This perfectly grilled margarita shrimp will quickly become a family fave. Infused with fresh-squeezed lime juice, minced garlic, chopped cilantro, and a splash of tequila this easy grilled shrimp recipe is just bursting with bright citrusy flavors and it all comes together quickly and easily on my indoor grill making it easy to enjoy all year round.
It’s also easily adopted for outdoor grilling or grill pan on the stovetop (instructions included for both).
Serve these deliscious margarita shrimp up on a bed of white rice, on top of a salad, or in a taco, or right off the skewer (if used)…just make sure to pair them with a margarita! Give this recipe a try the next time you decide to grill up some shrimp for a quick weeknight dinner, taco Tuesday, or summer backyard cookout!
What Size Shrimp Is Best For Grilling?
Get the largest shrimp possible. I recommend extra-large or jumbo shrimp as they remain plump when cooked. And more likely will not fall through the grill grates if using an outside grill. The shrimp should be peeled and deveined. You can keep the tails on or off – your choice.
How To Keep The Shrimp From Drying Out?
- Use big shrimp. The larger the shrimp, the easier to grill, and less chance of overcooking. I recommend using large, extra-large, or jumbo shrimp when possible. Shrimp sizes are measured by how many you get per pound. The smaller number of shrimp you get per pound means the bigger the shrimp. A good standard size count for grilling is 21 count per pound. This size shrimp is easy to skewer or, if you like, grill individually.
- Do not overcook the shrimp! Remove them from the heat as soon as they’ve turned pink. The outside of the shrimp should turn a nice pink color when it is cooked while the meat inside should be white and opaque. The tails will turn red. Be careful not to overcook the shrimp or as it will become tough.
Tequila Blanco vs Tequila Reposado
A Blanco tequila is clear and unaged. Reposado tequilas are aged between two months and a year in oak.
Ingredients Rundown
Ingredients To Make Margarita Shrimp
Jumbo raw shrimp – get the largest shrimp possible. I recommend extra-large or jumbo shrimp as they remain plump when cooked. It should be peeled and deveined. You can keep the tails on or off – your choice.
Extra virgin olive oil – used for drizzling on the shrimp + the margarita marinade. The choice of vegetable oil is completley up to you.
Fresh garlic cloves garlic – You can use garlic paste or the stuff from the bottle in a pinch.
Jalapeño – adds a mild heat and flavor, you can remove the seeds for less heat.
Chili Powder – adds mild heat (you can also leave it out)
Fresh limes + Lime zest – add bright citrusy flavor to the shrimp.
Sweetener – You can use honey, agave, maple syrup, or sugar (I used honey) to balance out the flavor.
Tequila – tequilal Blanco or Reposado works great in this recipe. You can also try a tequila alternative as an alcohol free option.
Orange Liqueur – I used triple-sec. You can also use cointreau, grand marnier or orange juice. This could be optional too!
Other Ingredients – garlic powder, onion powder, salt, smoked paprika (regular works too), and fresh cracked black pepper.
*** The full recipe, including all ingredients, measurements, instructions, and recipe video 🎥 (coming soon) is located in the recipe card below.
Recipe FAQs
Variations
You can easily grill the shrimp on skewers.
You can use larger skewers for dinner or small skewers to serve these as a cute appetizer. You can add thinly sliced lime wheels on each skewer for a pop of color and added flavor. Don’t forget to soak the wood skewers in water for at least a couple of hours prior to grilling, so they won’t burn up as quickly on the grill. You can also use reusable metal skewers!
Food Pairings
What Pairs Well With Margarita Shrimp?
For this margarita shrimp, I would recommend a delicious margarita of course! Check out my The Best Strawberry Margarita recipes and thank me later.
Got Leftovers?
Make sure the leftovers have cooled down to room temperature before storing.
How To Store Leftover shrimp In The Fridge?
You can store your leftover shrimp in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Leftovers can be kept for 3-4 days in the refrigerator. After that, the risk of food poisoning increases. If you don’t think you’ll be able to eat leftovers within four days, freeze them immediately.
How To Store Leftover Grilled Shrimp In The Freezer?
Store your leftovers covered in airtight containers or heavy-duty freezer bags, or wrap tightly with heavy-duty aluminum foil or freezer wrap.
How Long Does Leftover Grilled Shrimp Last In The Freezer?
Properly stored, it will maintain the best quality for about 4 months but will remain safe beyond that time. Personally, I do not recommend freezing any leftover fried chicken as it may affect the crispy exterior
Need To Reheat?
