I lived in Jacksonville, Florida for a couple of years early in my career. One of the things I remember most about those days was the access to fresh-out-of-the-water seafood. I frequented a small market where everything in the store was right off the boat, and there wasn’t a trace of fish smell. The owner always had fresh jumbo shrimp, scallops, grouper, and snapper displayed beautifully on ice.
In land-locked Atlanta, we have access to decent seafood, but it’s frequently previously frozen. I’ve grown to tolerate frozen seafood and in all fairness it’s still very good, but I long for those days of truly fresh seafood. There’s just nothing like it.
One of my favorite things to make during those days was mixed seafood skewers with whatever looked good at the market. For today’s post, I’ve created the skewers with shrimp, scallops, and salmon, along with a compound butter featuring sun-dried tomatoes and fresh basil.
As I’ve said many times on the blog, okra was a staple in our house during the summer months when I was growing up. Aside from the fried version, which is my favorite, we also had okra sauteed with tomatoes and onions. Of course in those days, it was cooked to death, and the ingredients were almost indistinguishable. When I make it today, I prefer the okra to still look like okra. For a twist on this dish and to stay with the skewer theme, I made okra, tomato, and Vidalia onion skewers to accompany the seafood.
If you’re entertaining, these skewers and the compound butter can be made ahead of time. When your guests arrive, all that’s required is a few minutes on a hot grill, and you’re ready to eat. This recipe makes four skewers, so if you or your guests have hearty appetites, you might want to make a couple of extras.
Ingredients
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
1 tablespoon finely minced sun-dried tomatoes
1 tablespoon finely minced fresh basil
1/8 teaspoon salt
8 jumbo shrimp (about 1/2 pound)
8 large sea scallops (about 1/2 pound)
1 large salmon filet (about 3/4 pound), cut into 8 pieces
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper
8 to 10 large okra pods, cut into 3 or 4 pieces
1 pint cherry tomatoes
1 large Vidalia onion, layers separated an cut into squares
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper
Instructions
In a small bowl, combine butter, tomatoes, basil, and salt with a fork until well combined. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to use.
1. Soak 4 wooden skewers in water for 30 minutes. Preheat grill or grill pan to high heat.
2. Place 2 shrimp, 2 scallops, and 2 pieces of salmon on each skewer. Brush each skewer with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
3. Transfer skewers to grill and cook for 2 to 3 minutes on each side until shrimp are opaque and salmon starts to flake when touched.
4. Melt tomato and basil butter. Brush both sides of seafood skewers with melted butter and serve with vegetable skewers.
1. Soak 8 wooden skewers in water for 30 minutes. Skewer vegetables, alternating okra, onion, tomato, and onion. Brush vegetables with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
2. Place skewers on grill and cook for 2 to 3 minutes on each side.
3. Serve with seafood skewers.
https://southernboydishes.com/2015/07/31/grilled-seafood-skewers-with-tomato-basil-butter/You may also like:
Bill Harris
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I’m a fan of “previously frozen” seafood. Because it’s usually frozen on the boat. Which means they get to call it “fresh”. I believe almost all “fresh” seafood is “previously frozen”. It’s the only way to get quality most of the time. GREG
Just coming back to let you know I featured this recipe in my Deliciously Healthy Low-Carb Recipes Round-Up for July 2015! Great recipe; I think my readers are going to love it!
Thank you so much, Kalyn! I really appreciate it!
I love everything about this, especially the scallops. I never get enough of them.