It has been hot hot HOT in San Diego the past few weeks. And when its hot, I grill. I grill things like these Grilled Shrimp with Sundried Tomato Gremolata.

I actually didn’t own a grill until a year ago – can you believe that? Dave and I had just had our son and I was on maternity leave and getting aggressively into my DIY projects around the house (I’ll have to tell you about how I built a fence another time). But basically there was no time or energy left for standing in a sweltering kitchen, cooking.

So when my parents came out to visit, one of the first things we did was head on over to Home Depot and buy ourselves a grill.

And it’s definitely become my number one favorite thing.

I’m sure I don’t have to wax poetic about how much I love grilling, because everyone else already knows. (But you know I will anyway, haha!) Oh Weber, you make dinner the easiest and most mess free thing ever….

Ahem… ignore me…

But seriously, I’m convinced that you can throw anything on there and have it come out way tastier than before.

And it’s just absolutely perfect for months like July when you really want nothing to do with turning on your oven or stove because your air conditioner is barely keeping up as is.

Picking out Shrimp

Because this recipe is so simple, I really encourage you to go with the highest quality of seafood that you can reasonably afford. Shrimp is one of those weird foods though, that is actually fresher if you buy frozen. So before you run off to Whole Foods to buy the defrosted stuff at the counter, hear me out.

Shrimp is almost always flash frozen immediately after being caught. So when you’re buying it defrosted at the seafood counter, you’re already dealing with aging shrimp. Now, if it’s a reputable market, it’s probably defrosted very recently and won’t be the end of the world, but you really have no concept of how long it has been sitting out, so for best results I recommend purchasin frozen when possible.

For a recipe like this I do recommend using jumbo shrimp. The large size are easier to grill and will make a more beautiful presentation.

How to defrost: just place the frozen shrimp in a bowl of cold (not warm and definitely not hot!) water. You can refresh the water a few times. It will only take a few minutes and your shrimp should be fully defrosted.

Pat dry with paper towels before using.

Gremolata

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Gremolata is an Italian fresh herb condiment, classically made from parsley, garlic, and lemon. It’s often used as a topping for meat dishes, to balance out the richness.

My version is definitely a riff on the classic, using a combination of parsley and garlic, but also adding in sundried tomatoes, and replacing lemon flavors with red wine vinegar.

The vinegar really makes this sing, in my opinion, so please don’t skip it. You can definitely use whatever basic stuff you have on hand, but I particularly enjoy this Spanish Cabernet Sauvignon Vinegar. It’s less aggressive and fruitier than a lot of normal red wine vinegars at the store. It also makes great salad dressings!

Hope you enjoy this one as much as we did, and think about making it over the weekend for your family!

(Also- Stay tuned for future tips on making the grilled polenta!)