Grilled Shrimp Skewers with Tomato, Garlic & Herbs
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Shrimp marinated in a mix of olive oil, tomato paste, lemon, garlic & herbs and then grilled until slightly charred.
In this easy recipe, shrimp are quickly marinated in a bright and tangy mixture of olive oil, tomato paste, lemon, garlic, and herbs and then grilled until plump and slightly charred. They’re perfect for entertaining because all of the prep is done ahead of time. All you have to do when your guests arrive is throw the skewers on the grill. But be forewarned: people will eat more than their fair share. Make extra!
What you’ll need to make Grilled Shrimp Skewers with Tomato, Garlic & Herbs
For this recipe, try to find jumbo frozen shrimp (21-25 to a pound) labeled “shell split and deveined.” Come dinnertime, all you have to do is poke a few holes in the bottom of the bag, run the shrimp under warm water to quickly defrost, and then peel.
Fact is, unless you live on the coast and have access to fresh shrimp, it’s best to buy frozen. The “fresh” ones you see in the seafood case at the supermarket have almost always been frozen and then thawed, and you never know how long they’ve been sitting there. Most shrimp are cleaned and flash-frozen shortly after being caught, so you’re better off buying the frozen variety and defrosting them yourself.
How to make them
Begin by making the marinade. Combine the tomato paste, olive oil, lemon juice, shallots, garlic, herbs, salt, sugar, and red pepper flakes in a mini food processor or blender.
Process until the mixture resembles a thick paste.
Toss the shrimp with the marinade and let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
Thread it onto skewers. This is optional, but I think the skewers make it so much easier to turn them over on the grill.
Preheat the grill to medium-high heat, then grease the grates with a wad of paper towels dipped in oil.
Grill the skewers about 1-1/2 minutes per side. It sounds crazy but I always set a timer — three minutes goes by faster than you think, and it’s a sin to overcook them!
Enjoy!
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Grilled Shrimp Skewers with Tomato, Garlic & Herbs
Shrimp marinated in a mix of olive oil, tomato paste, lemon, garlic & herbs and then grilled until slightly charred.
Ingredients
- 2½ tablespoons tomato paste
- 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 large shallot, roughly chopped
- 4 large cloves garlic, roughly chopped
- ¼ cup fresh basil leaves, chopped
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves (or 1 teaspoon dried)
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1½ teaspoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 pounds jumbo shrimp (21-25 per pound), peeled and de-veined (leave tails on if desired), thawed if frozen
Instructions
- To make the marinade, combine all of the ingredients except for the shrimp in a mini food processor or blender; blend until the mixture forms a smooth paste.
- Combine the shrimp and the marinade in a medium bowl and stir until shrimp are evenly coated. Let marinate at room temperature for 30 minutes - 1 hour.
- Preheat the grill to medium-high heat. Meanwhile, thread the shrimp onto skewers (going through the top and bottom of each shrimp). Lightly dip a wad of paper towels in vegetable oil and, using tongs, carefully rub over grates several times until glossy and coated. Grill the shrimp skewers about 1½ minutes per side. Be sure not to overcook! Serve hot, room temperature or cold.
- *If you're entertaining and want to get everything done ahead of time, you can thread the shrimp onto the skewers right after mixing with the marinade.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (6 servings)
- Calories: 251
- Fat: 15 g
- Saturated fat: 2 g
- Carbohydrates: 7 g
- Sugar: 3 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 21 g
- Sodium: 911 mg
- Cholesterol: 191 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Gluten-Free Adaptable Note
To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
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Jen,
Can I omit the sugar? I don’t use any sweeteners at all. Not artificial either. If you think it’s a necessity I may skip this recipe.
Thanks,
Dale Goldstone
Fine to leave it out, Dale – enjoy!
Would the sauce work with salmon or a white fish.
Do you mean as a marinade or a sauce? Either way, it will work, but if you’re planning to marinade the fish just limit your marinating time to 60 minutes. I’d love to hear how it turns out!
Hi Jenn! I have had so much success with your recipes and am about to try this one this weekend. I’m just a little concerned about leaving the raw shrimp out of the refrigerator. Can this be marinated cold or is it necessary to leave out for the flavor to develop? Thanks so much 😊
Hi Kathy, it’s fine to marinate them in the fridge if you’d feel more comfortable with that. Hope you enjoy!
If I wanted to do everything the night before, would it be ok to let the shrimp sit in the marinade on the skewer that long? Would it be ok to thaw them out that much ahead of time (about 20 hours)?
Hi Beth, because the marinade has lemon juice, I wouldn’t recommend it. If it sits in the marinade too long, the shrimp will start to “cook” in the lemon juice. Sorry!
I’m sure you already figured this out, but you could thaw the shrimp and make the marinade but not combine until you’re ready to cook.
I can honestly say I have never left a review/comment on a recipe, even though I find and make recipes off the internet all the time. This shrimp marinade is AMAZING! So flavorful & so easy. I made it once and wad blown away and made it again few days later. Best shrimp recipe I’ve found!
A friend/fellow OUAC fan brought this dish to our Memorial Day barbecue and everyone flipped for it! The marinade combination of smokey, herby, tangy flavors is soo good together, and the fact that you can throw it all in the food processor and have it ready for the grill in less than an hour is super convenient. Can’t wait to have them again at our next barbecue!
Delicious and flavorful!
It’s too cold and snowy to grill outside. Any suggestions for cooking this indoors?
Hi Susan, Sure – I would broil in the oven them for the same amount of time they should be grilled. Enjoy!
Absolutely wonderful! I made these for my husband to BBQ a few a family gathering. Everyone, including the children, raved about it! I added 2 extra garlic cloves (because I love garlic) other wise the recipe was done as is. We served it as an appetizer. Another winning recipe. Thank you so much, I will definitely make this again.
Yet another recipe that got raves from my whole family. Will be putting this in the rotation for sure! Super tasty with flavors that enhanced the shrimp. Thanks again!!!!