Fresh arugula avocado shrimp salad for weight loss

If you have some frozen shrimp and lots of summer vegetables sitting at home, you have to try this satisfying simple healthy salad recipe for weight loss! It’s a fresh arugula avocado and shrimp salad! So tasty, solid for dinner or lunch during summer or any time of year, really!

You’ll Love This Shrimp Avocado Salad

You seriously will, especially on a hot summer day, because this shrimp salad is:

• light
• refreshing
• flavorful
• satiating
• healthy
• rich in essential vitamins and minerals
• low carb and high in protein
• fast and simple to make

What’s Inside This Arugula Avocado And Shrimp Salad

• Shrimp. We used some frozen peeled and deveined shrimp we had in the freezer and defrosted it before cooking. If you do have fresh shrimp, you can of course, use that too. Shrimp is pretty rich in cholesterol, but it’s also a great source of several nutrients like protein, calcium and magnesium.
• Avocado. Watch for that special moment when your avocado is ripe, but not moldy! You want a good ripe avocado. Avocados are fat and kinda round, but they’re healthy. They’re full of all the right things: folate, most B vitamins, potassium, magnesium fiber, vitamin C and E and lots of healthy fats.
• Arugula. Arugula comes from a famous healthy family that includes broccoli, cauliflower and Brussels sprouts. We know, she’s like the gorgeous daughter that everyone secretly thinks is from another father. When it comes to nutrition, arugula is too, super-rich in antioxidants, potassium, vitamin C, calcium, magnesium, fiber and protein. Just like her stinky brothers cabbage, broccoli, kale and cauliflower, arugula is rich in isothiocyanates. The one type in arugula specifically is called erucin. Erucin and isothiocyanates in general can stimulate liver detox enzymes that help to transform and clean up carcinogens from the body, thus preventing cancer and chronic disease.
• Onion AND Garlic. That’s right, let’s keep those detoxifying liver enzymes going! Quite like arugula, onion and garlic are extremely healthy and are rich in sulfur-containing allicin. Allicin can again activate the same liver detox enzymes that help to prevent cancer. Onion and garlic provide this salad with the right amount of flavor. They are great for gut health and have strong antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, anti-viral and hepatoprotective properties.
• More fresh herbs and vegetables. Basil, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, bell pepper – all the good satisfying summer produce full of antioxidants, vitamins (especially C & A) and minerals.
• Olive oil, salt and pepper. Needed to bring everything together and make those flavors pop!

How it comes together

If you’re using frozen shrimp, make sure to defrost it first. You can simply let it sit in warm water for about 10 minutes and it will be ready.

Add the shrimp to a pan with some olive oil, garlic and black pepper. Cook on each side until it turns pink. This should take about 2-3 minutes on each side if you’re using medium or medium-high heat.

Chop all of the vegetables and mince the garlic. Put shrimp, onion, cucumber, tomatoes, minced garlic, avocado and basil into a large bowl. Toss with olive oil, salt and pepper. Lastly, gently add in the arugula and toss again.

Serve and enjoy the salad immediately!

Why Is This Shrimp Summer Salad Good For You

This satisfying healthy summer salad is nutrient-dense and made with a variety of antioxidant-rich foods. These foods work together to help your body stay healthy and to fight and prevent disease and chronic inflammation. Also, the salad is rich in healthy fats, fiber and protein to help keep you full longer and omega-3’s that can help to reduce chronic inflammation.

It’s A Great Weight Loss Salad

If losing weight and being healthy are your goals, then this is the type of food you need in your life! Food with lots of nutrients, a variety of them to cover your nutritional needs, lots of antioxidants, lots of good fats, fiber and protein to keep you satisfied longer.

After the past 2 years of stress and sitting, we definitely need to lose weight. We've grown what seems to be a triple chin and boobs on our back. Now we're focusing more on wholesome meals like this salad. We do, because while we might have gained weight, we can guarantee you, many of us aren’t oversupplied with essential and non-essential nutrients and antioxidants.

And when it comes to weight loss, you need to be eating fewer calories, yes, but also to be getting enough macronutrients, micronutrients and antioxidants that only real food can provide. Don’t focus as much on calories, as on the quality of those calories.

This arugula shrimp salad is low-carb, gluten-free, dairy-free and paleo.

We hope you enjoy it as much as we did! Let us know in the comments if you do have any feedback or questions!