Bangkok Peel 'n Eat Shrimp - Grilling Outdoor Recipes powered by Bull Outdoor Products (2024)

This recipe was inspired bya street food recipe that I ate regularlywhile attending cooking school in Thailand. Only instead of shrimp, it was pretty much squid-on-a-stick that would be grilled to order and the stuck in a little plastic bag filled with sweet chili sauce.

I wanted to punch up the flavor a bit so I first marinated the shrimp in a simple bath of red curry paste, coconut milk, garlic and cilantro. Although I prefer to make curry pastes from scratch, but in the interest of time and convenience, the little jar of red curry paste found in the Asian section of the grocery store works just fine.

I chose to leave the shells on the shrimp when I grilled them, not only because I like to eat with my hands 🙂 , but also because I believe that the cooking the shrimp with the shells intact produce a better flavor. If you prefer to not get your hands dirty, youcan certainly feel free to usepeeled shrimp. For easy grilling,both the peeled and unpeeled shrimp can be skewered after marinating.

There a re a lot of bottled sweet chili sauces available in supermarkets. However, it is extremely easy to make, is so much better than the bottled variety, and takes no time at all. The recipe below is a half recipe or enough for the two pounds of shrimp. I generally make a full batch (double the recipe) and store the remainder in the fridge for up to one month. It’s fantastic for dressing up everything from a store-bought rotisserie chicken to a simple grilled pork tenderloin.

I like to serve the shrimp on a platter family-style topped with a little chopped cilantro for freshness and wedges of lime for squeezing. If you leave the shells on, be sure to have plenty of napkins on hand plus a couple empty bowls for the shells. Enjoy!

Remove shrimp from marinade and place on hot grill and cook until they are opaque throughout (3 to 4 minutes per side). Do not overcook. Transfer shrimp to serving patter. Garnish with a little chopped cilantro and serve immediately with lime wedges and Sweet Chili Dipping Sauce. Alternatively, the shrimp can be served chilled – let shrimp cool to room temperature and the refrigerate until time to serve.

You can certainly use a bottled sauce, but quite frankly, I have never found one that I like as much as this… and it is so easy to make! In Thailand, they use a sweet red pepper that is kind of thin and about 5-inches long. I find them sporadically in Asian markets. You can use red bell peppers, but I find that they have a bit too much water in them and can become a little mushy. I recommend that you use the little red, orange, and yellow sweet peppers that come packaged together. Try to find a bag that has mostly red and orange.

Cheers and Happy Grilling!
~ Jeff

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