sprinkling) | |
| 1 | lemon, cut into wedges (for serving) |
1. Soak 8 bamboo skewers in cold water for 30 minutes.
2. In a large bowl, combine the lemon rind and juice, cumin, paprika, cayenne, salt, and pepper. Stir well. Stir in the olive oil, parsley, and the 1/4 cup cilantro.
3. Add the shrimp and turn them in the marinade until they are completely coated. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or for up to 1 hour.
4. Light a charcoal grill or turn a gas grill to medium-high. Brush the grill rack to clean it. With a wadded paper towel, quickly brush the grill grates with vegetable or canola oil.
5. Thread 1 shrimp with 2 skewers. Add 1 to 2 pieces of red onion. Continue alternating shrimp and onion until the skewer is full and the shrimp are close together. Do the same with the other skewers, shrimp, and onion, making 4 sets total.
6. Grill the shrimp for 3 minutes on a side, or until they are firm to the touch and cooked through. Serve on or off the skewers, sprinkled with chopped cilantro. Garnish with lemon.