CITRUS GRILLED SHRIMP SKEWERS

The smell of  food cooking on the barbeque brings back great memories for me. During the summer my Dad would come home from work and throw a few steaks on the grill and I'll never forget the smell of the charcoal burning. Everyone who's reading this in Ireland knows that the summers aren't great (to say the least) but the first sign of sun, the shorts would be on and the barbeque out. Some years we got to barbeque a lot but you can be sure that that was few and far between.

I love the idea of picking something up in the supermarket and going home and throwing it on the grill. There's a lot to be said for the simplicity of that not to mention the fact that it's healthy and tasty.

Recipe:

1 orange zested & juiced

1 lemon zested

2 tbsp. fresh ginger - grated

Drizzle olive oil

S&P to taste

When I'm grilling I like to keep things as simple as possible. This is a very straightforward recipe. I use this more as a glaze than a marinade. You have to be careful when marinading shrimp in citrus as it begins to cook the shrimp so you can't leave them sitting for too long. I've always preferred to just brush them as I'm grilling but it's up to yourself. 

Before skewering the shrimp soak the skewers in cold water for a couple of hours. This helps stop the skewers from burning on the grill. Makes sense, right?

Very important to make sure your grill is hot. Brush one side with your glaze and lay that side down on the grill for 2 mins. You want to hear the 'sizzle' when you put them on there. Shrimp cooks really quickly so be careful not over-cook them as there's nothing worse. Brush the other side and once ready flip them over for another couple of mins. I did a bunch of grilled veggies when I did them (zucchini, squash, Japanese eggplant and asparagus).
If you want to see how easy this is and take a gander at me in all my glory check out YouTube

MARDI GRAS SHRIMP GUMBO

Is it odd to say I'd never heard of Mardi Gras until I moved to the States? The wife kept bringing it up so I assumed we were in the season. All I knew about it was that it's a huge party and everybody goes nuts. So far it sounds right up my alley. I wanted to look into it more so we hit up Google. Really, all she had to say was Pancake Tuesday and I'd have known exactly what it was, the day before Lent (which starts this coming Wednesday).

My take on Mardi Gras: French for Fat Tuesday, it's the mother of all piss-ups (you people in New Orleans what I mean) before you're supposed to give up something you really like for Lent. When I was a kid I'd always give up sweets (candy) for Lent although I never lasted too long. It was always the easiest thing to tell the parents and have a chance of getting away with it although they weren't that strict. Back in the day giving up alcohol was a requirement. I don't know who's day that was but I'll tell you what, it wasn't mine! Today, the main tradition is no meat on Fridays. I grew up with always having fish on Friday so this got me thinking I should do something that is not only a Louisiana favorite but also something you can make on Fridays (that is, if you practice Lent). The missus likes it hot and spicy (too many obvious jokes here) but I only added a tiny kick so feel free to add more if you like.

Traditionally gumbo is made with a roux (flour and oil) which is used to thicken the sauce. This recipe is the Healhty Irishman way-brothy and light, healthy and tasty.

1 lb. medium shrimp - peeled and deveined

1 med. red pepper -med. dice

1 green pepper - med. dice

1 red onion - med. dice

1/2 cup celery - med. dice

1 1lb. bag okra - fresh or frozen (1/2 inch rounds)

2 cloves garlic -minced

1 16oz tin chopped tomatoes

1 cups clam juice

1 cup white wine (optional)

3 bay leaves

1 tbsp. thyme - chopped

1/2 tsp. cayenne

1 quart veg./chicken stock

1 lemon - zested

olive oil

S&P

When I cook a lot of these dishes I try to keep it as low maintenance and easy as possible. I could do without having to wash up after myself if I could get away with it. Some people will attest I'm a messy bastard so I like to limit the pot usage (don't get too excited, I mean what I cook in) as much as possible.

This is pretty straight forward I think, so here we go.

Pre-heat a med. large soup pot. If using fresh okra, wash in cold water. Remove the caps and cut into 1/4 inch rounds. Add 1 tbsp. olive oil to pan followed by the okra, whether fresh or frozen. Saute on med. heat, stirring constantly for approx. 10 mins. or until the slime has disappeared. Add your chopped veg and garlic and cook for 15 mins. or until soft, stirring occasionally. If the veg start to stick to the pan add another dash of olive oil. Add your wine and let it reduce for 3-4 mins. Go ahead and add the tomatoes, bay leaves, thyme, cayenne, clam juice and broth. Bring it to a boil and then reduce it to a simmer for another 20 mins. You can take the recipe this far if you want to do this in advance. When you're ready to eat add in your shrimp and simmer for 20 mins. I like to finish by adding the lemon zest. It gives it a nice bite.

Taste and season. How easy is that? Cheers to Mardi Gras!