Salad and I have a rocky relationship.
I’m sure you assumed as much, but these days we’ve been disagreeing more than usual.
I don’t think anything can be done to save the relationship either.
But when I make salads like these, they offer a bit of therapy.
It may be a favorite out of all the salads I’ve made.
It’s no secret that my piles of lettuce aren’t exactly veggie-filled.
In my opinion, that’s what makes them better.
Duh.
And you know I can’t have a salad without cheese and bacon.
As well as the token fruit – which in this case was mango and quite possibly the most delicious mango I’ve ever had.
I think I’ve said that before. But only once. This was only my second “perfect” mango.
I wish you could have seen how I attacked it.
I also threw on one of the heirloom tomatoes I bought on Saturday.
It was beautiful and juicy and seedy and vegetabley. If you catch my drift.
Eh, so I may have picked around the one vegetable on the plate. Sue me.
I needed more crunch than just the bacon alone, so I added some toasted tortilla strips. Coupled with the avocado, it was creamy and crispy. And shrimpy.
Grilled Shrimp Salad
serves 1
2 cups lettuce of choice
4 ounces raw peeled and deveined shrimp (or cooked)
1 small tomato, chopped
1/4 avocado, chopped
1/4 mango, chopped
2 slices bacon, fried and crumbled
1 ounce feta cheese
1/2 corn tortilla, cut into strips and toasted
Cut tortillas into strips and set oven to broil. Lay strips on a baking sheet and set under broiler for 2-3 minutes, or until crispy and golden brown. Set aside.
Preheat grill. Season shrimp with salt and pepper, or marinade of choice. Grill shrimp until colors changes to light orange, about 1-2 minutes per side.
Combine all ingredients together and top with dressing of choice.
Why must salads always taste better when someone else makes them?
I need my own personal salad chef. And if they want to make me dessert too, I won’t complain.
{ 71 comments… read them below or add one }
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YUM! Your photos are amazing! I’m allergic to shrimp, so I plan to make this with chicken. Thanks, Jessica!
I actually have all those ingredients in my house right now except the feta cheese. Looks like I might be having this as a meal today.
Thanks!
So colorful! The mango makes it extra pretty too.
Boo, this is all a tease to me – I can’t eat shrimp – I’m allergic! But I’m glad you are getting some veggies in.
i like the idea of mango on the salad! nice combination of colors, too:-)
This looks like a fabulous sweet n’ savory combination! Love it.
xo
Kris
I rarely make salads for that exact reason. They never taste good when I do it. Even if its all the same stuff. I love getting them out though. Or at salad bars.
Salads are the best when they are loaded with other good stuff! This one looks so good! I love making salads, but I have definitely gotten into a groove with them. From the looks of it…you aren’t doing so badly yourself! Have a great day Jessica!
Looks delicious, love summer salads! Quick and light, thanks for sharing! Have a great day!
ohh yumyumyum!! shrimp salads are one my my favorite things ever…I love that most restaurants have them too
with the mango and avocado, this looks like the perfect thing for summer’s last hurrah!!
grilled shrimp are so great, they do make an excellent salad topper!
Salads ALWAYS taste better when someone else makes them, which is why I never do! I like vegetables, but entree salads don’t pack enough of that comfort-food-punch that I adore so much!
This looks awesome! I love your loaded salads – so much yumminess in there! And mango and shrimp is one of my favorite combos – well, that and shrimp and bacon. And to put the two together… swooning!
What an awesome salad! Great idea to put crispy tortillas on top!
Your tomato looks so deep and vibrant!! Was it an heirloom?
Yes! I am loving the colors of them. That alone makes me want to eat them!
What a good looking salad. Can salads be good looking? ha! I love that you added mango! Yum!
Grilled shrimp, when well seasoned and fresh, can be the best thing in the world. Seafood is the sole reason I don’t go vegetarian. Oh, and bacon too.
Looks delicious! So colorful and summery!
