
Up until about 3 months ago, I wasn’t able to watch any Bobby Flay show on FoodNetwork with Kyle in the room. He couldn’t stand Bobby, saying that he was way too full of himself. Well, duh. But I’ve always thought that this personality trait was what made Bobby so good at what he does. And because of this pull and push about this FN celeb, I never really got around to making any of Bobby’s recipes until we came across a recipe for sausage-stuffed portobello mushrooms back in March. We loved the recipe but I never blogged about it because my photos were horrific – you can pop over to Annie’s blog for the recipe and some really pretty photos though. And after testing this one out, we were both sold on Bobby’s abilities. After all that time. But I digress.
So when perusing the cookbook section of my local bookstore last month, I picked up Bobby’s Grill It! cookbook and after flipping through for a few minutes, I was sold. This recipe here is the first one we’ve tried from the book and we were very, very pleased with the results. And you can thank Kyle for choosing it (go figure). It is a wee bit time-consuming of a recipe and I requested that Kyle help me with the prep the next time we make it but the salad was certainly worth every bit of my time; it was FABULOUS!!! I do recommend cutting down the spice rub for the shrimp by half because it was very strong but I wouldn’t change a single thing about the rest of the recipe. It’s a salad full of beans, tomatoes, onions, grilled fingerling potatoes (yum!!!) and topped with grilled shrimp (though traditionally topped with tuna) and a delicious vinaigrette. And mom, if you’re reading this, I ate (and loved!) the green beans!! Only you would be so proud!! So if you’re looking for an impressive main course salad to serve to guests this summer, you must give this one a try!!
Grilled Spice-Rubbed Shrimp “Niçoise” Salad
source: Bobby Flay, Grill It!, pages 227-228
For the salad:
- Kosher salt
- 4 ounces fresh wax beans (which I couldn’t find so I omitted)
- 4 ounces fresh green beans
- 1 pound fingerling potatoes
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 pound red and yellow grape or cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 medium red onion, thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh basil leaves
- 2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
- Niçoise Vinaigrette, recipe follows
For the Spice-Rubbed Shrimp:
- 4 teaspoons ground fennel seed
- 1 1/2 teaspoons dry mustard
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 pound jumbo (21 to 25 count) shrimp, shelled and deveined
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- Fill a large bowl halfway with ice water and set aside.
- Bring a medium pot of salted cold water to a boil. Add the yellow and green beans and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, or until just crisp-tender. Drain and immediately plunge into the ice water to stop the cooking. Let sit in the ice water for a few minutes, and then drain well.
- Meanwhile, put the potatoes in a medium saucepan, cover with salted cold water, and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer until the potatoes are almost cooked through (a knife or skewer inserted into the center should meet just a little resistance), 8 to 10 minutes. Drain well and let cool slightly.
- Heat your grill to high.
- Once cool enough to handle, slice the potatoes lengthwise, brush with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. Place on the grill, cut side down, and cook until golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Turn over and grill until just cooked through, 1 to 2 minutes longer. Keep the grill on.
- Combine the cooked beans, grilled potatoes, tomatoes, onion, basil and parsley in a large bowl. Ad the vinaigrette and gently toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper. Cover and let sit at room temperature while you prepare the shrimp.
- To make the spice rub, combine the fennel, mustard and coriander with the salt and pepper in a bowl.
- Put the shrimp in a large bowl and toss with the spice rub until evenly coated. Add the 1/4 cup olive oil and toss to coat. Place the shrimp on the grates of the grill in an even layer and grill until golden brown and slightly charred, 1 1/2 to 2 minutes. Turn the shrimp over and continue grilling until just cooked through, 45 seconds to 1 minute longer.
- Arrange the salad on 4 large plates and top with the shrimp.
For the Niçoise Vinaigrette:
- 1/4 cup wine vinegar
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon anchovy paste (don’t skip this!!)
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Whisk together the vinegar, mustard, honey, garlic and anchovy paste and season with salt and pepper. Slowly whisk in the olive oil.

I think you might find this very recipe pop up on a few other blogs in the coming days and I certainly hope you will consider making it yourself because these gyros are fantastic!! Granted, neither Kyle nor myself had ever eaten gyros before so we don’t really have anything to compare them to but when I saw them over at Annie’s Eats and that they were Elly’s recipe, I had to give them a fair shot. How could they not be good coming from a person whose blog name is Elly Says Opa! ??
Make sure you give yourself plenty of time to make this one but trust me, you won’t be sorry! I had huge issues straining the water off the yogurt with cheesecloth and after a huge white mess I figured out how to make it work. I only let it strain for about 2 hours but the leftover yogurt seemed to be plenty thick enough. I should have read Elly’s tzatziki post before making it since she does note that using Greek yogurt (like Fage) will work fine because it is already strained and thick. This would have considerably cut down on the prep time. And in another attempt to cut down on the prep time, I took Annie’s suggestion and use my food processor’s shredder attachment (for the first time which was tons of fun!!).
The chicken was bursting with flavor with a little tanginess from the yogurt in the marinade and the tzatziki sauce was both refreshing from the cukes and powerful from the fresh garlic (which we love!). And the combination of the tzatziki and the chicken was to die for. My only regret about the dish was not making my own pitas, which I will definitely do this weekend when I make these gyros again. I ran out of time on Sunday and was bouncing between the yard and the kitchen trying to get things done in both areas and making pitas just wasn’t in the cards. Keep your eye open for that post next week though!!
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One year ago: Pasta, Pesto, and Peas
Two years ago: Creamy Orzo with Herb-Rubbed Grilled Chicken
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Chicken Gyros
source: found on Annie’s Eats and adapted from Elly Says Opa!
For the tzatziki sauce:
- 16 oz. plain yogurt (not nonfat, if possible)
- 1/2 hothouse cucumber or 1 regular cucumber, peeled and seeded
- 2-3 cloves garlic, pressed through a garlic press (or finely minced)
- 1 tsp. white wine vinegar
- Salt and pepper
- Squeeze of fresh lemon juice
For the chicken:
- 4 cloves garlic, smashed
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 2 tsp. red wine vinegar
- 2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
- 2 heaping tbsp. plain yogurt
- 1 tbsp. dried oregano
- Salt and pepper
- 1 1/4 lbs. chicken pieces (I used boneless, skinless chicken breasts)
To assemble:
- Pita bread
- Fresh tomatoes, seeded and diced
- Red onion, sliced thin
- To make the tzatziki sauce, strain the yogurt using cheesecloth over a bowl. Let strain for several hours or overnight, if possible, to remove as much moisture as possible.
- Shred the cucumber. Wrap in a towel a squeeze to remove as much water as possible. Mix together the strained yogurt, shredded cucumber, garlic, white wine vinegar, salt and pepper to taste, and lemon juice. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving to allow the flavors to meld.
- To prepare the chicken, combine the garlic, lemon juice, red wine vinegar, olive oil, yogurt, oregano, and salt and pepper to taste in a medium bowl. Whisk together until mixed well. If using chicken breasts, cut the breasts into 1/2″ strips and add the chicken pieces to the bowl; mix well to coat. Cover and refrigerate for 1-2 hours.
- Cook the chicken as desired, either in the skillet or with the broiler (I grilled them). Once the chicken is completely cooked through, transfer to a plate and let rest for 5 minutes.
- Heat pitas. Top with chicken, tzatziki sauce, diced tomatoes and sliced onions. Serve immediately.










