Pots, Pans, Pins and Prayers: BBQ Shrimp and Salmon

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

BBQ Shrimp and Salmon

Thrift Store Shopping along with BBQ Shrimp and Salmon

Good Morning Beautiful!!

Any day is better when you have this gorgeous face to look at! Jenny and Miss Ella decided to stay at Nana's house for a few more days at the last minute on Monday. We were so glad!! Miss Ella's daddy is studying for a GREAT BIG TEST (Radiology Oral boards) and working long hours so he let them stay longer. YEAH!!

We have been having so much fun. Yesterday Jenny, Miss Ella and myself hit the road for adventure heading to the local thrift stores looking for 100% cotton men's shirts to recycle into beautiful scrap quilts. EUREEKA!!!! We hit the mother load. It was 99 cent green and white tag, and 3 for 99 cent yellow tag day at the Value Thrift Shop!! I quit counting as I got involved in pattern, color and design of each shirt. I am so excited to "debone" these babies and use them in the "Holy Toledo" quilt I started this week.

What a beautiful site....Pretty baby girl above and a sofa full of colorful men's shirts below waiting to be "deboned" and used in my quilting projects.

While being "Thrifty" Jenny went on a quest to make Nana's house better equipped for baby Ella. She found a great children's consignment store and we now own our very own bouncer that vibrates, plays music and lights up!!. We got a great swing and a bathtub. I feel like I have babies in the house again. It's great to be able to find all this great stuff at "Bargin Basement" prices. Now Miss Ella has everything she needs to be comfortable at Nana's house.

Along the way we shopped at Whole Foods and got some great seafood to grill for dinner. Wanna see how I did it?

Barbeque Shrimp and Salmon

1 pound large shrimp - I peel and clean the shrimp. You can leave the tail on if you like. My family is lazy and wants the tails gone.

Shopping List:

1 pound large shrimp

BBQ Dry Spice Rub ( I make my own .....and will show you how too!)

1 lemon- juiced

Worcestershire Sauce - 1 Tablespoon

Olive Oil - 2 Tablespoons

Hot Sauce - 4-6 dashes

BBQ Dry Rub Spice Mix

1/2 cup paprika

1/4 cup salt

1/4 cup black pepper

1/4 cup brown sugar, packed

1/4 cup chili powder

1/4 cup cumin

1 Tablespoon Cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon Onion Powder

1 teaspoon Garlic Powder

Combine all ingredients in mixing bowl; blend well with wooden spoon. Makes 1 3/4 cup. Store in airtight container. Can last 3-4 months. (Mine never does....I use it on everything!!)

About 20-30 minutes before grilling:

1. Peel and clean shrimp

2. Put shrimp in large plastic bag

3. Juice the lemon into the bag over the shrimp

4. Add Worcestershire sauce, Olive Oil, Hot Sauce, and BBQ Dry Rub Spice mix.

5. Close bag and rub the shrimp and ingredients together until well mixed.

6. Return to refridg and let marinate 20-30 minutes. NO LONGER!!! Shrimp is delicate and the lemon will start to cook and break down the fibers. This is not one that longer is better.

Now we will prepare the Salmon......

I chose to grill the Salmon on a cedar plank for flavor. I just love that!

You can buy cedar planks for cooking at any cooking store or where they sell Grilling supplies. Be sure it is for cooking and not treated for using as a shingle. Then you must submerge the plank in water for 2-3 hours so it soaks up the fluid and doesn't burn away quickly. I use a full can of tomatoes to weight the plank down during this time. The wet plank insures the smoking process also. BTW this is a Native American Cooking technique! COOL!!

Gorgeous Fresh Salmon!!! Mine had the skin on it so I left it that way to grill. In the end we will remove the skin and not eat it. But that is a personal choice.

I like to use a dry rub on my salmon. You can use the same as the one we made for the BBQ Shrimp if you like. I like a sweeter rub on salmon so today I am using a Sweet 'N Savory Salmon Dry Rub from Weber. They know how to grill. Last year I got to go to Lincoln Park in Chicago for "Grill N Chill" Weekend put on by Better Homes and Gardens and Weber. It was Fantastic!!! I will share more from that weekend as the summer progresses.

Rub the fish amply with the seasoning, gently massaging it into the flesh. I also love the "Potlatch Seasoning" from Williams-Sonoma for this.

Rub a dub dub!!!!!! Rub, Rub, Rub!!

Time to Grill! Turn on the Grill and get it HOT!!

Now when the grill is hot, put the plank on .....alone!! Close the lid and wait several minutes for smoke and crackles!! The smell of cedar will be wonderful!! This is what you want to capture in your salmon.

SMOKIN'!!! Ready to grill fish! Carefully put your salmon on the plank and shut the grill lid immediately. You want to capture all that smoke.....it is FLAVOR!!

Monitor the salmon every 3-5 minutes. Cook to your desired doneness. We like ours medium which took about 8 minutes. Look at all that beautiful smoke!! Close the lid quick!!

Remove salmon to platter when complete. I put my used cedar plank in the chiminea and the smell wafts through the patio for hours. YUM!!

Cover fish with foil and proceed to cook shrimp. This will take 3-5 minutes. QUICK!!

I use a mess flat pan I got last summer at Williams-Sonoma. Use whatever you have but you will need something flat to cook the shrimp on. You could skewer the shrimp and cook on the grates if you don't have a grill pan. Remember to stay at the grill, shake the pan every minute or so and as soon as the shrimp are pink remove to a platter.

I grilled some fresh asparagus to go with our seafood. Just trim the asparagus, toss with 2 Tablespoons of Olive Oil and grill for about 5 minutes. Turn as needed. Remove to platter and sprinkle with Kosher Salt.

I added a brown rice/lentil mix I got while at Whole Foods. A Platter full of fresh grilled goodness just waiting to be devoured!!