Garlic Shrimp Bowl (Printable)
Garlic-marinated shrimp over jasmine rice with fresh vegetables and a tangy yogurt-lemon sauce.
# What You'll Need:
→ Shrimp
01 - 1 lb large shrimp, peeled and deveined
02 - 3 cloves garlic, minced
03 - 2 tbsp olive oil
04 - 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
05 - 1/4 tsp salt
06 - 1/4 tsp black pepper
07 - Juice of 1/2 lemon
→ Rice Base
08 - 2 cups cooked jasmine or basmati rice
→ Vegetables & Toppings
09 - 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
10 - 1 cup cucumber, diced
11 - 1 avocado, sliced
12 - 1/4 red onion, thinly sliced
13 - 2 tbsp fresh cilantro or parsley, chopped
14 - 1/2 cup shredded red cabbage
→ Sauce
15 - 3 tbsp plain Greek yogurt or dairy-free yogurt alternative
16 - 1 tbsp lemon juice
17 - 1 tsp honey
18 - 1 small garlic clove, grated
19 - Salt and pepper to taste
# How-To Steps:
01 - In a medium bowl, toss the shrimp with minced garlic, olive oil, smoked paprika, salt, black pepper, and lemon juice until evenly coated. Let marinate for 10 minutes at room temperature.
02 - Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the marinated shrimp in a single layer and cook for 2 to 3 minutes per side until they turn pink and are cooked through. Remove from heat and set aside.
03 - In a small bowl, whisk together the yogurt, lemon juice, honey, grated garlic, salt, and pepper until smooth and well combined. Adjust seasoning to taste.
04 - Divide the cooked rice evenly among 4 serving bowls, creating a base layer.
05 - Arrange the garlic shrimp, halved cherry tomatoes, diced cucumber, sliced avocado, thinly sliced red onion, and shredded red cabbage over the rice in each bowl.
06 - Drizzle the prepared sauce over each bowl and garnish with chopped fresh cilantro or parsley. Serve immediately while the shrimp is still warm.
# Expert Advice:
01 -
- It transforms a handful of everyday ingredients into something that tastes like you ordered it at a coastal restaurant.
- The creamy lemon garlic sauce ties everything together so well that you will want to put it on everything else you cook this week.
02 -
- Overcooking shrimp by even one minute turns them rubbery, so pull them off the heat the second they are fully pink and shaped like the letter C.
- Patting the shrimp dry before marinating was a game changer I discovered after wondering why my shrimp always ended up steaming instead of searing.
03 -
- The biggest secret is letting your skillet get genuinely hot before the shrimp go in, because that initial contact creates the golden seared edges that make this bowl restaurant quality.
- Making the sauce first and letting it sit in the fridge while you cook gives the garlic time to mellow and the flavors to meld into something far better than when it was first mixed.