Coconut Shrimp

Coconut shrimp is that easy appetizer that is finger licking good. Golden brown light flaky coconut crust on the outer is so crispy and the shrimp inside is so tender; you’ll fall instantly in love with this quick and easy to make finger food.

Coconut Shrimp Recipe

This coconut shrimp recipe is great appetizer for any party or entertainment. It’s perfect finger food you want to serve for game day or football parties. IT’S PARTY PERFECT!

This recipe has been tested multiple times in my kitchen, and I can guarantee you one thing you won’t fail with overly breaded shrimp! Yes that was my first failure. I ended up with overly breaded shrimp and that so overwhelming the shrimp. 

You won’t need second coating; the recipe for breading is just perfect. When it comes to breaded deep fried seafood, light coating to give you crunchy crispy outer is what you want. 

After frying you’ll get super crispy outer crust with sweet and tender shrimp inside. You’ll need very little time to make and guaranteed crowd pleaser. 

Coconut shrimp needs a perfect complement, a dipping sauce to enjoy thoroughly. There are many choices for dipping sauce, I personally like with sweet chili sauce. Other great coconut shrimp sauces for dipping are apricot chili sauce or pineapple marmalade. Make sure to dip in the sauce for each bite, it’s heavenly!

Coconut Shrimp Recipe Ingredients 

You’ll need all party appetizer staples to make this Caribbean favorite shrimp recipe. Most of you might already have them all in your pantry – 

• Jumbo shrimp
• Flour 
• Garlic powder
• Smoked paprika
• Salt n pepper to taste
• Eggs
• Shredded coconut 
• Panko bread crumbs
• Vegetable Oil for frying   

How To Bread Coconut Shrimp?

You want to have light, even breading on the shrimp without overwhelming. The perfect method to achieve that – is by having 3 separate bowls with different coating mixes.

First bowl – mix flour, garlic powder, salt n pepper to taste and smoked paprika together. 

Second bowl – whisk two eggs.

Third bowl – mix together unsweetened shredded coconut and Panko bread crumbs.

How to make coconut shrimps?

It’s crucial to have shrimps cleaned, de veined and pat dried ready before you start. Any moisture content in shrimp will cause oil spluttering all over your kitchen when fried. It’s hazardous! 

Get your family to help bread the shrimp. A couple of extra hands always helps making the recipe fast. This recipe is two step – coating shrimp in three different mixes and frying it ( can be baked too!)

My kids always offer to help when we plan on making this delicious coconut crusted shrimps. 

First coat shrimp in flour spice mix, next dip the shrimps in beaten eggs and finally finish it off with coconut-Panko coating. And in no time we had couple of trays of shrimps coated and ready to be fried. Team work is great! 

Heat up oil in wide shallow pan. Wait for oil to reach temperature between 350 -375 degrees Fahrenheit. Carefully transfer breaded shrimps into hot oil. Do not over crowd the pan. Fry few shrimps at a time, and you’ll have to fry couple of batches. 

Once shrimps turn golden brown, remove from oil onto a tray lined with kitchen towel. 

Serve hot with your favourite dipping sauce. 

Tips to make best coconut shrimp

1. Raw shrimp works best rather than frozen shrimps. Leave the tail on while cleaning shrimps. Though this is optional, it makes it easier to bread shrimp. Easy to handle while eating too. 
2. Jumbo shrimp or large sized prawns are best for the recipe.
3. Pat dry shrimps well before coating it in flour, egg, coconut mix. Any moisture in the shrimp will cause oil to splutter all over. 
4. Unsweetened shredded coconut gives a nice savory touch to these fried shrimps. Sweetened shredded coconut gives a nice tropical touch to it. Pick which you would love.  
5. Wait till oil is heated to 350 to 375 degree Fahrenheit. Fry in small batches. Do not over crowd the pan. Shrimps won’t crisp up evenly. 

Can I bake coconut shrimp ?

Yes, you can. To make baked coconut shrimp , bread shrimps as mentioned in the recipe. Arrange breaded shrimps on wire rack lined on baking tray and bake at 400 degree Fahrenheit for 10-12 minutes flipping once in between. Place under broiler for 2 minutes to get that signature golden brown crust. 

Can I air fryer coconut shrimp? 

Why not, you definitely can air fryer it. If you own an air fryer , you have the best option to make golden crust air fryer coconut shrimp without deep frying. Simple spray oil on both sides and air fryer it at 400 degree Fahrenheit for 8 to 9 minutes, flipping in between once. 

How can I turn this into KETO coconut shrimp?

If you are on keto diet it’s very easy to make this appetizer keto friendly. Replace plain flour with coconut flour and leave out Panko break crumbs( use only cocooned flakes for breading in third bowl). The rest of the recipe remains the same. 

More party perfect appetizers to try:

Baked Zucchini Chips

Baked Potato Roses

Instant Pot Chicken Wings

Bacon Wrapped Shrimp

Deviled Eggs With Bacon

Bang Bang Shrimp

Chicken Enchilada Roll-Ups

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