Delicious Easy Crispy Fried Shrimp Recipe

Crispy, juicy, delicious fried shrimp seasoned to perfection. The perfect appetizer for birthday and cocktail parties.

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I love seafood, and shrimp has to be my favorite, after only lobster, of course. Lol! I like them small, medium, large, and jumbo… I like them steamed or fried, and I even add them to many of my favorite dishes, too.

Sometimes, I like to use them as a garnishment for my seared T-bone and Ribeye steak. I also put shrimp in my salads and love them in Fettuccini alfredo. So, as y’all can see… I really love shrimp!

So you know I had to make a fried shrimp recipe!!! And if you’re looking for a good but simple one, this one is definitely a keeper! I remember my parents frying shrimp almost every Friday night during the summer.

They would also fry pounds of fish – I guess they call themselves having a weekend seafood fish fry. And when my nana made them, they would always be so flavorful, juicy, crispy, and well seasoned. 

What to love about this fried shrimp recipe:

• Easy to make: Shrimp are so easy to make, so easy that a teenager should be able to follow this recipe and cook them with ease. All you’re doing is coating and frying. With my simple, direct instructions, this recipe is hard to mess up.
• Takes little time: Fried shrimp takes about 30 mins to cook, which is one reason I love them so much. All you do is do a little cleaning, season, and combine your binding ingredients, coat, and fry. Nothing to it but to do it; it’s not laborious at all!
• Fan favorite: Everybody loves fried food and seafood… I don’t mean literally, but shrimp is popular, especially fried shrimp. If you follow this recipe to a T and take it to a cocktail party, no one will have any complaints.

Cookware and utensils you’ll need:

• 3 Small Mixing Bowls: Make sure you have three small mixing bowls, one for the flour, one for the egg wash, and another for the breadcrumbs.
• Large Skillet: You’ll need a large skillet or pot to fry the shrimp in.
• Slotted Spoon: Make sure you have a slotted spoon on hand to add the shrimp to and remove it from the pot of oil.
• Cooling Rack: Have a cooling rack to set the shrimp on after they fry.
• Measuring Cups: You need measuring cups to measure the flour, breadcrumbs, and oil accurately.
• Measuring Spoons: You need measuring spoons to accurately measure the seasonings.

Ingredients you’ll need:

• Meat: Shrimp
• Seasonings: Seasoning salt, old bay, cajun seasoning, garlic powder, and black pepper
• Binding: Milk and Eggs
• Breading: All Purpose Flour and plain breadcrumbs
• Other: Oil and butter

How to clean shrimp

So as I’ve said many times before under previous recipes… I like to clean my meats because that’s how I was raised and what I saw my grandmothers do. But listen, you’re eating it, so do you!

Some people believe you shouldn’t clean meats because they think cleaning the meat will somehow cause the spread of germs. Below are a few common ways to clean meats if you decide to clean your shrimp.

• Saltwater: Salt and water is a common solution we use here in the States to clean our meats. Use 3 cups of water and 1 tbsp of salt.
• Water + vinegar: Vinegar and water is also a common cleaning solution for food that’s used often in the U.S by cooks and chefs to clean their meats.
• Water + Lemon or lime juice: This is more of a Caribbean thing but still effective at cleaning your meat. Some people even use baking soda etc. I don’t do all that; I just keep it simple with some salt water.

Deveined shrimp

• Shell & tail on: I’m using raw shrimp, and it comes in a bag that may read “shell & tail on,” which means you have to remove them yourself.
• Peeled and Deveined: When a bag of shrimp reads, “Peeled & deveined,” it means the shell and tail have been removed along with the black strings, which are the shrimp’s digestive tract.
• Double-check: I find that they rarely ever remove all of it, so be mindful of that and check to see if there are any remaining black lines, which AGAIN is the shrimp’s digestive tract. Remove them if you see any.

That’s pretty much it when it comes to preparing and cleaning shrimp. You don’t have to remove the tail, by the way; it’s traditional to leave the tail on fried shrimp.

You just want to make sure you give them a nice scrub after letting them soak in the cleaning solution and then remove the digestive tract because it’s just a turn-off not to.

