Grilled Cilantro Lime Shrimp is a bright, zesty dish that comes together fast, delivering bold flavor, and is finished in just 30 minutes!
Move over, Grilled Chicken Breasts, this yummy new Dinner Recipe is here to be the best BBQ main dish all summer long! This quick and easy shrimp recipe is sure to be a huge hit the whole family will love.
Sabrina’s Grilled Cilantro Lime Shrimp Recipe
A quick marinade and a little time on the grill is all it takes to make the most delicious grilled shrimp for tacos, appetizers, or pasta in no time. This shrimp recipe is so easy to make. The acid from the lime juice makes these shrimp so tender in only 15 minutes and the whole thing is ready in about 30 minutes with simple, fresh ingredients.
Recipe Card
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro , chopped
- 2 teaspoons grated lime zest , about 1 lime
- 1/4 cup fresh lime juice , 1 juicy lime
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic , minced
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
- 1 pound shrimp , 16-20 per pound, peeled and deveined, defrosted
Instructions
- Mix cilantro, lime zest, lime juice, olive oil, minced garlic, salt, and pepper.
- Toss the shrimp with the marinade and let marinate for 15 minutes.
- Heat your grill or grill pan to medium heat. If using a grill, skewer the shrimp on metal or soaked wooden skewers.
- Grill the shrimp, 2-3 minutes per side, until the shrimp is bright pink.
Nutrition
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Table of Contents
About this Recipe
If you love shrimp and tropical vacations, this is the perfect recipe for Shrimp Tacos. You’ll be imagining sandy beaches with every yummy bite of tender Grilled Cilantro Lime Shrimp wrapped in a warm tortilla, topped with avocado. Also, having a margarita on the side doesn’t hurt this mini stay-cation meal either.
Chef’s Note: Marinating Time
The most you want to marinate shrimp in an acidic marinade, aka with lime juice, is 20 minutes, or your shrimp will become mushy. If grilling on an outdoor grill, you can thread the shrimp onto the skewers ahead of time to save time and marinate them later.
Cooking Tips & Tricks
- Fresh Shrimp: Buy your shrimp the same day you plan on making them. Raw shrimp will go bad pretty quickly in the fridge.
- Jumbo Shrimp: Large shrimp or jumbo shrimp are the easiest for grilling, so you are less likely to overcook them. Plus, the vein is easier to see in jumbo shrimp.
- Deveining: Use a small, sharp knife and cut down the back of the shrimp to the vein. Then, rinse the shrimp under cold running water and slide your thumb down the back to remove the vein.
- Cooking Time: According to the USDA’s Food Safety Guidelines, shrimp are fully cooked when they are white and opaque on the inside. Look for a nice pink color on the outside.
How to Store
- Serve: Grilled shrimp can be at room temperature for 2 hours before refrigeration.
- Store: Place Grilled Cilantro Lime Shrimp in an airtight container or plastic zippered bag, then refrigerate for up to 4 days.
- Freeze: Lay cooked shrimp flat on a baking tray and freeze for 1 hour, then transfer to a freezer-safe bag, seal it tight, and freeze for up to 3 months.
Ideas to Serve
This can be served as an appetizer by making mini skewers. Make a healthy main dish by topping White Rice (or Brown Rice) with the grilled shrimp. Top your Grilled Shrimp with Pineapple Salsa and a side of BBQ Black Beans for the perfect light summery dish! Grilled Cilantro Lime Shrimp are one of the most delicious healthy main dishes that fit pretty much any diet that includes meat. The marinade has no sugar and is low-carb. Shrimp are naturally low-fat, and the small amount of olive oil is a healthy fat.
Variations
- Spicy Shrimp: Add chipotles in adobo or sliced jalapeños (with the seeds for extra hot) into your marinade.
- Lemon: Substitute the lime juice and zest with lemons and leave out the fresh cilantro for a Lemon Garlic Shrimp Skewer.
- Herbs: Use Thai basil instead of cilantro for Thai Grilled Shrimp, or use Italian parsley and oregano with no lime or cilantro for an Italian marinade.
- Seasonings: You can add different seasonings for a chili lime, Mexican-inspired, or Cajun-style twist.
- Skillet: Easily make these into Sautéed Cilantro Lime Shrimp by cooking in a cast-iron skillet over medium heat until pink on the outside and pearly white in the center.
Related Recipes
More Delicious Shrimp Dishes
These photos were in a previous version of this post
Looks so tasty and easy to make! I love the fresh ingredients and will definitely be making this at my next BBQ. Thanks for the great recipe!
My family eats A LOT of shrimp, and this recipe is by the far the best shrimp I have ever made. The marinade is delicious, and even when I thought that I overcooked the shrimp, the shrimp were still tender and so flavorful. I ended up doubling the recipe without any issues, and cooked the shrimp on our blackstone. Delicious! The only downside was that my 3 year old didn’t like the “green things” (cilantro) on the shrimp 🙂
3 year olds definitely often have issues with “green things”, lol! Thanks so much for your feedback. Really appreciate your comments and 5 star rating Jamie.
We’re low/no sodium in this house, so I exchanged the salt with Mrs Dash Fiesta Lime seasoning, and added some pineapple chucks in the marinade before putting them on skewers.
It was perfect.
Glad it worked out for you!
I absolutely love grilled shrimp and this recipe is awesome. It is super flavorful and easy to make. The shrimp go great in tacos or eaten by themselves.
This recipe absolutely blew me away! I was pleasantly surprised with how tasty the cilantro was with the shrimp. This recipe is a keeper!
thanks Julie!
Can’t get enough of this grilled cilantro lime shrimp! It is our new fam fav! It is packed with flavors and scrumptious.
Can you marinate the shrimp overnight?
Hi! The most you want to marinate shrimp in an acidic marinade, aka with lime juice, is 20 minutes or your shrimp will become mushy.