It's Palisade Peach Season!
Saturday mornings at the Farmer’s Market is a happy place for me. I try to arrive early, when the vendors are talkative and before the produce has been manhandled by the multitudes.
A Recipe is Born
Last year I lingered at the booth of a local entrepreneur who bottles Asian BBQ sauce. Chef Dean Martin (yes, that’s his real name) suggested that I grill some of my newly purchased peaches with shrimp, coated with a brush of his sweet and spicy Asian bbq sauce. Well, I have been enjoying (and refining) the recipe for a full year and now I’m ready to share it with you!
Just a Few Ingredients
This recipe features fresh Palisade peaches that are still firm and jumbo shrimp. I chose jumbo shrimp because they stand up to the heat of a grill and require the same cooking time as the firm peaches. I buy wild caught frozen shrimp that have already been peeled and deveined, or you can peel and devein the shrimp yourself.
The Secret Sauce
What pulls this three-ingredient recipe together is the sweet and spicy barbecue sauce. I buy Chef Dean Martin’s sauce at various stores in Steamboat, or it can be purchased online. I’ve also created a recipe for a homemade version of Asian Barbecue Sauce.
- 1 pound jumbo shrimp peeled and veins removed
- 2 firm peaches cut into ¾ –inch wedges
- 1 cup Asian Barbecue Sauce (use a commercial brand or prepare the recipe below)
- 1 cup commercial barbecue sauce
- 3 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 3 tablespoons soy or tamari sauce
- 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 tablespoons sugar
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
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If you have a commercial Asian barbecue sauce skip steps 2 & 3.
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In a medium saucepan, stir together the sauce ingredients.
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Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium heat and cook until brown sugar dissolves, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.
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Soak wooden skewers in water for at least 1 hour or use metal skewers.
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Thread shrimp alternately with peach slices onto the skewers. Brush both sides of the kabobs with sauce and refrigerate until grilling time. This step can be done several hours ahead of time for easy last minute meal preparation.
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Brush the grill with oil, and preheat grill to high.
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Grill skewers for 2- 3 minutes, then turn and coat the grilled side with more sauce. Continue to grill the kabobs for another 2 minutes or until the shrimp turns pink and opaque.
In Steamboat we can buy a locally produced Asian BBQ sauce called Chef Dean Martin's Asian Barbeque Sauce or try Trader Joe's Sriracha & Roasted Garlic BBQ Sauce. Serve them with rice and a fresh green salad for an easy meal.
This sounded like a "must try" recipe, so I did. WOW!!!
I did use City Market frozen shrimp, but used the already peeled version. Had fresh peaches from the Saturday Farmer Market and Dean Martin sauce. Made this for company and it was a real hit!! Really super easy, looks impressive and very delicious! The trick is not to overcook!
Thank you Karen for a wonderful recipe.
I'm thrilled that you gave Grilled Shrimp and Peach Kabobs a try. Three ingredients - what could be easier?
This looks so yummy!! I use Argentinian red shrimp that you can get in City Market in the frozen food cooler. Instead of the deveined and peeled, I prefer the peel yourself kind. They are split down the middle, de-veined and the shells peel right off. i do this because one bag of the peeled and de-veined had a slight touch of freezer burn. The shells help prevent that. These shrimp are reminiscent of lobster and are caught in 200 feet of water off, guess where?? If you haven't had them yet then try them and you'll never go back!!!
Thanks for the tip on avoiding freezer burn by buying shrimp with the shells on. I'm always trying to cut down on prep time, so I haven't purchased shell-on shrimp in years. I'll check it out next time I make a shrimp recipe!