These grilled shrimp on rosemary skewers with rum-soaked pineapple wedges will absolutely be a hit at your party. The sweet, liquor-infused fruit is a fun and tasty addition to the savory shrimp.
In a measuring glass or small bowl, whisk the brown sugar, rum and cinnamon together. Pour into a large zip-lock bag.
½ cup brown sugar, ¼ cup rum, 1 tablespoon cinnamon
Place the pineapple wedges in the bag. Seal it and then shake it all together to coat the wedges with the sauce. Let marinate for 15 minutes.
1 pineapple
Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, add the garlic, basil leaves and lemon juice. Slowly whisk in the oil until blended. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer a couple of tablespoons of the marinade to a small bowl and reserve for later as a dipping sauce.
Coat the shrimp with the remaining marinade and let sit for 15 minutes.
20 shrimp
Remove the pineapple wedges from the marinade and thread them onto wooden skewers.
To use the rosemary sprigs as a skewer, remove the bottom leaves by pinching the stem and pulling down with your fingers. Leave a few leaves at one end. Add the shrimp to the rosemary skewers. Season with salt and pepper.
4 to 6 fresh rosemary sprigs
Heat an outdoor grill to medium-high heat. Grill the pineapple skewers for 3 to 5 minutes per side, until they have some grill marks. Keep them warm on the grill.
Place the shrimp skewers on the preheated grill and cook for about 2 minutes per side, or until opaque (meaning you can't see through them anymore). Try to keep the rosemary leaves over the indirect heat side, away from direct flame.
Serve the skewers immediately with the reserved marinade.
Notes
I use large shrimp (31-40 shrimp per pound). If you are grilling jumbo shrimp for this recipe, you might need a few extra rosemary skewers on hand.
In this recipe the shrimp should be peeled and deveined before marinating and grilling.
If using shrimp from frozen, make sure to thaw them in the refrigerator first and drain for about 2 minutes in a colander to remove the liquid.
Do not marinate the shrimp in the lemon juice mixture for more than 30 minutes (ideally only 15 minutes) or it will start to 'cook' the shrimp and turn it into ceviche.
I like to cut the ends of the rosemary sprigs so they are the same size.
Save all of the rosemary you pinched off, for other recipes, in a covered container in the fridge. You can also freeze the fresh rosemary by placing it into freezer safe bags and into the freezer.
Make sure the pineapple wedges are cut thick enough that they don't fall off of the skewer.
Thread the skewer through the thickest part of the shrimp and leave space at the end of the skewer. You might only have room for a few shrimp per skewer, depending on the size of the rosemary sprigs.
Make ahead options: You can cut the pineapple up to 5 to 7 days in advance and store it in a covered container in the fridge. The marinades can also be prepped in advance and refrigerated for up to 3 days.
Any leftovers should be quickly covered and refrigerated. They should last up to 3 to 4 days.