Eating With The Seasons: Spring Skewers with Mint and Parsley Drizzle
Spring is here and it's time to focus on fresh, vibrant ingredients and quick cooking techniques to nourish the Liver and Gallbladder as the temperature rises. The simplest, most pure expression of the warm weather dish is the skewer. Chop up some meat, vegetables, fruit, whatever, and put them on a big stick over a grill. Let the kids run around the yard, enjoy the slow sunset, and get ready for a light, but satisfying spring meal.
In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), spring is a season of renewal and upward movement. Spring is also the time to support the Liver and Gallbladder, favoring upward-growing green foods, light cooking methods, and a balance of sour (lemon) and sweet (honey) flavors. This dish is a seasonal match: cleansing, invigorating, and full of vitality.
For this recipe, we're using some of our favorites: shrimp, onion, bell peppers, zucchini squash, yellow squash, tomatoes, and mushrooms. These ingredients give you a simple seafood element to prepare, as well as vegetables that are (hopefully, depending on geography and if you're actually cooking this in the late spring) in season and abundant. We topped it off with a tangy, sweet drizzle made with lemon, fresh parsley, and mint for that perfect hit of herbs and citrus.
For the sake of cook times, we strongly recommend you separate the shrimp and vegetables. That way you'll be able to keep the sizes relatively uniform, and ensure everything will get evenly cooked with perfect grill marks. And while we do say this is a perfect dish to make outside on the grill, we've also made it inside on the Cuisanart panini press and that also works beautifully. You could also make it work with any other sort of countertop grill, or even in the broiler, so some seasonal rain doesn't get in the way of your dinner plans.
Ingredients
For the Skewers
1 zucchini, sliced into coins
1 yellow squash, sliced into coins
1 red onion, cut into chunks
1 pint cherry tomatoes
Optional: 1 pound peeled shrimp (for protein lovers)
Olive oil, sea salt, black pepper, red pepper flakes
For the Lemon-Herb Honey Drizzle
Juice of 1 lemon
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
¼ cup fresh mint, chopped
¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped
1 teaspoon lemon zest
Drizzle of honey (to balance the tartness)
Sea salt, crushed red pepper to taste
Remember: There’s no shame in “grilling” your skewers inside!
Instructions
Prep the sauce first so the flavors can meld. In a small bowl, combine lemon juice, zest, olive oil, garlic, herbs, honey, and a pinch of sea salt and crushes red pepper. Whisk well. Set aside.
Prepare your skewers: This is an optional step that may not be necessary depending on the type of grill you are using. However, if you're using an outdoor grill, it is highly recommended that you soak your skewers in a pan full of water for at least 20 minutes before assembling them. This will prevent the wood from catching fire and splintering. This is especially important when grilling over an open flame.
Assemble the skewers: Thread zucchini, squash, onion, and cherry tomatoes onto skewers. If using shrimp, prepare separate skewers for them. Make sure you peel and devein the shrimp before putting them on skewers. For best results, put the shrimp in a large bowl and toss with olive oil, salt, black pepper, and red pepper to season all sides before skewering.
Lightly brush with olive oil and sprinkle with a touch of sea salt, red pepper, and black pepper.
Cook the skewers for about 6-10 minutes, or until you get a light char and the vegetables soften slightly. Shrimp should be pink and opaque with light char marks. This step requires some attention, because cook times can vary wildly depending on if you're using a charcoal grill, propane grill, panini press, or broiler. Turn over the skewers halfway through cooking to get even marks on both sides.
Drizzle the mint parsley honey sauce generously over the hot skewers just before serving. The warmth brings out the brightness of the lemon and herbs.
Serve over a bed of warm rice — we used jasmine — and enjoy every fresh, juicy bite.