Season everything

First things first. The most important factor in cooking some bomb azz shrimp is to ensure they’re seasoned well because no one wants bland shrimp! After you decide what seasoning you want to use…

Make sure you season EVERYTHING! When I say everything, I mean the shrimp and the flour/breadcrumbs. Seasoning the egg wash isn’t necessary, but you can do that too. Haha! All this maximizes the flavor.

The egg wash

• What is egg wash? Egg wash is an adhesive/gluing agent that helps breading, such as flour, cornmeal, and breadcrumbs, better stick/adhere to the meat.
• What is it made of? Egg wash is typically made of eggs and milk or water. But people also combine the eggs with other things, such as hot sauce, pickle juice, or buttermilk, to help tenderize or add flavor to the meat.
• When and how do you use it? You basically dip and fully submerge the meat in it, then you dredge your meat in whatever you’re coating it with. This egg wash makes the breading hold to the meat better during frying.
• Important notes: Yes, I would say always give your fish, chicken, pork chops, or whatever meat you’re cooking 30 to 40 minutes to rest before frying.

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Breading options

• Panko Breadcrumbs: Panko breadcrumbs leave a very crunchy exterior. This is probably the most common breading used for fried shrimp. 
• Plain Breadcrumbs: Plain breadcrumbs are very fine, unlike their largest counterpart, panko breadcrumbs. It leaves a very even sandy texture and exterior. as seen in the recipe photos.
• All-purpose Flour: I know this may confuse some of you because we’re already using flour. But here, you’ll use the flour as the first coating before dipping the shrimp into the egg wash, AND it will serve as the final and last coating.
• Other options: You can use cornmeal, although that’s not common, or you can grind up your favorite bag of chips and coat the shrimp with that if you want. What you coat them with is up to you. Experiment and have fun.

Preheating the oil

• Preheat the oil: Let the oil get hot before adding the shrimp. People new to cooking often make this CRITICAL mistake. If you add the shrimp to cold oil, the coating will not just come off, but the shrimp will absorb the oil and become greasy.
• Gets crisp fast: If the oil is hot when you add the shrimp, it will crisp up immediately, which is what you want. If not, the breading you coated your shrimp (meat) with will come off and float to the bottom of the pot and burn.
• Don’t preheat too long: Make sure not to preheat the oil for too long because the oil will splash and pop all over the place when you add the shrimp, and the shrimp will burn a little.

Keys to crispy tender shrimp

I remember trying to make shrimp for the first time. I tried to prepare them the way my nana did, and let’s just say… I failed HORRIBLY!!!  The key to the perfect shrimp are:

• Short cooking time: One of the mistakes I made was cooking them for too long. Shrimp are not meant to be cooked for long; it’s not a tough or large size of meat. Lol! Overcooking them will result in dry, chewy meat.
• High heat: Frying them at a high temperature gets them crispy fast, which is what you want because if you fry them for too long, AGAIN, you will dry them out and ruin the texture. 3-4 mins over high heat is the key for crispy, tender shrimp.

How to make crispy fried shrimp

1.   Remove the shells, then wash the shrimp by soaking them in some water and salt, vinegar, or lime.
2. Scrub them with your hands a little bit too
3. Pat dry, then season the shrimp and flour.
   
   

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4. Coat the shrimp with the flour, then shake off excess flour.
5. You don’t want the breading to be too thick and have that hushpuppy effect to shake off excess flour with a tap aside the bowl.
   
   

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6. Take the flour-coated shrimp and fully dip them in the egg wash.
7. Make sure every part of the shrimp is coated with egg wash. This is what’s going to make the breadcrumbs stick.
   
   

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8. Then, coat the shrimp with the breadcrumbs and set them aside. 
9. Make sure you press the shrimp into the breadcrumbs and coat both sides well.

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Tips for best results:

• Fry in batches: I know we have a propensity to want to rush things and fry at once, but if you can, fry them in batches. Frying too much at a time not only brings the temperature down but prevents getting crispy and frying quickly.
• Set on cooling rack: Set your shrimp on a cooling rack so excess oil drips off. If you set it on a paper towel, the shrimp will absorb the oil, which may make it soft and soggy.