How To Reheat Leftover Grilled Shrimp On The Stovetop?
I recommend reheating the leftovers on the stovetop. Place the shrimp in a pan and drizzle with a little olive oil or butter. Warm them gently until heat through.
How To Reheat Leftover Grilled Shrimp In An Air Fryer?
- Reheating your leftover grilled shrimp with the air fryer is quite effortless, and it lets you retain all that yummy juicy tenderness you love!
- Heat the air fryer to 300°F.
- Spray the bottom of the air fryer basket with oil or line with parchment paper or air fryer liner.
- Place your shrimp in a single layer inside the basket and reheat for 2 minutes on each side or until warm.
- Serve and enjoy.
Kraving More?
Check out my other krave worthy Seafood Recipe or explore The Recipe Index for even MORE KRAVE-WORTHY EATS.
Grilled Margarita Shrimp
Infused with fresh-squeezed lime juice, minced garlic, chopped cilantro, and a splash of tequila this easy grilled shrimp recipe is just bursting with bright citrusy flavors and it all comes together quickly and easily.
4
servings10
minutes15
minutes331.86
kcal3
hours0
minutes*keeps your device screen on
Gather Your Ingredients
1 bag raw jumbo shrimp (21-25), peeled, deveined and tail-on
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
2-3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 each jalapeño, chopped (remove the seeds for less heat)
2 medium limes
1 tablespoon lime zest (2 medium limes)
1 tablespoon honey, agave, maple syrup, or sugar (I used honey)
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon smoked paprika (regular paprika works too)
1 teaspoon chili powder (optional)
2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper
2 ounces tequila (I used tequila Blanco) You can also try a tequila alternative
2 ounces triple sec (orange liqueur)
2-4 cups tap water
Instructions
- How to make the marinade
- Empty bag of raw shrimp in a medium bowl, peel and devein the shrimp and place the shells in a separate container. You can leave the tails on for this recipe or leave take them off. Your choice.
- To the peeled shrimp add the juice of one lime, and enough cool tap water to cover the shrimp (about 2-4 cups). Allow the shrimp to sit in the lemony mix for 30 seconds then pour off the water.
- Rinse off the shrimp under running water at least 2 times and drain, to remove the lemony mix from the shrimp.
- Next, let the shrimp sit in the bowl for at least one minute to allow the excess moisture to drain to the bottom of the bowl. Drain any liquid sitting at the bottom of the bowl, then pat the shrimp dry with a clean paper towel. Discard paper towel(s) when done.
- Drain any liquid that might be sitting at the bottom of the bowl.
- Set bowl with shrimp aside.
- In a separate small bowl, add all the ingredients except the lime juice to the bowl.
- Use a whisk or fork and mix the ingredients to combine.
- Pour marinade over the shrimp and combine.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow the shrimp to marinate for at least 15 minutes (or up to 3 hours for maximum flavor).
- Now, Let’s Grill!
- Plugin and preheat your indoor grill or outdoor grill to 400 degrees Fahrenheit (when the preheats indicator light turns green, the grill is ready). When the outdoor grill has come up to temperature, clean and oil the grates. If you’re using a grill pan, drizzle 1-2 tablespoons vegetable oil in the pan and heat.
- Place shrimp on the grill or grill pan in a single layer. Don’t overcrowd the grill plates. You will need to grill in batches.
- Close cover.
- Allow shrimp to cook for 2-3 minutes until cook through and flip. (I used my George Foreman Select-a-Temp Smokeless Grill which doesn’t require flipping.
- Remove the shrimp once cooked. Do not overcook!
- Squeeze fresh lime juice over shrimp and garnish with cilantro and lime wedges.
- Enjoy over a bed of white rice, on top of a salad, or even in a taco, or just right off the skewer…just make sure to pair them with a margarita!
Kerri’s Recipe Tips
- Do not overcook the shrimp! Remove them from the heat as soon as they’ve turned pink. The outside of the shrimp should turn a nice pink color when it is cooked while the meat inside should be white and opaque. The tails will turn red. Be careful not to overcook the shrimp or as it will become tough.
- Do not marinate the shrimp in the citrusy brine overnight. The citric acid in the lemon juice will start breaking down (cooking) the protein in the shrimp making them mushy.
- If using a grill pan – halfway through cooking the shrimp in my grill pan, I like to use my cooking utensil and gently press down on each shrimp in the pan to create some grill marks. (This is optional.)
