Crispy Popcorn Shrimp (with 2 Homemade Dipping Sauces)
Easy, crispy shallow fried popcorn shrimp with homemade Sweet Chili and Lemon Garlic dipping sauces.
Equipment
- 1 large sauté pan (or any other heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven)
- 1 spider strainer (or metal tongs)
Ingredients
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp smoked paprika
- ½ tsp Cajun seasoning (see Note 1)
- ½ tsp Old Bay seasoning (see Note 2)
- ¼ tsp dried dill
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp freshly cracked black pepper
- ¾ cup all purpose flour
- 1 large egg
- 2 tbsp milk (any percentage is great)
- 1 lb shrimp peeled, deveined and tails removed (see Note 3)
- 2 cups neutral oil, for frying (see Note 4)
Sweet Chili Dipping Sauce (Optional)
- 2 tsp cornstarch
- ⅓ cup plus 1 tbsp water
- ⅓ cup mirin (rice wine vinegar) (see Note 5)
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tbsp rice wine (rice vinegar works, too – see Note 5)
- 1-2 tbsp red chilies in oil (or chili flakes), to taste
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed or very finely minced
- 1 tsp soy sauce, or more to taste
Lemon Garlic Dipping Sauce (Optional)
- ¼ cup sour cream (Greek yogurt works, too)
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- ½ tsp lemon zest
- ¼ tsp dried parsley
- ¼ tsp dried dill
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed or grated
- Salt, to taste
Instructions
- In a small bowl, mix together the spices and salt and set aside
- In a shallow bowl, add the flour
- In a second shallow bowl, add the egg and whisk, then add the milk and mix
- Place the shrimp on a large plate and pat it very dry on both sides using paper towels (if it's wet, the coating won't stick)
- Mix half of the spice mixture into the flour, then add a quarter to the egg mixture
- Season the shrimp on both sides with the remaining quarter of the spice mixture
- Dip each shrimp into the flour mixture; set aside coated shrimp on a second plate as you continue dredging
- Dip each shrimp into the egg mixture, shaking off the excess, then back into the flour mixture, ensuring they are well coated
- Let the battered shrimp rest for 5 minutes before frying (it helps the coating stick)
- Heat the oil over medium heat in a large sauté pan or heavy bottomed pot until it's shimmering – it should be around 325℉ but no hotter than 350℉ (see Note 6)
- In 2 or 3 batches, fry the shrimp for about 1 minute and 30 seconds on each side until dark golden brown – don't overcrowd the pan or the oil will reduce in temperature too quickly and the shrimp won't crisp correctly; fry about 8-12 shrimp at a time depending on the size of shrimp used
- Using a spider strainer or metal tongs, transfer fried shrimp to a paper towel lined rack – try to avoid using a plate if you have a rack so they don’t sit in the oil and stay perfectly crispy
- Repeat until all shrimp are fried then serve with dipping sauce of choice (see instructions below)
Sweet Chili Dipping Sauce
- Mix together the cornstarch and 1 tbsp of water in a small bowl and set aside
- Combine all other ingredients in a small saucepan and bring to a low boil until the sugar dissolves
- Stir in the cornstarch slurry and simmer until thickened, about 2 minutes
- Set aside to cool (it will continue to thicken as it cools)
Lemon Garlic Dipping Sauce
- In a small bowl, add sour cream, mayonnaise, lemon juice, lemon zest, parsley, dill, garlic and salt and mix until combined
Notes
1. My favorite Cajun seasoning is Slap Ya Mama, but any other store-bought or homemade Cajun seasoning blend works great.
2. Old Bay is a seasoning blend that contains celery salt, paprika, dry mustard, nutmeg and other spices. If you don’t have it on hand, you can substitute ¼ tsp celery salt and ¼ tsp paprika, or just use a little more Cajun seasoning.
3. I prefer to use small or medium shrimp (between 21-30 shrimp per pound) for the best shrimp to crispy batter ratio, but you can use any size of shrimp.
4. Any neutral oil with a high smoke point is great for this recipe, such as avocado, canola, vegetable or peanut oil.
5. Rice wine, also known as sake, works best for this dipping sauce. If you can’t find it, or don’t have any on hand, rice vinegar will do, but you may need to add a little more soy sauce to balance out the sour notes. This recipe also uses mirin, which is rice wine vinegar. Real mirin is called Aji mirin, but the link above is for Kotteri mirin, which is much more cost effective (but does not contain any alcohol).
6. Your oil is ready to fry when it shimmers, but it’s always best to check to be sure with a chopstick or thermometer. If you place one end of a chopstick in the oil and it bubbles lightly, it’s ready to go.
Nutrition Facts are calculated automatically and may be inaccurate, and do not include dipping sauces.
Nutrition
Serving: 1 servingCalories: 211kcalCarbohydrates: 20gProtein: 27gFat: 2gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0.01gCholesterol: 224mgSodium: 450mgPotassium: 374mgFiber: 1gSugar: 1gVitamin A: 333IUVitamin C: 0.1mgCalcium: 98mgIron: 2mg
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