One thing most of my family and friends agree on (with the exception of a vegetarians or two,) is shrimp, just about any way. We like it roasted, grilled, sautéed, in soups and stews, spiced up, and even as a little cocktail appetizer dressed up in many ways. One of our daughter’s favorite dishes is a baked shrimp stuffed with artichokes.
A quick dinner
You will love how quickly this cooks, and since I usually am able to find shrimp with their shells on, I have a flavorful stock to use in cooking the lentils, or I can freeze for another day.
Boost the flavor, lift up the brown
This might look like a lot of ingredients, but it comes together really quickly. If you have shrimp without the shells, you can use any vegetable stock in which to cook the lentils, or even plain water. Of course, you can use rice or pasta in this dish, or any other favorite grain. Using the stock really enhances the flavor, and the lemon gives the lentils a refreshing lift! Brown food really needs a little lift.
Wild shrimp, please
Always look for wild shrimp that is not farmed, the more local the better, and ask your fish monger about the harvest practices, they should know. It is difficult to trust shrimp that has traveled across the world and raised with practices we can only guess at. I often get Maine shrimp that are quite tiny, delicious, but sometimes I want something a little more substantial.
Frozen shrimp
Fresh shrimp doesn’t travel well, so unless you are right on the seacoast, most of the time, you will be buying frozen shrimp and that is fine, just thaw them overnight in the refrigerator, or immerse frozen in cold water until they are thawed.
And for my vegan friends, this marinade tastes great on big fat portabella mushrooms as well, or any of their relatives at different ages, see below!
Grilled or Roasted Shrimp with Lentils, Luscious Lemon, and Fennel
- 1 lb. jumbo Gulf or local shrimp
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 4 cloves of garlic
- 1 tbsp. finely minced fennel fronds
- 1 tsp. anise or fennel seeds, ground
- 1 tsp. herbes de Provence
- ½ tsp. smoked paprika
- 1 cup French lentils, rinsed
- Stock made from shrimp shells, or water
- 1 small head fennel, diced
- 1 shallot, minced
- Zest and juice of one lemon
Peel and devein the shrimp, tossing the shells in a saucepan along with an obligatory bay leaf. Prep all the veggies and toss the trimmings in as well. Cover the trimmings with water by a couple of inches, season with salt and pepper, and bring to a boil. Let simmer for about 20 minutes then strain. You will strain this and cook the lentils in this broth.
While the stock is simmering, combine the olive oil, garlic, fennel fronds, fennel seeds, herbes de Provence, and smoked paprika in a small food processor and blitz until well combined. Place in a shallow dish and add the shrimp, adding salt and pepper as you go, and rub the marinade into the shrimp well. Set in the refrigerator until ready to quickly grill at the last.
Sauté the fennel and shallot in a little olive oil and add three cups of the broth when ready, add water if you don’t have enough. Bring to a boil and add the lentils. Reduce to a simmer and cook until tender, about 25 minutes, but check at 20. Remove to a bowl, add the lemon juice and zest, and a little knob of butter.
Heat your grill pan on the stove, or you can grill this outside too, but it’s a bit of a bother for about four minutes of grilling, so it’s just as easy to do it inside!
Brush the grill pan lightly with a neutral oil and add the shrimp, cooking three minutes on the first side and turning. Cover and remove from the heat and let finish cooking like this for about five minutes.
Alternately, if you don’t mind turning on the oven, you can toss the marinated shrimp on a baking sheet and roast at 450 F. for about six to eight minutes depending on size. Don’t forget to set your timer. Serve the shrimp along with the lentils, something green (here I used some lovely local broccoli), and this time of year, you can toss a couple of ear of corn on the grill as well to round things out.
You can add a little heat to the marinade with a nice pinch of crushed red pepper flakes, or a bit of cayenne pepper.
Vegan version:
This is lovely using meaty portobello mushrooms! You’ll have plenty of marinade for both, so make a mix if you like. A mushroom stock here is perfect for the lentils if you are also feeding a vegetarian.
The only downside to the vegan version is that it is very brown! Definitely add some herbs here to brighten up the plate.
Portabella or Portobello?
