Nineteen items and forty minutes, and only the shrimp are cooked.
Two of those items are sauces rather than one. They are blended separately, they look different in the bowl, and they are spooned over separately.
Why This Recipe Works
- A very hot pan is what chars the spice crust rather than simply cooking it.
- Splitting the cilantro between the salsa and the herb sauce puts it in two places.
- Yogurt carries the heat of the hot sauce without the bowl turning sharp.
- Oil rather than dairy in the second sauce keeps its green bright against the pale one.
- Sectioning the toppings rather than tossing them keeps each one visible.
Ingredient Notes
- Large shrimp with smoked paprika, garlic powder and cayenne
- A pound with a teaspoon, half a teaspoon and a quarter teaspoon. The paprika and cayenne are what give the red-orange crust that blackens at the edges.
- Cooked quinoa
- Two cups, and it is the base of the bowl. The title names no grain at all, but the photograph shows quinoa underneath everything.
- Greek yogurt with lime juice and hot sauce
- A third of a cup with a tablespoon and a teaspoon. This is the pale pink-white drizzle, and it is the sauce that has to stay refrigerated.
- Cilantro leaves with olive oil, lime and garlic
- A third of a cup with two tablespoons, a tablespoon and one clove. A separate sauce entirely — no dairy in it, which is what keeps it green.
How to Make It
Corn, tomato, red onion and half the cilantro mixed into salsa
Mix corn, tomato, red onion, and half the cilantro into a simple salsa.
Yogurt, lime and hot sauce blended into the pale creamy sauce
Blend yogurt, 1 tbsp lime juice, and hot sauce into the pale pink-white creamy sauce.
Remaining cilantro, oil, lime and garlic blended into a separate green sauce
Blend remaining cilantro, 2 tbsp olive oil, additional lime juice, and garlic into a separate green herb sauce.
Shrimp seasoned and seared until charred and opaque
Season shrimp with paprika, garlic powder, and cayenne; sear in a very hot skillet until charred at the edges and pearly-white and opaque.
Quinoa divided, salsa, avocado and greens arranged around it
Divide quinoa among bowls and arrange corn salsa, avocado, and shredded greens around it.
Shrimp on top, both sauces drizzled separately, cilantro over
Top with shrimp, drizzle with both sauces separately, and finish with chopped cilantro.
Read the Bowl Upward, and Count the Drizzles
There are two distinct drizzles on this bowl - one pale pink-white, one green - and they are two separate sauces, not one catching the light. They are the top layer below; everything under it is what the two sauces land on.
TWO SAUCES - drizzled separately
SAUCE ONE, the pale pink-white: 1/3 cup GREEK YOGURT blended with 1 tbsp LIME JUICE and 1 tsp HOT SAUCE. SAUCE TWO, the green: 1/3 cup CILANTRO LEAVES blended with 2 tbsp OLIVE OIL, 1 tbsp ADDITIONAL LIME JUICE and 1 SMALL GARLIC CLOVE. One is dairy and one is oil, which is why they stay visually distinct in the bowl rather than merging into a single streak. DRIZZLE WITH BOTH SAUCES SEPARATELY - separately matters - then FINISH WITH CHOPPED CILANTRO. The yogurt sauce and any assembled leftovers are a 40°F OR BELOW item.
The SHRIMP - CHARRED, in a VERY HOT pan
1 lb of LARGE SHRIMP seasoned with 1 tsp SMOKED PAPRIKA, 1/2 tsp GARLIC POWDER and 1/4 tsp CAYENNE, SEARED IN A VERY HOT SKILLET UNTIL CHARRED AT THE EDGES AND PEARLY-WHITE AND OPAQUE. Two endpoints in one instruction: the char is the look and the pearly opacity is the doneness cue. A moderate pan gives you neither - the spice crust goes dull red and the shrimp overcook waiting for colour that never arrives.
AROUND, not on - avocado and shredded greens
1 sliced AVOCADO and 2 cups of SHREDDED GREENS ARRANGED AROUND the quinoa. Arranged rather than tossed. The bowl is SECTIONED, with each component in its own visible wedge, and tossing it would give you a salad instead of a composed bowl. The shredded greens are another component the title does not name.
The SALSA - corn, tomato, red onion, HALF the cilantro
1 cup CORN KERNELS, 1 cup DICED TOMATO, 1/3 cup DICED RED ONION and half of the 1/4 cup CHOPPED CILANTRO mixed into A SIMPLE SALSA. Half is the operative word - the other half of the chopped cilantro finishes the bowl at the end, and a separate 1/3 cup of whole CILANTRO LEAVES goes into the green sauce. Three different jobs for the same herb.
The BASE - 2 cups of QUINOA, which the title never mentions
COOKED QUINOA DIVIDED AMONG BOWLS. The title names avocado, corn, shrimp and a creamy sauce, and no grain at all - but a pale quinoa base sits under everything, and it is part of the bowl rather than an optional bed. It is also the reason the two sauces work: they run down into the grain rather than pooling on a bare bowl.
Success Tips
- Get the pan properly hot before the shrimp go in, or the crust never chars.
- Blend the two sauces in whichever order suits, but rinse the jar between them.
- Drizzle them in separate passes so both stay visible on the finished bowl.
Serving Ideas
Four bowls of pale quinoa sectioned with corn, tomato and red onion salsa, sliced avocado and shredded greens, topped with charred blackened shrimp and drizzled separately with a pale pink-white yogurt sauce and a green cilantro-lime sauce, scattered with chopped coriander.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is that one sauce or two?
Two. A spicy lime yogurt sauce, which is the pale pink-white one, and a cilantro-lime herb sauce, which is the green one. They are blended separately and drizzled separately.
Do I need a grill for the shrimp?
No. A very hot skillet does it. What matters is that the edges char and blacken against the spice crust while the shrimp turn pearly-white and opaque.
Can I make this ahead?
The sauces and salsa can be made ahead. Keep the yogurt sauce and any assembled leftovers refrigerated at 40 degrees Fahrenheit or below.
