Recipe for Cajun Popcorn Shrimp at Life's Ambrosia

Growing up whenever my grandparents on my mom’s side would come to visit my grandma and I would head to the grocery store to get some snacks. We’d grab the essentials like potato chips, dip, pop and pretzels, the bread and butter kind, they were the best. But one of our other essentials wasn’t that common, we’d always have to get a box of frozen popcorn shrimp. Once we got home we’d pop them in the oven and enjoy the tiny crunchy shrimp with loads of cocktail sauce. Now that I am grown up and have a little bit more kitchen experience, when I get the craving for popcorn shrimp I head into the kitchen to make my own. For this recipe, I decided to kick things up a little bit and season the shrimp with Cajun seasoning before breading them. I then fried them until they were golden brown and crunchy. One bite and I’m 10 years old again.

You will notice that the breading recipe for this is the same as my Crispy Marinated Mozzarella. It coats the shrimp nicely and adds the perfect crunch.

Cajun Popcorn Shrimp Recipe

Cajun marinated shrimp coated in bread crumbs and fried until golden.

Serves 4

Prep time: 1 hr

Cook time: 06 min

Ingredients:

1 (10 ounce, about 40-50 per bag) package of frozen small peeled and deveined prawns, thawed according to package directions
1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2- 3/4 cup flour
2 eggs
1/3-2/3 cup plain dry bread crumbs
1/3-2/3 cup panko bread crumbs
oil for frying
kosher salt

Instructions:

In a bowl combine shrimp, cajun seasoning and olive oil. Stir to coat. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
When you are ready to start cooking, heat 1/2 inch of oil in a saucepan over medium heat.
Place the flour in one bowl. Place the egg in a second bowl. In the third bowl combine the plain and panko bread crumbs.
First dredge the shrimp in the flour, shake off any excess. Dip the floured shrimp into the egg and then dredge in the bread crumb mixture. Repeat until all shrimp are coated.
Drop a few bread crumbs in the oil to see if its hot enough, if it sizzles, it is. Fry the shrimp in batches for 4-6 minutes or until golden brown. Be careful not to over crowd the pan. Transfer finished shrimp to paper towel lined plate. Sprinkle with kosher salt. Serve hot.

I serve these with Crispy Oven Fries and of course a side of cocktail sauce. Enjoy!

Responses to "Cajun Popcorn Shrimp"

“
Just found your blog. Love it!
”

- Maria

“
Mmm… fried food :)
”

- Sheila

“
These remind me so much of the times I used to work around the Bahamas….
”

- Rita

“
That’s the power of food, one of its many!!
I love dishes filled with nostalgia and happy memories, which transport you back in time after just one bite.
Aside from the sentimentality… this looks crunch-a-licious!
”

- Marta

“
Those popcorn shrimp look really good!
”

- Kevin

“
Those sound really, really tasty!
”

- chocolateshavings

“
These look great! Are the shrimp cooked or raw before you fry them?
”

- dawnie2u

“
hi dawnie2u Thanks! They are raw before I cook them.
”

- Deseree

“
I’ve made these a bunch of times since you posted them, and I just want to let you know that I absolutely adore them! We use them for our Yankeefied version of Shrimp Po’ Boy. They come out juicy and succulent every time. Perfect!
”

- Melissa K