- If using an outdoor grill – The alcohol in the tequila will cause some flare-ups on the grill…which isn’t a bad thing. This will produce some beautifully grilled char!
- Leftovers can be kept for 3-4 days in the refrigerator. After that, the risk of food poisoning increases. If you don’t think you’ll be able to eat leftovers within four days, freeze them immediately. Make sure the leftovers have cooled down to room temperature before storing.
- I ALWAYS recommend reading through the recipe in full a couple of times before starting. That way you know exactly what to expect and you can prep accordingly.
- Gather all your ingredients before cooking. This way you don’t forget to add an ingredient or two. Believe me, It has happened so many times so I use “mise en place” to save my sanity and the recipe.
- For your convenience, you can automatically generate a shopping list of all the ingredients + save the recipe (scroll ↓).
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Buy Now → Nutrition Information
Nutrition Facts
8 servings per container
Serving Size6 each
Calories331.86
- Amount Per Serving% Daily Value *
- Total Fat
20.09g
31%
- Sodium 1800.88mg 75%
- Amount Per Serving% Daily Value *
- Potassium 370.62mg 11%
- Total Carbohydrate
14.67g
5%
- Sugars 9.97g
- Protein 17.05g 34%
- Vitamin A 29.9%
- Vitamin C 14.85%
- Iron 1.07%
- Zinc 1.65%
* The % Daily Value tells you how much a nutrient in a serving of food contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
Nutritional Disclaimer
kerriannskravings.com occasionally offers nutritional information for recipes contained on this site. This information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. To obtain the most accurate representation of the nutritional information in any given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe. For more information read our Nutritional Disclaimer.
Loved this recipe! The shrimps were seasoned to perfection and it all tasted so good!!
This recipe is a game changer. It’s got the perfect balance of spicy and sweet flavors and is so easy to make. I’m going to be making this all summer long!
I followed your grill pan instructions and my shrimp came out perfectly! Lots of flavor and very juicy.
I’m a big shrimp lover so I was excited to try your recipe and it didn’t disappoint! The lime, honey and tequila added soooo much flavor.
Hey Jen, Thanks for your kind words! It’s wonderful to hear that the recipe lived up to your expectations as a shrimp lover. I’m thrilled that you enjoyed the combination of lime, honey, and tequila in the marinade. Keep on enjoying those tasty flavors!xx
Shrimp on the grill are my favorite and these are absolutely delicious! So full of flavor and the tequila adds a perfect kick. Can’t wait to make them again for a bbq in a few weeks.
Hey Jessica, I’m so happy to hear you loved the Grilled Margarita Shrimp! It’s great that the tequila added that perfect kick for you. I hope they’re a hit at your upcoming BBQ – enjoy grilling and have a fantastic time! xx
I don’t frequently make sweet marinades or sauces, but this was a wonderful change of pace for my palate. Combining shrimp with margarita flavors is genius!
Hey Robin, thanks so much for your kind words! I’m thrilled that you enjoyed the sweet and zesty marinade. It’s always fun to mix things up in the kitchen, and I’m glad this recipe was a delightful change for you!xx
I look forward to summer time just so I can bring out my outdoor grill and make this recipe! The flavors are so light and refreshing. I like to serve any leftover shrimp on a bed of greens for nice, light salad.
Hey Marcus, I’m so glad you enjoy the Grilled Margarita Shrimp as much as I do! Serving leftovers on a bed of greens sounds like a fantastic idea for a light and tasty salad. Thanks for sharing, and happy grilling this summer!xx
This margarita shrimp recipe was a fantastic alternative to my typical Taco Tuesday proteins. I served it with blue corn tortillas and crudito.
I’m so happy to hear that you enjoyed the margarita shrimp recipe and that it spiced up your Taco Tuesday! The pairing with blue corn tortillas and crudito sound absolutely delicious, and I bet it added a vibrant touch to the whole meal. Thanks for sharing your experience, and feel free to try out more recipes from the blog. Happy cooking!xx
This is my new favorite shrimp recipe! I made this on my outdoor grill and it absolutely delicious. The marinade seals in alot of flavor and the tequila takes it to the next level.
Wow, I’m thrilled that this has become your new favorite shrimp recipe! Grilling it outdoors does add that extra smoky touch, which makes It even more delicious. The tequila definitely gives it that extra kick! I’m glad the marinade worked its magic for you. Thanks for sharing your experience, and I hope you continue to enjoy more recipes from the blog. Happy grilling!