I have to say that that is one beautiful salad (and I’m not even a huge salad fan)!
mmm anything with shrimp, mango, and bacon sounds amazing to me! I might try this with chicken as well, thanks for another great recipe
What a colorful salad!
maybe you and salads just need a “break.” maybe you could see some bacon while you try to figure things out.
This salad looks fab. Way better than the one I packed for my lunch.
Hi Jessica,
Your’s is a wonderful salad and yes, they always taste better when someone else makes them! Go figure?
I love salads as a side dish and as a main course unfortunately, my family isn’t very fond of them. My husband’s picky food habits have rubbed off on the children however, I still try to serve a sald every week!
What happened to the notion of eating whatever mom served you at the dinner table and not complaining??
You have a lovely blog!
Thank you!
And seriously – my mom only made ONE dinner! If we didn’t eat it, we either not ate or could make something ourselves.
Your pictures look so pretty! I think you are catching on to this dSLR thing pretty quick!
Ahhh thank you so much!
i have had the worst craving for shrimp lately…fuel to the fire my dear! fuel to the fire…
I have some shrimp, and a salad sounds delicious — the mango and avocado sounds so good mixed in with this! Thanks!
I love shrimp salads! They are my staple salad in the summer. Sometimes to add crunch I crumble chips on top. Oddly delicious and very not-salady.
That sounds dreamy.
That salad sounds fabulous! I love doing something similar with butter lettuce, grilled shrimp, mango, avocado, cilantro, and rice noodles. It’s like a brown down Summer Roll.
Agreed – meat and cheese…&bacon&nuts&creamydressing…are a MUST on salads.
The ever elusive perfect mango. Swoon.
holy crap that looks good. I love avocado, bacon and tortilla strips in salad. With salads, I always say the crunchier the better!
Do you cringe when you get to the green stuff?
you are SO right… salads especially taste better when someone else makes them…
I will come make you wonderful salads You Will Love, and you can make that peanut butter banana bread. and pizza dip.
okay? okay. deal.
Wow.. that is one of the prettiest salads I think I have ever seen!!! YUMMY!
ps. thanks for the add on twitter!!
That salad is so colorful! I love it!!
Yum, shrimp! This salad looks fab!
You should have called it shrimp salad with bacon, but I guess if it’s coming from you I might as well assume there is bacon in it.
omg this looks sooo good, and i am soooo highly (deathly!) allergic to shrimp. came out of no where when i was 23 after a lifetime of eating them. sigh. I was a vegetarian w/ the occasional fish…and yeah, not anymore!
Got your email, totally loved it and will reply but am slammed for time and need to get outta the house
Fruit on a salad is a sure way to get me to at least attempt to like a pile of veggies. Mango on a salad is new for me though, I think I’ve got to give it a try!
Whoa, this looks…what’s the word I want to use today? Umm…SCRUMPTIOUS! So good. Love the combo!
shrimp has got to be one of my favorite protein sources. YUM!
I juice up my salads, too. No shame in that.
What kind of dressing did you use? I always struggle to find new dressings for salads that I put fruit in.
I want a personal salad chef too!
That salad looks delish as I’m craving a really good bowl of greens right about now, but that’s not my reason for posting. I thought I’d share a recipe I found that involves two of your favorite ingredients: chocolate and bacon! Dark chocolate bacon cupcakes!!
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Dark-Chocolate-Bacon-Cupcakes/Detail.aspx
=)
Mangoes are so frustrating because so few are actually perfect, and once you have a perfect one all the un-perfects don’t taste as good.
Okay, this salad looks so inviting. I love all the colors, flavors and textures you’ve got going on. I’m not sure if I’ve had the perfect mango yet.
This looks delicious! I never make a salad without cheese – why bother? I forgot to add cheese to the salad I brought for lunch today and I’m still heartbroken about it. I mean, there’s ricotta in the dressing, but that’s not the same.
I can be your personal salad chef, but if I make them they may have too many veggies in them. Don’t worry I won’t deny you your bacon though!
I LOVE all of the different colors, textures, and flavors. This is MY kind of salad!
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