Garlic-Lemon Shrimp and Asparagus Skillet

You already know how to feed yourself well. What's hard tonight is doing it when the sink is still full from this morning and the whole day has asked more of you than you had to give. This skillet does not ask much back: 1 pan, a cutting board, under 20 minutes.

Zinc is the reason shrimp belongs in this rotation, a mineral your body draws on for immune regulation and for keeping the gut lining intact. You get a real dose of it here without much effort at all.

Shrimp are small enough to forget they were ever alive. Cook them just until they turn opaque and stop, no longer, and let that restraint be the respect. Squeeze the lemon over the pan, sit down, and actually taste what you made before the evening pulls you into the next thing.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons coconut oil
• 1 pound peeled raw shrimp
• 1 bundle asparagus, chopped
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice (omit if you are managing interstitial cystitis)
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 2/3 cup chicken broth

Omit black pepper, which the source flags as off-limits on strict AIP. No swap is needed - the garlic and lemon carry the dish.

Method

• Warm the coconut oil in a wide skillet over medium-high heat.
• Add the shrimp, asparagus, lemon juice, and garlic. Cook, stirring, for about 4 minutes, until the shrimp turn pink.
• Pour in the broth and let it simmer for 3 to 5 minutes, until the asparagus is just tender. Serve hot.

To make it a fuller meal, stir in a handful of spinach or some diced sweet potato, or serve it over cauliflower rice or mashed sweet potato.

Instant Pot variation

Set the Instant Pot to saute. Warm the coconut oil, add the shrimp, asparagus, lemon juice, and garlic, and cook until the shrimp turn pink, about 4 minutes. Pour in the broth and let it bubble on saute for another few minutes until the asparagus softens. (verify - untested conversion)

*Adapted from acleanplate.com*