The inspiration for this shrimp salad comes from my herb garden. I recently started growing my own herbs because my dried spices just weren’t cutting it anymore. Not only does it add a pop of freshness to my dishes, it’s also cost effective. I have fresh mint, terragon, chives, and rosemary ready to go whenever I need it and I only paid $4 for each plant.
For a little bit of back story, I started my garden with just a mint and zucchini plant. The mint plant is still standing today, but my zucchini plant was stolen from my drive way and I’m still not over it. Seeing my exaggerated devastation after my zucchini plant was stolen, my boyfriend bought me a chive and terragon plant from the Farmers Market. The vendor of the herbs told Christian that this was the “best terragon in the world,” so I knew I had to whip up something special.
What you need:
Servings: 4
For the salad:
- 14-16 jumbo shrimp (can use fresh or frozen)
- 1 clove garlic, diced
- 1 T lemon juice
- 1 T olive oil
- 1 t red pepper flakes
- 1 avocado, diced
- ½ carton cherry tomatoes, halved
- 3 ears fresh corn
- ½ of a red onion, diced
- 1 t chopped terragon for garnish
- Salt and pepper to taste
For the vinaigrette:
- ⅓ cup olive oil
- ½ cup lemon juice
- 2 t lemon zest
- 2 T fresh terragon, chopped
- 1 T maple syrup
- Salt and pepper to taste
Get Cookin’
We are going to start by getting our shrimp ready. The ones I bought had the peels still on (the most cost effective option) so I started by peeling the shrimp. When peeling shrimp, make sure you get the “vein” out as well, so they’re completely clean.
When the shrimp are all clean and pretty, heat up a medium saute pan with 1 T olive oil. When the oil is heated (it slides easily around the pan a little bit when it is) add the chopped garlic, red pepper flakes, and salt and pepper.
Next, add in the shrimp and keep an eye on them because they cook very quickly. It will probably only take about 1 minute per side for them to be done. Once the shrimp are pink, add in 1 T of lemon juice for the finishing touch.
When the shrimp are done, transfer them onto a plate so they can cool. Next, make the vinaigrette by whisking together the olive oil, lemon juice, maple syrup, terragon, and salt and pepper. You just made homemade salad dressing! See how easy?
All that’s left to do now is prepare the veggies. Chop everything up and you can choose how you want to present it. I personally wanted to switch it up from the typical salad presentation of just mixing everything in a bowl. I thought it would be fun to line up all the ingredients in a baking dish so that the colors really pop. Garnish with some fresh terragon and you have yourself a salad!
This dish is light, refreshing, and perfect for summer. The lemon brings out the sweetness and freshness of the veggies.The avocado provides a creamy texture and a little relief from the tangy dressing. I will be making this over and over again and it is a simple dish to whip up on the fly. Hope you enjoy as much as I do!
