Grilled Sticky Shrimp

I’m a neurotic keeper of lists. Hardcopy. No fancy schmancy app for this guy. Lists of honey-do’s. Things we need to buy. What to pack. Article ideas. So, so many lists. As my husband will joke, I keep a list of where to find all my lists.

Part of the allure is the immense pleasure I experience every time I scratch something off. But mind you, one strikethrough is never enough. Back and forth I go, until it’s obliterated, never to be thought of again.

Sometimes I get cocky and mark something done in advance. Like I’m on my way upstairs, surely I’ll remember to “grab shirt to iron.” Invariably, I end up holding my list to the light, scanning my scribbly cross outs, my mind gnawing that I forgot something. Oh yeah, that shirt.

While tweaking a recipe to just the way I like it, I tend to approach my note-taking like my list-making. This comes back to bite me.

You see I love sharing recipes and often send pictures of my cards. Recipients complain because I’ve added so many comments, arrows, and redactions. “But it’s my process!” I fire back.

Like the time I had convinced myself I no longer favored curry powder. So determined was I to never be tempted to use that ingredient again, I swiped over it repeatedly. Like I was mad at it and it owed me money. So many times, in fact, my pen punched through the other side.

Fast forward to today, “curry powder” is back on that card, written in the margin with an arrow pointing to its original location. And a smiley face.

The recipe I’m featuring today is one that a cryptographer couldn’t make heads or tails of. But don’t worry, I’ve simplified it for public consumption. Humor me, to call it the 2022 version.

Let’s get started, shall we?

 Mix together: ½ cup mayonnaise, ⅓ cup orange marmalade or apricot preserves, ½ Tbl soy sauce, ½ Tbl Dijon mustard, 1 smashed garlic clove, 1 ½ Tbl white wine, 1 ½ Tbl fresh lime juice, ¼ tsp powdered ginger, dash of pepper, ½ Tbl spice mix of your choosing (like Mrs. Dash, Old Bay, or lemon pepper).
 Add: 2 pounds of the largest shrimp you can get your hands on—raw, peeled, and deveined, but leave the tails on
 Marinade for at least an hour, or overnight. Heat your grill to medium high. Drain excess liquid.
 Cook the shrimp in batches for 3 to 5 minutes per side depending on size. Move to a large platter. Serve warm or at room temperature.

TIPS
• High quality full-fat mayonnaise is important here. It gives the shrimp their eggy blisters. Duke’s brand is my favorite.
• Feel free to use skewers or a fish/vegetable grilling pan. I’ve used them both, but find I like these right off the hot grate, grill marks and all.
• These cook fast, which is why I’m recommending batches. There’s no rush, as I think they taste better after sitting on a platter to cool a bit. Just don’t pile them on top of each other. Else they’ll steam and lose their finger-licking stickiness.
• Extra credit: try this marinade with scallops or chicken. Yum! ▼

Ed and his husband Jerry split their time between homes near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and Bethany Beach. Ed builds websites to pay the bills but loves to cook, garden, hike, and dote on their dog Atticus.