Grilled Shrimp with Key Lime Aioli
A fast and easy grilled shrimp appetizer that mixes savory seafood seasoning with tart and tangy key lime dipping sauce. It’s sure to be a BBQ favorite!
It’s been a few months since Kim and I made the move from Florida to Arkansas. While Arkansas has always been home to us, it’s where we met after all, there are a few things we miss about living on the coast.
Light, island themed dishes and happy hours featuring tropical drinks and tapas inspire a strange homesickness that the gorgeous mountain scenery just can’t satisfy.
Since I’ve no ambition to move back to the Sunshine State, I have only one option. Bring the flavors of Florida into my own home here in the Ozarks.
What better way to do that than to serve a seafood dish featuring a tangy lime native to the Keys? Let’s get started!
Love shrimp? Then check out our grilled shrimp tacos with chipotle sauce!
Grilled Shrimp Instructions:
First, if using frozen shrimp, thaw them out and pat them dry with paper towels. For a quick defrost, try pouring the shrimp into a large mixing bowl and then cover them with tap water.
Wait 10-minutes, then drain the shrimp, and repeat the process until the shrimp are totally unthawed. Next, in a medium mixing bowl, toss the shrimp with the olive oil and seafood seasoning.
I used my hands for this step because it’s easier for me to coat the shrimp evenly with oil and seasonings using my fingers.
Then, thread 4-5 shrimp on each bamboo skewer and place them on a preheated grill for 2-4 minutes in each side. Try to make sure and leave about 1/2-inch of space between each shrimp to ensure they cook on all sides.
Last, remove the seafood from the grill and set the grilled shrimp on a plate to rest while you make the aioli.
Key Lime Aioli Instructions:
First, in a medium mixing bowl, combine all the key lime aoili ingredients. That’s correct, there’s no rhyme or reason, no specific order.
Just toss all the ingredients into one bowl, no fuss.
Next, use a whisk or fork to mix everything together. When mixing, really get your wrist into to and break up any spices that might’ve clumped together.
The finished aoili should be smooth and creamy. If it’s too thick for you, you can add a little milk to it to thin it out.
However, it may affect the flavor and require you add a little more spice. I would caution you against adding more lime juice, this sauce is pretty tart already, so increase the key lime juice at your own risk.
Last, serve the aoili with your grilled shrimp. Yep, that’s it, it’s that easy.
The instructions may look intimidating, but I promise you, this recipe is super simple.
You can serve the grilled shrimp over a bed rice or you can remove them from the skewers, place them on the rims of martini glasses, and add sauce to the glass.
In other words, cocktail style. Anyway you serve them, they’re sure to please.
Tips for the perfect Grilled Shrimp:
To ensure your skewers don’t burn on a hot grill, then try soaking them in tap water for at least 10-15 minutes. The bamboo skewers should absorb enough liquid to keep from charring on the grill since they will only be cooking for 2-3 minutes on each side.
For maximum key lime flavor, prepare the aioli a few hours in advance. It seems to me, aiolis, dipping sauces, and other heavily spiced side sauces seem to intensify in flavor as they chill.
This subjective observation is not based on any scientific evidence I’ve found, it’s simply based on my opinion. So as always in cooking, do what you know works for you.
Pay very close attention to the shrimp as they grill to make sure they don’t over cook and become rubbery. I usually pull my shrimp when the very center of the deveined area is still clear (gray).
Then I let the shrimp rest for 5-7 minutes and finish cooking. With that being said, I don’t usually serve my grilled shrimp hot.
Our Coconut Rum Mojito is a wonderful drink to serve with this appetizer. If rum is not your thing, then pair this grilled shrimp with another awesome Summer beverage, like our spiked Lemonade Tequila Drink.
If you like this recipe, please leave us a comment and rate the recipe card. You can also find us on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter and Instagram searching for Berly’s Kitchen!
Ingredients
Grilled Shrimp
- 1 pounds shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 teaspoon seafood seasoning, similar to Old Bay
Key Lime Aioli
- 1 ½ cups mayonnaise
- ⅛ cup key lime juice
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon dried dill
- ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ⅛ teaspoon ground black pepper
Instructions
Grilled Shrimp
- First, if using frozen shrimp, thaw them out and pat them dry with paper towels.1 pounds shrimp
- Next, in a medium mixing bowl, toss the shrimp with the olive oil and seafood seasoning.2 teaspoon seafood seasoning1 tablespoon olive oil
- Then, thread 4-5 shrimp on each bamboo skewer and place them on a preheated grill for 2-4 minutes in each side.
- Last, remove them from the grilled and set them on a plate to rest while you make the aioli.
