Getting out of our homes and back to everyday life is a dream most of us can't yet realize. Even as restrictions are eased in some parts of the country, here in California there's still no school, no church, no working at the office, no gatherings of any kind, no days at the beach or evenings at restaurants with friends. We are still, indefinitely, tethered to our homes. And although we continue to be confined, we are NOT required to hibernate inside. With the weather as lovely as it has been, there's never been a better time to enjoy the solace and sanctuary of your own backyard. My favorite way to enjoy my great outdoors? Grilling up dinner, savoring it in the cool evening air, and playing games with my family as the sun sets behind the rolling hills. Sitting amidst the rainbow of glorious blooming flowers, beneath the gently swaying verdant branches of our old willow tree, the renewed nature that surrounds us is a subtle reminder that life goes on, and that it's still good. For our evening celebration of springtime last night, we grilled up some lemon shrimp.
Don't you hate it when your pound of shrimp is an uneven number? Oh well, I took one for the team and had the skewer with four (and ate extra pasta to compensate for my shrimp deficit)
This is a great "no recipe" recipe. As long as your follow the basic steps, ingredients, and cooking time, you will certainly succeed in making an easy, delicious meal. There's a few tricks that make this a winner:
Grilled Lemon Shrimp
First, if you are using wooden skewers, soak them in water for an hour before you thread your shrimp. As you can see from the photo above, even well soaked skewers will blacken on the gill, but they won't catch fire like unsoaked ones will.
Next, heat your grill to high heat for at least 10=15 minutes before you gill. A hot grill (along with olive oil) is the key to keeping seafood from sticking.
Peel and devein one pound of extra jumbo (16-20 in a pound) shrimp. removing the tails completely. Pat them dry. Add to a bowl with a couple tablespoons good olive oil, a sprinkle of salt, pepper, garlic powder and paprika, and fresh lemon zest from one lemon. DO NOT USE LEMON JUICE! I cannot stress this enough - there is more lemony flavor in the zest than the juice, and the juice will "cook" the shrimp (think ceviche) before you get to cook it, making it tough and rubbery. Zest is the secret weapon!
Thread them on the skewers all going the same way (tails up or down). It helps them to stack properly and ultimately cook evenly.
Grill for 3 minutes per side (six minutes total) - that's it! Shrimp cook super quickly and leaving them on too long results in tough shrimp.
After you remove them from the grill, hit them with some fresh chopped parsley and serve with lemon wedges for extra lemony goodness (NOW lemon juice is perfect, and you can just cut the lemon you tested into wedges, easy peasy). You can even drizzle with, or dip in, melted drawn butter, if you're feeling particularly decadent (we did).
I served the grilled lemon shrimp with a green salad, sautéed green beans with caramelized red onions and capellini agile e olio (angel hair pasta with garlic and oil). It's another super simple quick cooking dish that is more about technique and quality ingredients than it is a real recipe.
All this plate is missing is some greens (and a glass of chilled rosé on the side)
Capellini Aglio e Olio
Put on water to boil for the pasta. While you wait for your water to boil, heat 1/4 cup good olive oil (I like DeCecco Organic Extra Virgin) over medium-low heat in a skillet large enough to hold 1/2 pound pasta.
Thinly slice two or three garlic cloves (I use a mandolin, but a knife works great, just go paper thin like Paul Sorvino does in "Goodfellas". ) Add to the oil.
Add a pinch of red pepper flakes more for more spice, less for a milder sauce.
Toast your garlic in the oil until it is a very light golden color. If you take it past that color it will be bitter. Keep stirring and keep an eye on it. As soon as the color is right, remove it from the oil with a slotted spoon. Turn the heat off and add a handful of chopped parsley.
Add salt to the water and as soon as it boils, then drop your (unbroken) 1/2 pound of capellini. Angel hair only takes 2-3 minutes for al dente, so stir it often and keep an eye on it. Remove a 1/2 cup of pasta water from the pasta before you drain it incase your dish needs moisture.
Drain pasta and add to skillet with garlic oil. Turn heat back on to medium to meld the flavors and toss for just a bit. If it seems too dry, add a little pasta water. Season with kosher salt and black pepper. You can top with the toasted garlic, (you can chop it or leave it in slices) but we leave it out.
For an accompaniment to seafood, I don't add any cheese to the pasta, but if we're eating it as an entree or on the side of meat or poultry, I'll top it with Reggiano Parmigiano ,
Dinner is served!
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