Although basically the same mushroom, portabella mushrooms are a smaller version of the larger portobello (agaricus bisporus), what you will most commonly find. Both have a distinctive earthy taste and are filled with beneficial nutrients including fiber, anti-oxidants, B vitamins, and minerals. Even younger are the cremini mushrooms, sometimes called chestnut or baby bellas, and younger still the common button mushroom, also known as champagne mushrooms! All the same, but at different stages of growth, and more intense flavor as they age.
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You spoil everyone with your delicious flavors of hospitality, good food and love.
Ah thank you! Like to keep them all happy!
I love shrimp too. This is a great recipe 😀
Thank you, really easy too.
The shrimp looks delicious and I love the pairing with lentils.
Thank you! It’s a nice play on textures.
Looks delicious
Sounds utterly delicious, and, as always, I appreciate the vegetarian option.
There’s usually a way to adapt the flavors!
Thanks Sheree!
You can check me in on the shrimp lovers side. Dom loves lentils so this would be a good dinner for us. Thanks.
Thanks Bernie, you are designated to the shrimp lovers side of the aisle!
I never met a shrimp I didn’t like! 🍤
They are good in so many ways.
Especially on the way into my mouth! 😀
🩷
Your shrimp looks divine!
Thank you Jan! They were really tasty.
Looks delicious!
Jenna
Thanks, Jenna!
We always have a bag or two of shrimp in our freezer. My market has been out of French lentils lately, but I’ll be trying this recipe soon.
It’s handy to have them tucked away!
I’ll take double shrimp portions. 🦐🦐🍃🦐
You got it!!!
I love it when a recipe sends me looking up the ingredients. I did not know there was such a thing as French lentils!
Forgot to log in…duh.
They are delicious Suz!
Check these beauties out, courtesy of Timeless Foods (especially the Black Beluga):
https://shop.timelessfood.com/collections/organic-lentils
Sounds wonderful! Thanks for the link to this site!
Mouthwatering dish. The perfect summer plate. Love the pairing with lentils. 🙂
Le Puy are my favorite lentils. And I adore shrimp, so this is a fabulous recipe to me!
They are my favorite, too! So much flavor, and they hold their shape beautifully.
We never buy farm-raised fish of any kind as they are fed some really crappy stuff.
Plus the antibiotics! We don’t need this.
Hi, Dorothy – I absolutely love the versatility of this recipe that interchangeably uses shrimp or mushrooms. And who doesn’t love lentils?! I look forward to trying this!
Thank you! I really love flexible recipes, and this one is a favorite. I have lentils frequently, they are so good, and good for us too!
Since I’m allergic to shrimp, I appreciate the mushroom substitution, Dorothy.
Im so sorry! A common allergy!
A lovely versatile recipe, Dorothy and no you can’t have too many shrimp 🙂 x
Not in my book, either! Thanks Carol!
This is an experiment, as so far, my comments on your blog have been somehow rejected. It happened with other blogs as well, so I’m trying not to take it too personally… some found the comments in the spam box. I hope it’ll work this time…
Well my friend, I just fished three of you out of my SPAM folder!
Thank you.
Thank you.
Thank you.
I’m glad to know! I hope this problem willl be fixed soon. It’s quite frustrating!
I’ve ended up Anonymous or Someone several times as well.
It looks like it works, so I’ll say again, how mouthwatering this dish is! Love the lentils and, as always, the fennel! 🙂
A fellow fennel lover! I grew a ton of it in my garden this year for the pollen and the seeds, oh and every other part!
I used the seeds in my last recipe with flank steak. They add such wonderful flavor to just about anything. I also add them to biscotti (posted years ago). So good!!! 🙂
I’ve sort of taken to using it in celery in all my soup and stew mirepoix, love the flavor so much more.
This would be fantastic, Dorothy, with shrimp (prawns in Oz) or mushrooms. You introduced me to the Portobello mushroom some time past. They have become a favourite! Yum.
I’m glad you love those portobellos! So delicious, and they can be a great swap in many recipes.
Another mouthwatering dish…I think I’m hungry! 😋
Looking at shrimp does that to me too!
Grilled shrimp is one of the best things, and so versatile! All of this sounds delicious, and you’re so good to always include a tasty option for the vegetarians and vegans. Glad you said what you did about wild-caught shrimp also! So many people don’t realize the important differences. The more you know… 🙂
We all have to be our own food detectives, the government isn’t doing much to keep the food supply safe, only bountiful.
We had shrimp last night, I should have read this sooner!
One of our favorites! Next time.