Dry rubs and grill seasonings are a handy thing, aren’t they? But I just can’t bring myself to buy the premixed things off of the grocery store shelves. Why? Because A) you don’t know what they’ll taste like until you get them home and open them up; B) they’re mostly salt; and C) they end up being way too expensive per ounce. I can make up my own rubs and seasoning blends at home for a fraction of the cost, control the salt, and know that they taste good.
I made up a batch of my TexMex dry rub the other night. For about 37 cents I made enough to get me through the next month or two, if not the whole summer. It only makes a quarter cup, but it goes a long way.
I had a bag of shrimp in the freezer that had been mocking me for a week or so (I bought it and just haven’t been in a shrimp mood since then). So they were the lucky candidates for my southwest rubdown.
While I was at the grocery store this week, I noticed that peaches are beginning to show up. I’ve been a little over-mangoed lately, and wanted a change.
The TexMex rub needs something to soften its blow, so peach salsa seemed like a logical accompaniment, and gave me an excuse to use the peaches. (Just as an aside – have you ever made the mistake of adding garlic to a fruit salsa? Not a pleasant taste, let me tell you.) So I got busy skewering shrimp.
Since I used the grill pan, I didn’t bother soaking the wood skewers first. If I’d made it outside, I would have soaked them in water for 30-45 minutes. I also use 2 skewers for shrimp – no matter how careful I am, I can never get the blessed shrimp to turn over and grill on the second side with just one skewer. So I figured using two skewers was better than having a fit and throwing twirling shrimp across the kitchen. It works (and saves me from having to mop the floors afterwards).
I don’t like a lot of stringent flavors when I make a fruit salsa, but I want some. So I used scallions and a small amount of jalapeños to give me that contrast and to cut through the sweetness of the fruit. Then I tossed it all with a little lime juice to bring it all together.
So instead of paying extra to rub down your food, make your own grill rub and use your savings to get a massage for yourself.
TexMex Rubbed Shrimp Skewers with Peach Salsa
A little bit of summer on a skewer
- 1 lb shrimp (peeled and deveined)
- 1 T olive oil
- 8 skewers
Tex Mex Dry Rub
- 1 T paprika
- 1 T ancho chili powder
- 1 t garlic powder
- 1 t ground cumin
- 1 t ground coriander
- 1 t ground red pepper
- ½ t ground black pepper
- 1 T kosher salt
Peach Salsa
- 3 peaches (peeled, pitted, and diced (about 2 cups))
- 2 scallions (chopped)
- 1 T finely diced jalapeño pepper
- ¼ t kosher salt
- Juice of ½ a lime (1-2 teaspoons)
TexMex Dry Rub
- Combine dry ingredients and store in resealable plastic container.
Peach Salsa
- Toss ingredients together and refrigerate until ready to use.
Shrimp Skewers
- Preheat grill pan over medium high heat.
- Toss shrimp, olive oil, and 1 ½ T Tex Mex dry rub in a medium bowl.
- Skewer the shrimp , using ¼ of the shrimp per person.
(I use 2 skewers so they don’t twist when I turn them on the grill) - Grill 2 -3 minutes per side, until shrimp are opaque.
- Serve with peach salsa as accompaniment.
this post is reblogged from my earlier site, ‘Inexpensive Eating’