Grilled Shrimp Tacos with Watermelon-Feta Salsa
Now that we’re all settled in to our new condo and the weather was great over the weekend, it was time to break in the new kitchen and test out our new grill.
It was strange cooking in a different kitchen after making countless meals in my old apartment. I knew my old countertop, stove, and grill like the back of my hand and now everything is brand new and needs to be broken in. I walked down the street to the little Mexican restaurant on the corner of the block and picked up a dozen of their homemade tortillas.
I have had these in the past and knew that they were a hundred times better than the store bought ones. A seafood taco is one of my favorite warm weather foods. When it comes to creating a fish taco, the possibilities are endless. I have had ceviche tacos, beer battered haddock tacos, grilled snapper tacos, you name it; all of which come with a plethora of different toppings, sauces, and salsas.
No matter what I put in a fish taco, I always try to balance different flavors and textures, all while keeping the ingredients light, because that is what a fish taco is all about. Unlike its beefy cousin, a fish taco won’t leave orange grease stains on your t-shirt.
I decided to marinate some jumbo shrimp in some Ponzu (Japanese citrus marinade), dried cumin, and a few Serrano chilies for some heat. Peeling and deveining shrimp is one of the most tedious tasks you’ll ever have to do in a kitchen but I used the time to get acquainted with the new space.
I saved all of the shrimp shells and stored them in the freezer to make stock down the road. I knew that I wanted to make a crunchy slaw or salsa so in order to balance that, I needed a creamy sauce for the shrimp to sit in. I made a simple cilantro sour cream in the blender and I threw the last chili in there for some extra heat. The color of the sauce was a beautiful pastel green, and with a touch of lime juice it was perfect. Due to my heavy hand in the spicy chili department, I needed something sweet to balance it out.
I diced up a watermelon into tiny cubes because I thought the subtly sweet flavor and extreme juiciness would help refresh our tastebuds.
Most people frown upon serving cheese with seafood, but in this case, Feta cheese was a perfect fit. Believe it or not, the milky, salty Feta combined with the sweet and juicy melon was a great combination.
I decided to make a watermelon-Feta salsa with some sliced red onion, and chives. The triple threat of the pungent onions, sweet melon, and creamy, salty cheese was delicious on its own, let alone smothered inside a taco. I fired up my new Vermont Castings grill (which the movers explained was the heaviest piece of equipment they’ve ever moved up four flights of stairs) and was instantly speechless. This bad boy has more bells and whistles that I even knew what to do with.
The two dozen shrimp I threw on back right corner looked like ants from the top of a skyscraper. As soon as the shrimp were cooked, I threw them into the warmed tortillas with a spread of the cilantro sour cream, and a pile of the fresh salsa.
The pop of the charred, succulent shrimp in every bite, complimented by abundance of intense flavors, was sending my mouth into overdrive. I opened a bottle of 2008 Bodegas Val di Sil Godello to serve with these handheld treats. Godello is a lesser common Spanish white grape with tons of character. It is very similar to a Sauvignon Blanc; light, crisp, and refreshing.
This Godello is not overly complex but extremely pleasant and perfect with fish tacos and warm weather. The nose was slightly floral and the wine is bursting with acidity and green apple flavors. The good thing about fish tacos, is that they’re so light and healthy, you can easily find enough room for five in your stomach.
