This grilled seafood salad is one of my all time favorites for light casual summer eating, it’s a combination of shrimp, scallops and calamari which lay on top of mixed greens and crunchy vegetables, it’s all tossed in a lemon vinaigrette that’s spiked with a little limoncello, which gives the dressing that extra zing!
All the seafood can be grilled ahead of time and then the salad can be composed at the last minute so it’s perfect for entertaining. Add some crusty bread and a bottle of wine and I promise you’ll be in for a scrumptious treat!
I used this beautiful new grill pan I got, but any grill pan will do.
Quite honestly I don’t like grilling delicate seafood directly on top of the grates on my out door grill unless it’s on a plank or something to hold them secure, because with out fail something always falls between the grates and I have to try and pick it out before it burns, so I’ve always used an indoor grill pan for this grilled seafood salad.
I already own a heavy cast iron grill pan with a popular name that I thought I would use much more than I do, but it’s a pain to clean. I end up boiling water in it to loosen up the food that gets stuck between the grates then I have to take my time using a plastic scraper to try and remove it all, like I said it’s a pain!
Fresh, easy and pretty enough for a summer party, picnic or any get together of friends or family!
Arrange everything on a big platter with crusty bread all around and some of the grilled lemons and you’ll be sure to impress your guests.
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- Amounts will very according to your seafood preference, this is just an estimate on what I used for 4 servings.
- SEAFOOD
- 8 large shrimp, tails off
- 8 oz. sea scallops
- 1 lb. of calamari ( I leave the bodies whole and cut into rings later, it's easier
- SEAFOOD MARINADE
- 4 cloves of chopped garlic
- the zest of 1 big lemon
- a handful of chopped parsley
- salt and pepper
- drizzled olive oil to coat seafood
- 2 lemons, cut into slices for grilling
- SALAD
- 2 fennel bulbs, sliced thin
- 1 bunch of celery hearts with the leaves, chopped
- 5 radishes, sliced thin
- a handful of capers
- assorted olives, sliced
- cherry tomatoes, sliced
- For the greens I used a mix of water cress and arugula,(mostly arugula)
- LEMON AND OLIVE OIL DRESSING
- 1 part lemon juice ( with a splash of limoncello, optional) to 3 parts extra virgin olive oil
- Make sure all seafood has been padded dry before you marinade them, you should have no added moisture.
- Place all seafood in a glass bowl with all the marinade ingredients, toss and let it sit for 40 minutes.
- Grill all your seafood, which can be grilled up to a day ahead, let it cool down then refrigerate them separately, if you're doing them ahead, not all mixed together. Either way seafood should not be warm or hot for this salad, room temp or cold.
- Whisk up your dressing and set aside.
- When you're ready to compose your salad slice the scallops into quarters or in half according to their size.
- Cut calamari bodies into rings.
- Leave shrimp whole and the calamari legs.
- In a separate large bowl toss all salad ingredients together except for the seafood, you can add more or less or any other ingredient you would like to add, there is no exact rule with a salad.
- Add and toss your dressing, less is more, don't drench it, taste as you go.
- Grab a huge platter, place salad on top, arrange all the seafood on top of the greens, add in some grilled lemons slices.
- Don't forget toasted or grilled crunchy bread, it's a must!