These juicy shrimp are grilled with chunks of pineapple and a brushed with a sweet dark rum glaze. Grilled pineapple goes great with shrimp and these kebabs make the perfect weekend BBQ dinner!
The hot weather continues to shine down here in California with no plans to cool down anytime soon. Suits me fine, because I'll be right over here standing at my grill and doing most of my cooking outside.
The smell and the char-taste are what summer is all about and with the current restaurant situation and dining out not being quite back to normal, grilling at home is the next best thing! Grilled pineapple is one of my favorite fruits to add to the bbq.
It turns out sweet and caramelized and goes great with any kind of protein from chicken to seafood. Brushing these grilled pineapple kebabs with a sweet dark rum based syrup is the ultimate finish. Sweet, sticky and juicy are all great words to describe this recipe.
How to make these grilled pineapple kebabs
- Making the rum syrup glaze Bring the molasses, syrup and dark rum to a boil in a pot. Simmer for a few minutes until thickened.
- Prepping the kebabs Clean and devein your shrimp. Cut the pineapple into small chunks and begin to thread then onto the skewer with the shrimp in an alternate pattern.
- Cooking the grilled pineapple kebabs These kebabs cook fast and you have to keep an eye on them because the sugar from the syrup and molasses can burn easily. They just need to be lightly caramelized and not too charred.
Ingredients need for this recipe
- Fresh pineapple. Canned pineapple won't work because of the high sugar syrup contained in the can.
- Molasses. A pantry staple.
- Syrup. Regular maple syrup will work perfectly.
- Shrimp. I love my shrimp to be big and juicy so look for at least size 16-30. Check out my other great grilled shrimp skewer recipe which gives handy tips all about shrimp.
- Rum. Dark rum is what you need for the glaze and not white rum. Dark rum has a sweeter taste and doesn't seem as harsh as regular white rum.
FAQ's about grilled pineapple shrimp
Can I use frozen shrimp? Yes, just make sure to thaw them out overnight in the fridge before building your kebabs.
How do I peel a pineapple? Check out this helpful post all about prepping your pineapple for eating.
Can I use a gas grill for these kebabs? Definitely! That's exactly what I have and it takes much less time and mess than a charcoal grill.
Do my shrimp need to be peeled? You can peel them but leave the tails on which make for good presentation and ease of staying on the metal skewers.
My rum glaze went stiff when away from the heat too long? If this happens just place the glaze back over the heat for a few seconds and the consistency will turn back to a thin liquid, perfect for glazing your pineapple shrimp kebabs.
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