Food Cooking Tips & Techniques How to Grill Shrimp Perfectly Every Time—Plus 4 Recipes to Try In a hurry? You can grill shrimp in less than 10 minutes. By Melissa Kravitz Hoeffner Melissa Kravitz Hoeffner Instagram Twitter Website Melissa Kravitz Hoeffner is a writer and recipe developer. She's a regular contributor to The New York Times, Time Out New York, Forbes, and many more publications. She also writes the food newsletter, Specialty. Real Simple's Editorial Guidelines Updated on May 31, 2023 Medically reviewed by Kristy Del Coro, MS, RDN, LDN Medically reviewed by Kristy Del Coro, MS, RDN, LDN Instagram Website Kristy Del Coro is a registered dietitian nutritionist, RDN, and professionally trained chef with more than 10 years of experience in the field of culinary nutrition. Her strong background in nutrition science, sustainable food systems, and culinary education makes her exceptionally qualified to write about food that is good for us and the planet—while not sacrificing flavor. Learn More Fact checked by Isaac Winter Fact checked by Isaac Winter Isaac Winter is a fact-checker and writer for Real Simple, ensuring the accuracy of content published by rigorously researching content before publication and periodically when content needs to be updated. Highlights: Helped establish a food pantry in West Garfield Park as an AmeriCorps employee at Above and Beyond Family Recovery Center. Interviewed Heartland Alliance employees for oral history project conducted by the Lake Forest College History Department. Editorial Head of Lake Forest College's literary magazine, Tusitala, for two years. Our Fact-Checking Process Share Tweet Pin Email In This Article View All In This Article Preparation Steps Recipes to Try FAQs Photo: Xsandra/Getty Images One of the most delightful foods you can cook over a fire, grilled shrimp are quick to make, easy to eat, and so versatile. No matter which cuisine you prefer, grilled shrimp absolutely fits in. For more details about grilling this luscious protein, we consulted New York City restaurateur, chef, and seafood expert Mike Price. Read on to learn about selecting, seasoning, and cooking shrimp on the grill, and then try one of our favorite grilled shrimp recipes. What You Need: Propane or charcoal grill Shrimp Oil and seasoning Skewers or grill basket (optional) Serving platter How to Grill Shrimp Make sure you have all your meal components ready before your start grilling shrimp, because it goes fast! Step 1: Preheat Grill Pre-heat your grill to medium and, once it’s hot, clean the grill grate with a wire brush. Just before grilling, oil the grill grate to keep the shrimp and other grilled food from sticking. Step 2: Pat Dry and Season While the grill is heating, pat your shrimp dry and season them with a drizzle of oil and seasonings. Alternatively, if you've marinated your shrimp, remove them from the marinade and let them rest so that excess sauce doesn't drip and burn in the flames. Step 3: Skewer Larger shrimp often result in a more succulent, delectable meal, but if your shrimp are on the small side, cook them on skewers—or use a grill basket or cast-iron pan—to ensure they don't fall through the grill. The use of skewers also makes flipping grilled shrimp faster and easier. If using wooden skewers, presoak them in water to prevent them from cooking along with the shrimp. Step 3: Cook Depending on the size of your shrimp, place them over the heat for 1 to 2 minutes per side. "While shrimp cook, it's crucial to monitor them and flip them, to prevent the shrimp from overcooking," Price advises. Step 4: Rest "Once cooked to your liking, make sure to space the shrimp out, not piling them on top of each other," says Price, "which would allow the cooking process to continue and may lead to overcooking the shrimp." Grilled Shrimp Recipes to Try Grilled shrimp are excellent right off the grill, rested at room temperature, or even chilled for a unique take on a shrimp cocktail or a New England-style shrimp roll. Price recommends adding grilled shrimp to Caesar salad or atop a risotto. If you're fresh out of ideas, choose one of our recipes and get grilling! Grilled Shrimp Tacos Roland Bello For this recipe, shrimp isn't alone on the grill. It's joined by tortillas and lime halves, giving them a subtle, smoky grill flavor, too. Top these shrimp tacos with shredded cabbage, a creamy cumin-spiked sauce, and tomatillo salsa, and then drizzle with a squeeze of those grilled limes. Get the recipe Shrimp and Pineapple Tacos With Black Bean Salad José Picayo This recipe calls for broiling skewers threaded with shrimp and pineapple, but you can just as easily grill them. While you're at it, put a few extra skewers of pineapple on the grill, because grilled pineapple is great in lemonades, cocktails, and pineapple granitas. Get the recipe Japanese-Style Shrimp Salad Greg DuPree The cooked shrimp called for in this salad could be bought that way, but using grilled shrimp gives this dish a deeper, smokier flavor that puts it over the top. Its Japanese-style dressing also tastes great on grilled salmon. Get the recipe Grilled Chicken With Blueberry-Peach Salsa Greg DuPree What's a chicken dish doing among grilled shrimp recipes? Just swap out the chicken thighs for shrimp and you have a zesty, fruity seafood dish in half the grill time. Try its blueberry-peach salsa on fish and tacos, too! Get the recipe Frequently Asked Questions Can you grill shrimp from frozen? Yes and no. You can grill shrimp from frozen, but you probably shouldn't. "It makes the outside tough and cooks unevenly, tending to leave the inside raw," Price says. "It's best if the shrimp is thawed, peeled, deveined, marinated, then grilled."If you're short on time, place frozen shrimp in a bowl of cold tap water, cycling the water every 10 minutes until the shrimp is thawed, which should take less than an hour. Voila, you have defrosted shrimp to grill! How should I season grilled shrimp? While any seasoning you like works on grilled shrimp, Price is a fan of Old Bay, curry, sambal, sriracha, chipotle, garlic, ginger, and salt and pepper. He also likes to use bold citrus—such as lime, lemon, and orange—to season shrimp. Regardless of the seasoning he goes for, Price always uses a fat, like olive oil, to impart flavor and lock in moistness. What are the best types of shrimp to grill? Any kind of shrimp can go on the grill, but some grill up better than others. Price prefers wild shrimp (versus farmed) from locations like the Gulf of Mexico or the Carolinas. "You want to make sure you have good-sized shrimp, preferably 16/20," Price suggests. And don't worry about beheading or de-tailing your grilling shrimps, "It's always fun to cook and serve head-on shrimp depending on the dish and use," he adds. 19 Surprising Foods You Didn't Know You Could Grill Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit