Grilled romaine lettuce and marinated shrimp skewers are served with a creamy homemade dressing for the ultimate caesar salad experience. The char of the grill creates a crisp bite to the lettuce and shrimp while sealing in the delicious flavor of seasoning. And the homemade caesar dressing has the perfect salty, tangy bite to compliment the salad!
This Grilled Shrimp Caesar Salad is a delicious dinner that can be thrown together in less than 30 minutes. I love that it’s an easy and fun recipe to get Andy and I outside grilling on these stunning summer nights. And if you take a few extra minutes to make grilled croutons, they take this dish over the top!
For another shrimp inspired recipe, check out my Shrimp Spring Rolls with Peanut Sauce. These spring rolls are the perfect celebration of summer flavor and fresh produce! They’re light and crisp, gluten free, dairy free, and a fun variation of the traditional Vietnamese Spring Roll recipe.
Ingredients in Shrimp Caesar Salad
Shrimp – The main component of this grilled caesar salad, I prefer to buy my shrimp pre-peeled and deveined. I also go for bigger shrimp – usually a size 16-20.
Garlic – I love adding fresh garlic cloves to nearly every savory dish I make, and the fresh garlic is crucial for the homemade caesar dressing.
Greek Yogurt – To make this a homemade caesar dressing with no mayo I subbed for full fat greek yogurt. Make sure it’s nice and thick like Fage brand, full fat for sure!
Parmesan Cheese – The sharp bite of parmesan gives a kick of flavor to this dressing.
Red Wine Vinegar – This caesar dressing doesn’t have mayo so the red wine vinegar helps to balance out the flavors a bit. Adds that tang of vinegar typically found in mayo.
Anchovies – It may seem odd but anchovies are a classic addition to caesar dressing! I used flat-fillets that were also skinless.
Romaine Lettuce – I chose to use romaine lettuce as it’s easiest for grilling. You can prepare it and grill it without worrying of the leaves falling apart.
How Long to Marinate Shrimp
The first step to this grilled shrimp caesar salad is all in the marinade. I kept it pretty simple and focused on packing in lots of flavor with the classics of garlic, lemon, salt and pepper. You could experiment with adding in more spices or herbs if you’d like, let me know if you do!
Otherwise I suggest marinating the shrimp for 20-30 minutes at room temperature. Since the shrimp are raw and for safety standards, be sure that it’s not much longer than 30 minutes. Keeping them at room temperature speeds up the marination process anyway!
You can marinate the shrimp for longer but make sure that they’re in the fridge. With that, you’ll want the shrimp to be room temperature before grilling. Just something to keep in mind!
How To Make Grilled Shrimp Caesar Salad
- Start by preparing your shrimp. Add peeled & deveined shrimp to a large mixing bowl. Add minced garlic cloves, lemon zest, salt, and pepper, and stir until evenly coated. Add your olive oil and toss again. Leave to marinade for 20 minutes at room temperature.*
- Blend ingredients for caesar dressing with a hand blender. Set aside.
- Preheat the grill to medium high heat (~350 – 400F), and grease cooking grates. My preferred method is dragging a paper towel dipped in olive oil over the grates with tongs.
- Rinse romaine halves thoroughly with water, being careful to keep the hearts intact, and pat dry well with a linen or paper towel. Sprinkle both sides evenly with salt and pepper. Brush all sides lightly with olive oil. Grill cut-side down for ~1 minute, or until lightly charred. Flip and repeat. Set aside.
- Prepare your shrimp skewers. Add marinated shrimp to wooden or metal skewers – you want the skewers to go through the tail end, and head so they resemble the letter “C.” Place on the medium-high grill, and cook for 2-3 minutes per side, or until tightly curled and slightly charred on both sides.
- Assemble your salad – to a large serving platter, add your grilled romaine hearts. Drizzle with caesar dressing, and top with shaved parmesan. Top with grilled shrimp skewers, and serve immediately. Enjoy!
How to Grill Shrimp Without Skewers
The shrimp skewers add a fun flair to this recipe + get the shrimp extra crisp while grilling … but they’re not 100% necessary. If you’re not using skewers I suggest grilling the shrimp on layer of aluminum foil or on a grilling sheet. This grill pan with holes would also work as it allows for a more direct heat source similar to using the skewers.
Homemade Caesar Dressing With No Mayo
I always have been and always will be a caesar salad fan. There’s just something about the creamy texture and fresh flavor that gets to me. Because of that, I knew I needed to make my own better-for-you version of the iconic salad dressing.
I wanted to make this homemade caesar dressing with no mayo so I subbed for full fat yogurt (don’t skimp with low fat!) for creamy texture + vinegar for some tang + parmesan cheese for the bite + anchovies for the slightly salty undertone. The result? Absolute deliciousness that’s much more fresh than traditional caesar dressing!
Tips for Grilled Shrimp Caesar Salad
There are two major tips for this recipe that will really elevate the game.
- If you’re using wooden skewers, soak them in water for 15 minutes prior to cooking. This keeps them from drying out too fast and splintering into the food.
- Make grilled croutons! It wouldn’t be a true caesar salad without the crunch of croutons. To do this, coat both sides of sourdough with olive oil and cook until you see char marks on both sides. Remove from the grill and cut into crouton sized pieces.
For another shrimp inspired meal, check out my Spicy Tomato & Ginger Shrimp Pasta. The spicy sauce is full of flavor from fresh minced garlic, ginger, and onion all sautéed with a white wine and tomato reduction. Then to top things off, tender shrimp and al dente pasta that makes this dish into a true “chef’s kiss” creation.
If you try this recipe, please let me know by leaving a comment and rating in the boxes below! I always love to hear from you and it helps other people find this recipe when they search online for the BEST Grilled Shrimp Caesar Salad 🙂
Ingredients
Grilled Shrimp Skewers
- 20 ea raw shrimp size 16-20, peeled & deveined (~1.25lbs)
- 6 ea garlic cloves peeled & minced
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp fresh ground black pepper
- ¼ cup olive oil
Caesar Dressing
- ⅔ cup full fat greek yogurt
- ⅓ cup grated parmesan cheese
- ¼ cup red wine vinegar
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic
- 2 anchovies flat fillets, skinless
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp fresh ground black pepper
Salad
- 3 hearts of romaine lettuce cut in half lengthwise
- salt & pepper
- olive oil
- ⅓ cup thick cut shaved parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Start by preparing your shrimp. Add peeled & deveined shrimp to a large mixing bowl. Add minced garlic cloves, lemon zest, salt, and pepper, and stir until evenly coated. Add your olive oil and toss again. Leave to marinade for 20 minutes at room temperature.*
- Blend ingredients for caesar dressing with a hand blender. Set aside.
- Preheat the grill to medium high heat (~350 – 400F), and grease cooking grates. My preferred method is dragging a paper towel dipped in olive oil over the grates with tongs.
- Rinse romaine halves thoroughly with water, being careful to keep the hearts intact, and pat dry. Sprinkle both sides evenly with salt and pepper. Brush all sides lightly with olive oil. Grill cut-side down for ~1 minute, or until lightly charred. Flip and repeat. Set aside.
- Prepare your shrimp skewers – add marinated shrimp to metal or wooden skewers**. You want the skewers to go through the tail end, and head so they resemble the letter “C.” Place on the medium-high grill, and cook for 2-3 minutes per side, or until tightly curled and slightly charred on both sides.
- Assemble your salad – to a large serving platter, add your grilled romaine hearts. Drizzle with caesar dressing, and top with shaved parmesan. Top with grilled shrimp skewers, and serve immediately. Enjoy!
Notes
**If using wooden skewers, soak in water for 15 minutes prior to cooking.
***You can also serve with grilled croutons. To do this, coat both sides of sourdough with olive oil and cook until you see char marks on both sides. Remove and cut into pieces.
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This looks amazing…can’t wait to try it!
Wohooo!! Let me know what you think!! – Casey