Shrimp with Avocado-Mango Salsa
In addition to being a great source of good-for-you fat, avocados are full of fiber and bloat-busting potassium.
In addition to being a great source of good-for-you fat, avocados are full of fiber and bloat-busting potassium.
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- vegetable cooking spray
- 1/4 cup red onion chopped
- 1 medium tomato diced
- 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
- 8 cups baby spinach
- 1 cup couscous
- 1 lb medium shrimp shelled & deveined
- 1/2 cup fresh cilantro chopped & divided
- 3/4 teaspoon salt divided
- 1 large mango peeled and chopped
- 1 medium avocado diced
- 1/2 jalapeno chile seedd & finely chopped
- Carbohydrate 61.6652854872351 g
- Cholesterol 172.3651006 mg
- Fat 11.8736287022606 g
- Fiber 8.95530981752314 g
- Protein 33.567478643941 g
- Saturated Fat 1.83074031845554 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (376g)
- Sodium 227.707144139801 mg
- Sugar 52.709975669712 g
- Trans Fat 1.2941703453184 g
- Calories 483 calories
Step-by-step
- Heat grill.
- Fold four 18-inch-long pieces of foil in half; unfold and coat inside with cooking spray.
- Place 2 cups spinach in center of 1 half of each piece of foil.
- Combine couscous with 1/4 cup water; divide evenly among packets, placing on top of spinach.
- Combine shrimp, 1/4 cup cilantro, oil and 1/2 tsp salt in a bowl.
- Divide shrimp evenly among packets, placing next to couscous.
- Fold foil to close and crimp edges to seal; place on grill; close lid; cook until packets are fully puffed, 10 minutes.
- Combine remaining 1/4 cup cilantro with remaining 1/4 tsp salt, mango, avocado, tomato, onion, jalapeño and lime juice in a bowl.
- Carefully cut foil to open; stir contents; garnish with salsa before serving.
Swapping couscous for dry quinoa fundamentally alters how moisture behaves inside a sealed foil packet, requiring a precise adjustment to the water ratio because quinoa absorbs significantly more liquid during steaming. Foil packet cooking relies entirely on trapped steam to cook delicate proteins and grains simultaneously without direct scorching, which means any breach in the crimped seams allows vital vapor to escape and leaves the grains stubbornly crunchy. Cooks frequently ruin this method by using excessive heat that instantly punctures the aluminum or melts the inner cooking spray before the internal temperature reaches the boiling point required to hydrate the couscous. Maintaining a medium grill temperature ensures the interior reaches 212 degrees Fahrenheit steadily, converting water to steam without aggressively boiling the shrimp into a tough, rubbery texture.
Evaluating doneness requires careful observation of visual and textural cues rather than relying on a digital probe inside a sealed pouch. Raw shrimp measure translucent grey and curl into a loose 'C' shape when properly cooked, turning opaque pink just as the foil packets puff outward tightly like miniature pillows after approximately 10 minutes of heat exposure. Opening the pouches immediately stops the carryover cooking process, preventing the residual 450-degree grill ambient heat from overcooking the shellfish while simultaneously allowing the fresh mango and avocado salsa to retain its vibrant acidity and structural integrity upon contact.
