Shrimp Mixed Grill

Adapted from the July 1993 Isssue of Gourmet Magazine

This recipe was discovered by my friend Marsha. We made it at Westhampton Beach in the summer of 2005. 

Shrimp Mixed Grill

You trim the stems off across the bottom of the mushrooms right up against the cap to make them flat and easy to skewer - side-to-side, not top-to-bottom.

Remember to soak the bamboo skewers in water for 30 minutes.

We minced the cut-off mushroom stems and sautéed them in olive oil. We also sautéed some chopped red peppers and then turned the mushrooms and red peppers with A LOT of chopped parsley into the couscous we had already prepared to be served at room temperature. If my memory is correct all these years later, we used a package of Near East Roasted Olive Oil & Garlic Mix for the couscous.

¾ cup olive oil

2 tablespoons packed fresh thyme  
2 large garlic cloves, minced
½ teaspoon dried crushed red pepper (use less to make it less spicy)
32 large raw shrimp, peeled
32 cremini or white cultivated button mushrooms, stems trimmed flat right against the cap
1½ pounds andouille or other spicy, smoked, fully cooked sausage cut into ¾-inch-thick rounds.       

8 bamboo skewers soaked for 30 minutes in water

Process the olive oil, thyme, minced garlic, and crushed red pepper in a food processor fitted with the metal blade for 1 minute. Pour the resulting mixture into a large bowl, add the shrimp, and let stand for one hour at room temperature.

Remove the shrimp from the marinade, reserving the marinade. Thread one mushroom horizontally (side-to-side) on one skewer. Hold one sausage piece in the curve of one shrimp, and thread them together onto the skewer, sliding next to the mushroom above. Make sure the skewer goes through the shrimp in two places. Repeat, alternating sausage pieces inside shrimp and mushrooms on each skewer - shrimp with sausage, mushroom, shrimp with sausage, mushroom, and so on. If doing in advance, refrigerate skewers, but bring back to room temperature before grilling, and refrigerate marinade.

Prepare barbecue grill at medium-high heat. Bring reserved marinade to a boil in a small saucepan whether it's been refrigerated or not. Arrange the skewers on the grill, and brush them with some of the just-boiled marinade. Grill until the shrimp are cooked through, turning occasionally and basting with marinade, about 8 minutes. Transfer to plates and serve.