Paprika-Glazed Shrimp and Sausage Kebabs

Firstly: My sincere apologies to anyone who visited Burghilicious in the past few days. My site got hacked and some #@*$&!hole put some nasty code on here. I think we’ve got it sorted out now, and by we, I really mean one very generous web friend who will tomorrow be the recipient of baked goods. If you notice any continued weirdness, please email me at lauren at burghilicious dot com and describe what happened, and I’ll try to fix it as fast as I can.

One big problem with summer is that I love to bake. Baking with no air conditioning, however, is more like a recipe for institutionalization. The heat is anathema for pie crust (ask Scheidt how I cry) at exactly the time when all sorts of delicious fruits are begging to be wrapped in pastry. And while I really, really loved the scones, grating frozen butter and putting the oven on 425 are both inadvisable when humidity and the dewpoint are in a neck-and-neck race to 100.

Fortunately, we have a grill, or we’d probably be on a raw food diet by now.

While I do love a simple, juicy steak, I was immediately intrigued by these kebabs when they graced the cover of the June issue of Bon Appetit. The shrimp, cherry tomatoes and purple onion present a palette of red, pink and purple hues that get along swimmingly with smoky char and spicy andouille sausage. They’re also easy to make: the kebabs can be preloaded and the glaze can be mixed ahead in about three minutes. No marinading or exhaustive prep work required… which is fabulous when just thinking about the kitchen raises one’s body temperature by 5 degrees.

I’m always on the lookout for interesting glazes, marinades and rubs for our many grilling adventures, and this one did not disappoint. Frequently, Scheidt and I will go overboard with flavor, and we also tend to like some heat. These are intense but not spicy, perfect for company with varying degrees of heat tolerance. Serve with a variety of cold salads for maximum summer enjoyment.

Pittsburghers, nota bene: We served these kebabs with grilled slices of Mediterra‘s parmesan peppercorn bread, and I highly recommend the pairing. You can get it at Farmers @ Firehouse on Saturday mornings ($8 a loaf), and I’ve also seen Mediterra products at Whole Foods and Right by Nature. Guess my expensive bread habit isn’t cured after all. It’s the heat, I swear!

Paprika-Glazed Shrimp and Sausage Kebabs
Adapted from Epicurious

I adjusted the recipe to fit what I had on hand, substituting a blend of spicy and regular paprika for smoked. I also upped the serving ante a bit from the original recipe as it left me with odd bits and pieces left over. Also, you can use any kind of sausage you like – preferably something smoky! – but make sure it is precooked, as the kebabs won’t be on the grill long enough to cook raw sausage.

For the glaze:
3/4 cup olive oil
4 garlic cloves, pressed
2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme (from a big bunch)
1 tablespoon spicy paprika (I used Penzey’s Hungarian Half-Sharp)
1 tablespoon regular paprika
4 teaspoons white wine vinegar
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Freshly ground pepper, to taste

For the kebabs:
One pound of uncooked extra-large shrimp (we got U-16s), peeled and deveined
4 precooked andouille sausages, cut into 1-inch-long pieces
One pint package of cherry tomatoes
One large red onion, peeled, cut into wedges, and divided into two-layer sections (at least as many as you have shrimp)

Special equipment: 6 large or 8 small skewers. If you are using bamboo skewers, be sure to soak them in water for at least an hour before loading.

Fire up the grill and prepare for high-heat, direct grilling.

Prepare the glaze by whisking together all ingredients in a small bowl. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Thread the kebabs by alternating onion, shrimp, tomato and sausage pieces on each skewer. I averaged 3 shrimp per skewer, using the “pierce twice” technique to keep the shrimp from spinning around the skewers too much: instead of just staking the shrimp through the middle, curl it up and stab it through both the head and the tail. For maximum flavor, I made sure the shrimp were snug in the curve of the onion wedges. Cover and refrigerate skewers until ready to grill.

When you’re ready to cook, oil the grill using a folded-up paper towel dripped in oil. Brush the skewers liberally with the glaze on one side, then set dry-side down on the grill. Cook for about 3 minutes, until shrimp is pink on that side and tomatoes have begun to char, then flip, and brush with glaze again. Grill for 3-4 minutes more, until shrimp is cooked. Remove from heat, brush with remaining glaze and serve immediately!

Tagged as: paprika, recipe, sausage, shrimp