Key Lime Aioli
- First, in a medium mixing bowl, combine all the key lime aoili ingredients.1 ½ cups mayonnaise⅛ cup key lime juice½ teaspoon chili powder½ teaspoon dried dill¼ teaspoon dried oregano¼ teaspoon ground cumin¼ teaspoon smoked paprika⅛ teaspoon ground black pepper
- Next, use a whisk or fork to mix everything together.
- Last, serve the aoili with your grilled shrimp.
This looks and sounds delish!! That’s a hard move to go from FL to Arkansas…quite the different environment! I love that you brought the coast to you! Looks like a perfect dish!!
Thank you, Amanda! We had lived in Arkansas before the move to Florida, so it was a homecoming of sorts. Have a lovely day 🙂
This looks and sounds delish!! That’s a hard move to go from FL to Arkansas…quite the different environment! I love that you brought the coast to you! Looks like a perfect dish!!
I freaking love shrimp so you already had me sold – but the aioli really kicks it up a notch. Love it!
Thank you, Leslie! Kim and I hope you give it a try sometime. Have a great Monday 🙂
Key lime aioli is one of my favorite sauces to use with shrimp! Makes me feel like I’m sitting beachside when I’m landlocked instead.
I know what you mean, thank you for commenting, Jennifer! Have a lovely day 🙂
Thank you for the tips on how to cook shrimp….my sister lives in Florida I will make this dish for her when she visits (I am inthe midwest) she would be impressed by my knowledge of knowing Florida Cuisine flavors and ????
Thank you, Gina! Kim and I hope you and your sister enjoy the dish. Have a lovely day 🙂
We are huge shrimp lovers and eat quite a bit of them. We love trying different recipes with one of our favorite seafoods. The aioli would be a wonderful contrast to the sweet shrimp. And we’re very much like you. Like Florida for a time but wouldn’t want to live there. Too congested at times but my, oh, my the seafood is great. Hubby loves to fish and at times we’ve lived like royalty on seafood. Will be saving this recipe.
Thank you, Marissa! I really appreciate you reading the post 🙂 We love seafood as well and it’s the only thing we miss about Florida. Thank you again for commenting and have a lovely Sunday 🙂
Thank you for the tips on how to cook shrimp….my sister lives in Florida I will make this dish for her when she visits (I am inthe midwest) she would be impressed by my knowledge of knowing Florida Cuisine flavors and ????
We are huge shrimp lovers and eat quite a bit of them. We love trying different recipes with one of our favorite seafoods. The aioli would be a wonderful contrast to the sweet shrimp. And we’re very much like you. Like Florida for a time but wouldn’t want to live there. Too congested at times but my, oh, my the seafood is great. Hubby loves to fish and at times we’ve lived like royalty on seafood. Will be saving this recipe.
What a great way to bring the flavors of your former home to your current one! This shrimp looks so light and refreshing! I haven’t used key lime in savory dishes before, and this looks like a great way to do just that.
Thank you, Ashley! Key lime can be pretty versatile, it just depends on how tart you want the dish be. Have a great day 🙂
Grilled shrimp is such a fantastic summer dish, your dip sounds amazing! I don’t think I would have thought to add the dill, I bet it’s the perfect addition of fresh flavor to go alongside the lime!
Thank you, Whitney! My family grew feeding me a lot of sour/tart dishes, so I’m a huge dill fan. Have a lovely day 🙂
Grilled shrimp is such a fantastic summer dish, your dip sounds amazing! I don’t think I would have thought to add the dill, I bet it’s the perfect addition of fresh flavor to go alongside the lime!
Oh the shrimp, that aioli makes me drool. A perfect Friday night dinner for me.
Thank you, Jo! I’m thrilled you like my aioli. It reminds of vacations with Kim in the Florida Keys. 🙂
Oh the shrimp, that aioli makes me drool. A perfect Friday night dinner for me.
I adore grilled shrimp and your lime aioli looks absolutely perfect!! It’s fun that you can still eat like you are in Florida still! I would be bummed if I moved somewhere there wasn’t fresh seafood!! Beautiful photos and awesome recipe!
Thank you, Elaine! We try lol, honestly though, regional flavors are always a trade off. In Arkansas, it’s tough to find fresh seafood, but in Florida it was hard to find good BBQ and steaks. While I’ll miss my sea bass and crab, it’s a fair trade for properly prepared beef and pork lol! Have a great day 🙂
This tray looks so good! The shrimp look perfect and I love the sound of that aioli sauce! Perfect summer meal and love the tips on cooking the shrimp too. Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Thank you, Tammy! Living in S. Florida for about a decade really inspired me to work with Key Limes. They’re perfect for little specialty sauces like this one. Have a great day 🙂
I adore grilled shrimp and your lime aioli looks absolutely perfect!! It’s fun that you can still eat like you are in Florida still! I would be bummed if I moved somewhere there wasn’t fresh seafood!! Beautiful photos and awesome recipe!