Serving suggestions:

• Tartar sauce: Tartar sauce goes with seafood, like peanut butter goes with jelly. Tartar is one of the most common dipping sauces for fried shrimp.
• Cocktail sauce: Cocktail sauce is synonymous with shrimp and is probably the #1 condiment of choice for fried shrimp.
• Lemon juice: A little drizzle of lemon juice over fried shrimp tastes pretty good and is something a lot of people enjoy.
• French fries: I don’t need to say much here. Lol! When you think of a shrimp platter, you think of crispy fried shrimp served with french fries.

Storage and reheating

• How to store them: If you have any leftovers, you can simply wrap them in aluminum foil, or you can set them in a Tupperware bowl and cover them with a lid, then set them in the refrigerator.
• Can you freeze them? You can put these shrimp in a Ziploc bag and freeze them. You don’t have to cook them immediately. After adding the breading you can store them in the freezer. They’ll be fresh for months.
• How to reheat the shrimp: The best way to reheat leftover fried shrimp is to air fry or bake them for a few minutes so they get that nice crispy exterior again. Reheating them in the microwave will make them soft and dry them out.

Frequently asked questions

• Will I get sick if I eat the digestive tract? No, not at all… people love to eat Dungeness crab poop! Haha! It’s actually safe to eat. People just prefer to remove it because they know what it is and because it has a slightly bitter taste.

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Other appetizers you might like:

• The BEST Stuffed Peppers Recipe Ever
• Homemade Buffalo Wings Recipe
• World’s Best Deviled Eggs Recipe

Ok, PBJ’s… I hope yall enjoy this fried shrimp recipe. If you do, please leave a comment below, letting us and the viewers know how things went. Also, subscribe to receive notifications every time I post a new recipe.

Also, don’t be a stranger! Follow me on social media at the following handles: Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. See ya soon, God bless!

Enjoy, later!

PBJ!

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Delicious Easy Crispy Fried Shrimp Recipe

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 8 reviews

• Author: PhillyboyJay
• Prep Time: 30mins
• Cook Time: 15mins
• Total Time: 45mins
• Yield: 4
• Category: Seafood
• Cuisine: American

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Description

Crispy, juicy, delicious fried shrimp seasoned to perfection. The perfect appetizer for birthday and cocktail parties.

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Ingredients

• 1 Lb Raw Jumbo Shrimp
• 2 Large Eggs
• 2 Tsps Whole Milk
• 3 Cups Vegetable Oil
• 2 Tbs Butter
• 1 Cup All-Purpose Flour
• 1 Cup Plain Breadcrumbs
• 1 Tsp Seasoning Salt
• 1 Tsp Old Bay Seasoning
• 1 Tsp Garlic Powder
• 1/2 Tsp Italian Seasoning
• 1/2 Tsp Black Pepper
• 1/4 Tsp Cajun Seasoning

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Instructions

1. Peel the shrimp, then set them aside.
2. Combine all the seasonings.
3. Combine the eggs and milk, then whisk well.
4. Season the shrimp with half of the seasonings and the flour and breadcrumbs with the remaining half.
5. Coat the shrimp (a few at a time) with the seasoned flour, then shake off the excess flour.
6. Dip the flour-coated shrimp in the egg wash and let the excess egg drip off.
7. Coat the shrimp with breadcrumbs, then set aside.
8. Place a small pot over medium-high heat, then add in the oil and butter.
9. Once the oil is hot after 4 mins or so, add in the shrimp 6-8 at a time, and fry for 4 minutes, then set aside on a cooling rack, with a paper towel underneath.

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Notes

• The first batch of shrimp will take longer to fry because the oil cools down when you add the shrimp to the oil. The 2nd, 3rd, and 4th batches of shrimp won’t take as long to brown because the oil will be hotter. 
• The butter isn’t necessary! I use it to add flavor to the oil. Everything tastes better with butter.

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Nutrition

• Serving Size: 4