Let the Sauce Take Center Stage in This 30-Minute Recipe

Fragrant chermoula punches up the flavor of this 30-minute shrimp and kale bake. (Lynda Balslev for Tastefood)

It’s not fair to say that this recipe is all about the chermoula sauce. After all, shrimp and kale are equal heavyweights in this dish. It’s just that the chermoula sauce does something wicked to it.

Chermoula, as you may know, is a fragrant North African slurry of fresh herbs, citrus, and spices. It’s typically used as a marinade for fish, but it’s also delicious with meat, chicken, and roasted vegetables. In fact, it’s so good, you might be tempted to eat it with a spoon or swipe a hunk of bread through it and call it a snack.

Chermoula is a North African sauce of fresh herbs, citrus, and spices. (Jack Jelly/Shutterstock)

Chermoula adds great flavor and zing to anything it graces, which is why you should include it in your sauce repertoire. And by “sauce,” I mean a whole lot of ingredients that get blitzed in a food processor to a salsa consistency, so there are no complicated or time-consuming techniques involved to achieve this delicious condiment.

This recipe involves a simple two-step process. The kale gets a head start in the oven to allow the hearty leaves to wilt slightly, then a pile of chermoula-glistening shrimp is spread over the kale and returned to the oven. This process ensures that the kale and shrimp finish cooking at the same time, and the chermoula and shrimp juices will have time to baste the kale as it continues to wilt.

Serve it immediately with crusty bread or garlic bread for soaking up the pan juices and layering the roasted kale and shrimp on top, if you are so inclined.

Chermoula Shrimp and Kale Bake

Active Time: 30 minutes Total Time: 30 minutes

Serves 4

For the Chermoula

• 1 cup fresh cilantro sprigs, chopped
• 1/2 cup fresh Italian parsley leaves, chopped
• 2 large garlic cloves, minced
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
• 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, or more as needed

To Assemble

• 1 to 1 1/2 pounds (15/18) jumbo shrimp, deveined, shells removed, tails optional
• 1 bunch lacinato or curly green kale, tough ribs removed
• Extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/4 lemon, plus additional wedges for serving
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

Heat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Place all of the chermoula ingredients except the oil in a food processor and pulse to chop. Add the 1/4 cup oil and process to blend. The chermoula should have a loose salsa consistency. If needed, add more oil, 1 tablespoon at a time, to achieve the desired consistency. Taste for seasoning and add a little more salt, if desired.

Place the shrimp in a large bowl. Add half of the chermoula sauce and stir to coat. The shrimp should be evenly coated but not doused. Add additional chermoula as needed to coat. Set aside any remaining chermoula for drizzling.

Tear the kale leaves into large, coarse pieces and place them in a separate bowl. Lightly drizzle with oil, about 1 tablespoon. Squeeze a quarter lemon over the kale and sprinkle with a generous pinch of kosher salt. Using your fingers, mix the kale to coat, gently rubbing the oil into the leaves. Spread the kale in an even layer in a 9-by-13-inch baking dish or sheet pan. Bake in the oven until the leaves begin to wilt, 5 to 7 minutes.

Remove the baking dish from the oven and spread the shrimp over the kale. Lightly brush a little more chermoula over the kale and shrimp. (Any remaining chermoula can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 1 day.)

Return the baking dish to the oven and cook until the shrimp are bright in color and opaque through the centers, 11 to 14 minutes, depending on the size of the shrimp.

Serve warm with lemon wedges and crusty bread or garlic bread.

Lynda Balslev is a cookbook author, food and travel writer, and recipe developer based in the San Francisco Bay Area, where she lives with her Danish husband, two children, a cat, and a dog. Lynda studied cooking at Le Cordon Bleu Ecole de Cuisine in Paris and worked as a personal chef, culinary instructor, and food writer in Switzerland and Denmark. Copyright 2021 Lynda Balslev. Distributed by Andrew McMeel Syndication.