This grilled pineapple recipe with shrimp, lime and paprika will quickly become your go-to summer supper. This hearty tropical fruit stands up to the high heat of an open flame and caramelizes beautifully. Pair bite-sized chunks of pineapple with fresh peeled shrimp for light and healthy skewers to serve at your summer barbeque. Because shrimp cooks quickly, it’s a perfect match for the pineapple.

The skewers are ready to eat right off the grill and the slightly spicy citrus marinade of lime and paprika gives them a Mexican flair. Make sure you soak your bamboo skewers in water for at least half an hour beforehand, otherwise they will char.

Grilled Pineapple Recipe with Shrimp in a Paprika Lime Marinade

Makes 6 skewers

Ingredients

1 lb. medium-large shrimp with shells on (about 15-20)
2 limes (one sliced into wedges to serve)
1 cup cubed pineapple (about a quarter of a whole pineapple)
1/2 teaspoon paprika
Salt
6 bamboo skewers, soaked in water for 30 minutes

Directions

Peel and de-vein the shrimp and add to a bowl with the juice from half of one of the limes, a pinch of salt and the paprika. Marinate for 30 minutes in the fridge.

Add the marinated shrimp and pineapple cubes to the skewers. You can have separate shrimp and pineapple skewers or alternate one piece of pineapple and one shrimp.

Fire up your grill to medium-high heat (or use a cast iron grill pan on your stove). Cook the skewers for about 2 minutes on each side so that the shrimp is cooked through. When all skewers have been cooked, arrange on a plate or wooden cutting board and squeeze the remaining lime on top. Serve to your guests with lime wedges and a refreshing cocktail.

Related on Eco Salon

Grilled Zucchini with Cilantro Lime Dressing

Sweet and Simple Grilled Plantains

Scrumptious Vegan Spring Rolls

Photos by Ally-Jane

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Bad news for scampi lovers: meeting the world’s demand for shrimp is doing some serious damage to the ocean (and our health). Here are five little-known reasons to take shrimp recipes out of the dinner rotation.

In his new book, “The Perfect Protein”, Andy Sharpless makes some very compelling arguments for why we should all rethink our favorite shrimp recipes. Sharpless is CEO of Oceana, the world’s largest ocean conservation group, so he knows a thing or two about what our insatiable appetite for seafood is doing to the planet.

Americans eat more shrimp than any other type of seafood by weight. According to Sharpless, being very careful about how we source shrimp can go a long way toward protecting the oceans. The sad reality is neither fishing nor farming is a truly sustainable way to produce shrimp. Read on for some more compelling reasons to wean yourself off shrimp.

5 Reasons To Kick Your Shrimp Recipes To The Curb

1. Most shrimp consumed in the United States comes from farms in Vietnam, Bangladesh, and Thailand. These operations grow shrimp in shallow pools that form the perfect haven for bacteria and viruses. Even scarier? Only two percent of all imported seafood is tested by the Food and Drug Administration.

2. To combat the pathogens that see shrimp pools as breeding grounds, shrimp farmers often dump high levels of antibiotics and pesticides into the water–some of which are banned for use in the U.S. and other countries. You demand organic produce, but how often do you search for organic seafood? Kind of defeats the purpose, right?

3. In order to make room for shrimp operations, farmers often rip out mangrove forests, which is terrible for the environment. “Scientists from the U.S. Department of Agriculture have found that mangrove forests absorb and trap more climate-changing carbon dioxide than any other ecosystem on the planet, including rainforests. Mangroves also serve as nursery areas for other ocean creatures, and they help keep coasts secure by reducing flooding during storms,” reports Prevention.com.

4. Tearing up precious mangrove forests is bad enough, but that’s not the worst part: When shrimp farming pools become too old or contaminated for use, farmers just move on to a new area and repeat the process. The former mangrove forest is now a polluted wasteland, leaching dangerous chemicals into the water supply.

5. I know what you’re thinking. “I only every buy wild-caught seafood, so my shrimp recipes are safe.” Think again. Wild shrimp are caught with fine-meshed trawl nets pulled through the water behind a boat. The only problem is that they nets catch a lot of other stuff besides shrimp. “Most fish are damaged from being in the net, and many are discarded—dead or dying—overboard,” Sharpless points out. “Nets routinely pull up 9,000 endangered or threatened sea turtles annually, in addition to sharks, red snappers, and other animals.”

Eco-Friendly Alternatives To Shrimp

Giving up shrimp won’t be easy, but there are some more responsible seafood choices that can help. According to Sharpless, sardines and anchovies, mussels, Alaskan salmon, domestic clams, and farmed oysters are more sustainable selections that are also safer for your health.

Related on Ecosalon:

Back Away From The Tuna, Shrimp, and Salmon

Make The Right Fish Pick With Seafood Watch App

Sorry Charlie: Loving Tuna To Death

Image: wwarby

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