Tasty Cilantro Lime Shrimp
Shrimp is such a versatile ingredient. How could it not? It can be cooked in myriad of ways. One of the simplest and tastiest is cilantro lime shrimp. This appetizer is a must-try. We will share our recipe here so you can try the dish yourself.
This tasty appetizer takes only about 15 minutes to cook. Better yet, it is very easy to cook too. Follow our recipe here and you will make a homemade dish that rivals the ones at the best Mexican restaurants in town. Actually, it’s a lot better since it is tastier and cheaper.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What’s in it?
We did say that cilantro lime shrimp is a simple dish to make. But what’s actually in the dish? The dish’s ingredients are jumbo shrimp, garlic, lime, cilantro, unsalted butter, and cayenne pepper. That’s it. You only need these ingredients to make a delicious appetizer everyone in the house can enjoy. Simple, isn’t it?
- Is shrimp healthy?
A medium-size shrimp contains 7 calories and 1 gram protein while a jumbo-size shrimp contains 14 calories and 1.5 grams protein. So is it healthy? Yes, it is. Shrimp is actually a part of the Mediterranean-style diet. Cilantro lime shrimp is a good (and tasty!) way to incorporate shrimp in your diet.
- How long can I keep the dish in the fridge?
You probably wouldn’t need to know this. After all, this appetizer is just so tasty there might not be any leftover after serving. Just in case you need to know, the answer is 3 to 4 days. You can store cooked shrimp inside the fridge for 3 to 4 days before it goes bad.
- How to avoid overcooking?
To make the tasty appetizer, you need to cook it properly. Avoid overcooking it. When you cook the shrimp, keep an eye on the color of the shrimp meat. When all part of the meat turns into pink in color evenly, that means the dish is perfectly cooked. Remove the shrimp from the heat immediately.
As for the texture, a loose, C-shaped shrimp means it is perfectly cooked. A tight, C-shaped shrimp, on the other hand, usually means it is overcooked. If you keep an eye on the shrimp meat, it wouldn’t happen. Cooking the shrimp should take 10 minutes, 15 minutes at most.
Note: if you use frozen shrimp, the total cooking time will be longer as you need to defrost it first. Defrosting should take about 10 minutes.
- Can I add sauce?
Yes, of course. You can add cilantro sauce for drizzling at the top of the dish or as dipping.
- How many calories does it have?
Per serving, the dish has 174 calories.
Cooking tips
- How to thaw frozen shrimp
Both fresh and frozen shrimp is okay for this cilantro lime shrimp recipe. No need to worry if you can’t get a fresh one. With frozen shrimp, however, you will need to defrost or thaw it before cooking it. You can either do it the day before cooking or minutes before cooking.
If you want to thaw frozen shrimp a day before cooking, just put the frozen shrimp inside the refrigerator and leave it there overnight. If you want to thaw it minutes before cooking, put it in a large bowl filled with cold water. It should defrost in 15 to 20 minutes. If there are clumps, stir to break them up every 5 minutes or so.
- Keeping the briny flavor of shrimp
Shrimp has a briny flavor. If you use frozen shrimp, you can retain this unique flavor by defrosting shrimp in a bowl of cold water. Then, add a bit of salt to the water and allow the shrimp to defrost. Doing this will help to retain the briny flavor.
- Use a cast-iron skillet
Making this cilantro lime shrimp is easy. Want to make it even easier? Use a cast-iron skillet to cook the shrimp. This kind of skillet makes it easy to get perfectly cooked shrimp with a slight sear.
- Add butter
Butter makes any dish better. Yes, that includes shrimp too. Start the cooking by sauteing the shrimp with olive oil. Then, add butter to make it tastier.
- Add cilantro and other ingredients
On its own, shrimp has a briny flavor. Ingredients like cilantro and lime juice are what make the shrimp meat tastes even better. To get the best result, include the stems of cilantro. Be generous with the cilantro, especially the stems. Want to add an extra kick? Add a pinch of cayenne pepper.
- Lime juice and zest
One of the ingredients used in this recipe is lime juice. If you want a stronger flavor, add lime zest to the dish. For the lime juice, a simple juicer should do the job. As for the lime zest, use either a grater or a microplane and zest the lime.
- Serving the dish
Cilantro lime shrimp can be served with various other dishes and side dishes. For example, shrimp tacos, black beans and rice, simple guacamole, homemade tortilla chips, lettuce wraps, Mexican street corn, rice, and Mexican chopped salad, among others.
Want to eat the shrimp for dinner? If you want to have a wholesome dinner, you can accompany the dish with baked salmon, brown butter scallops, orange-lime margarita, and cheesy baked taquitos.
Cilantro Lime Shrimp Recipe
Course: Appetizer
Cuisine: Cilantro lime shrimp
Keyword: Cilantro lime shrimp
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes
Servings: 4 people
Calories: 174
Ingredients
- Salt to taste
- Fresh lemon wedges
- 1 lb. shrimp (deveined and peeled)
- 1 tablespoon of unsalted butter
- 1 pinch of cayenne pepper
- 2 tbs. of lime juice
- 2 tbs. of olive oil
- 3 tbs. of cilantro leaves and stems, chopped
- 4 cloves of garlic, minced
Instructions
- First, prepare the shrimp. Season it with cayenne pepper and salt.
- Prepare a cast-iron skillet and heat it.
- Add olive oil and garlic. Saute the oil and garlic lightly.
- Add the shrimp and stir.
- Add butter and cilantro. Stir again so the shrimp and ingredients mix well. Add lime juice and stir again.
- Let the shrimp and ingredients cook. Once the surface of the shrimp is lightly charred, your shrimp is nicely cooked, when the lime juice dries up, turn off the heat.
- Serve and complete the dish (add the fresh lime wedges)