Bring a bit of steam heat to your table

Plump shrimp, crisp vegetables make for a flavorful, quick meal.

This meal of crisp vegetables and plump shrimp is light, fresh, flavorful and fast. It is just the thing to whip up when you need to reset from a weekend of typical summer party fare, heavy on the grilled meats and mayonnaise-y salads.

This dish celebrates the season healthfully by letting colorful summer vegetables — zucchini, red peppers and sugar snap peas — simply shine. And it couldn’t be more of a breeze to make. The vegetables are tossed into a steamer basket in which a bounty of shrimp have been given a few minutes’ head start, then everything steams together for another 4 or 5 minutes until the produce is crisp-tender and the shellfish is pink.

The mixture is served, over rice if you prefer, with a zingy drizzle made of soy sauce, grated ginger, scallion and sesame oil. The drizzle is more like a condiment than a sauce in that a little goes a long way to punch up the delicate flavor of the ingredients without overwhelming them.

With grilling season at full throttle, it is a nice change of pace to step away from the fire and allow steam to do the cooking just as quickly and effortlessly.

STEAMED SHRIMP AND SUMMER VEGETABLES WITH GINGER-SOY DRIZZLE

This dish celebrates the summer healthfully by letting colorful in-season vegetables shine.

From nutritionist and cookbook author Ellie Krieger. 3 tablespoons low-sodium soy

sauce

1 tablespoon peeled, finely

grated fresh ginger root 1 scallion (white and green

parts), thinly sliced

1 ½ teaspoons toasted sesame

oil

1 ¼ pounds large shrimp (16-20 count), peeled and deveined (tails discarded)

1 medium red bell pepper,

seeded and thinly sliced 1 medium zucchini, halved lengthwise then cut into ¼inch half moons

8 ounces sugar snap peas

(strings removed) Cooked brown rice, for serving (optional)

Fill a 4-quart pot halfway with water and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Seat a steamer basket on/in the pot, making sure it does not come in contact with the water.

Whisk together the soy sauce, ginger, scallion and toasted sesame oil in a liquid measuring cup.

Place the shrimp in the steamer basket; cover and steam-cook for 4 to 5 minutes, then arrange the vegetables on top of the shrimp. Cover and steam-cook for 4 to 5 minutes more, until the vegetables are crisp-tender and the shrimp is no longer translucent. (During this time, it may help to gently stir or toss the vegetables and shrimp once or twice, for even cooking.)

Serve over rice, if desired, drizzled with the sauce.

4 servings

Per serving: 180 calories, 32 g protein, 9 g carbohydrates, 3 g fat, 0 g saturated fat, 230 mg cholesterol, 570 mg sodium, 3 g dietary fiber, 5 g sugar

DEB LINDSEY / THE WASHINGTON POST Steamed shrimp and summer vegetables with gingersoy drizzle is a good change from grilled food while still showcasing seasonal produce.