An Appetizer or Salad

I love pesto shrimp made into a salad or an appetizer and this dish is something in between. It could be eaten on a plate on its own. It’s light and refreshing spooned over some greens and would make an elegant dinner party first course. It’s good with some crusty French bread or even over whole grain toast.

More often than not, however; I serve as a dip with tortilla chips, Fritos scoops or endive. It’s perfect for enjoying small bites at a gathering.

Comes Together Easy with Items on Hand

I like this recipe because I usually have most of these ingredients on hand. Plus, I can pull it together quickly, especially if I make the shrimp ahead and have it chilling in the fridge ready for the final assembly.

This recipe came to me after making the Skinnytaste recipe Zesty Lime Shrimp Avocado Salad countless times for summer gatherings. Now, I make this version in the colder months utilizing ingredients on hand in my panty and freezer.  

Focus on the Ingredients

Shrimp: You can use defrosted cooked shrimp, but I always cook my own. I find precooked shrimp can be waterlogged or slightly undercooked. My go-to is bags of raw, frozen extra jumbo 16- to 20-count shrimp in one-pound bags that I stock up on during sales. I simply follow this process to make boiled shrimp for this recipe (or shrimp cocktail!).

• Defrost the shrimp in a colander. You can rinse with cool water to speed up the process.
• Peel, devein and remove the tail (keep tail on for shrimp cocktail!). Put on a medium size pot of water on to boil with a half of a fresh-squeezed lemon, rind included, and two tablespoons of Old Bay.
• Once the water boils, add the shrimp. Give it a stir. Turn the pan down to medium and gently allow the shrimp to cook through. It takes about four minutes.
• The shrimp will turn pink and curl into circles. Drain and rinse with cold water.
• Add shrimp back to the pan (rinse in cold water to cool the warm pan) or to a bowl with a handful of ice. This will keep it from overcooking.
• Chill in the fridge for about 30 minutes. Drain and they’re ready to make the salad.

Pesto: First, I make homemade basil pesto every summer that I store in small containers in the freezer to use all year. So, essentially my pesto is like a pantry item to me. See my recipe. And pesto and shrimp pair so well. You can replace with store-bought pesto. I recommend those from the refrigerator section such as Buitoni or Rana brands. Just make sure it’s not overly thick like a paste in consistency. If so, add some EVOO to thin it out.

Tomatoes: Grape or cherry are my primary “winter” tomatoes of choice because they taste the most like garden tomatoes to me. Sometimes I mix yellow and red grape tomatoes together to brighten up the colors of the dish.

Cucumbers: I love a little extra crunch, and English cukes really hold up well because you don’t need to peel a wax-coated skin. You can also try pickling or miniature cucumbers, too.

Olives: Here’s a real pantry ingredient: pitted Kalamata olives. I like the Mezzetta brand. They bring in a bit of brininess that goes so well with the Italian flavors used in this recipe.

Fresh lemon: The squeeze of lemon adds acid for brightness to round out all the ingredients. 

Spices: You may not need to add any additional spices because the pesto really takes care of flavoring this dish. After you mix it all together, give it a taste. Then maybe add a little freshly ground pepper, a pinch of salt and some red pepper flakes for a little heat.  

How do these ingredients sound to you? Let me tell you, if they’re calling out to you, this recipe will become part of your usual repertoire. Enjoy!

WHAT’S COOKING IN MY KITCHEN? Check out all my recipes from my homemade main courses, baked goods to smoothies of all colors!

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