Grilled Shrimp With Chermoula Recipe

By
J. Kenji López-Alt
Kenji Lopez Alt
J. Kenji López-Alt
Culinary Consultant
Kenji is the former culinary director for Serious Eats and a current culinary consultant for the site. He is also a New York Times food columnist and the author of The Food Lab: Better Home Cooking Through Science.
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Updated Mar. 12, 2019
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Plump and tender grilled shrimp topped with chermoula. . Photographs: J. Kenji López-Alt. Video: Natalie Holt

Why This Recipe Works

  • Treating the shrimp with salt and baking soda helps them stay plump and juicy and brown more efficiently as they grill.
  • Drying the shrimp out in the refrigerator gives them a jump-start on browning.
  • Squeezing the shrimp together on a skewer gives them less surface area, which helps them stay juicier as they cook.
  • Tossing them in a sauce after cooking offers more flavor than a marinade.

Our perfectly grilled shrimp have a clean, sweet shrimp flavor with a nicely charred crust and a plump, juicy texture. They pair wonderfully with chermoula, a North African condiment based on herbs, cumin, olive oil, and lemon.

2:38

5 Steps to the Best Grilled Shrimp

Recipe Details

Grilled Shrimp With Chermoula Recipe

Active 30 mins
Total 2 hrs
Serves 4 servings

Ingredients

  • 2 1/2 pounds (1kg) large shrimp, peeled and deveined

  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

  • 1 tablespoon (15g) kosher salt, plus more to taste

  • 1 teaspoon (5g) sugar

  • 2 medium cloves garlic, minced

  • 2 tablespoons (30ml) extra-virgin olive oil

  • 1 recipe Chermoula

Directions

  1. Combine shrimp, baking soda, salt, and sugar in a medium bowl and toss to coat. Thread shrimp onto sets of 2 skewers, alternating heads to tails and pushing shrimp together so that they fit tightly on skewers; you should have about 6 shrimp on each set of 2 skewers. Lay skewers on top of a baking dish so that shrimp are suspended above bottom of dish. Transfer to refrigerator and allow to rest for 1 hour. Meanwhile, combine garlic and olive oil in a small bowl.

  2. When shrimp are ready to grill, brush both sides with garlic/oil mixture. Light 1 chimney full of charcoal. When all charcoal is lit and covered with gray ash, pour out and arrange coals on one side of charcoal grate. Set cooking grate in place, cover grill, and allow to preheat for 5 minutes. Alternatively, set half the burners on a gas grill to the highest heat setting, cover, and preheat for 10 minutes. Clean and oil grilling grate.

  3. Place shrimp directly over hot side of grill and cook, turning occasionally, until shrimp are just cooked through and well charred, 4 to 5 minutes total. Transfer shrimp to a cutting board.

  4. Carefully remove skewers from shrimp and transfer to a medium bowl. Add 1 tablespoon (15ml) chermoula and toss to coat. Season to taste with more salt if necessary. Transfer to a serving platter, spoon more chermoula on top, and serve immediately.

Special Equipment

Grill, wooden or metal skewers (soaked in water for 30 minutes if wooden)

This Recipe Appears In

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
275 Calories
10g Fat
5g Carbs
39g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4
Amount per serving
Calories 275
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 10g 13%
Saturated Fat 2g 9%
Cholesterol 357mg 119%
Sodium 3410mg 148%
Total Carbohydrate 5g 2%
Dietary Fiber 0g 1%
Total Sugars 2g
Protein 39g
Vitamin C 3mg 13%
Calcium 166mg 13%
Iron 1mg 6%
Potassium 373mg 8%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)