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A little heat and a lot of flavor, all wrapped up in a simple seafood dish. This BBQ shrimp recipe combines some of my favorite Southern flavors to create a wonderfully zesty butter sauce that coats perfectly tender shrimp with a little Louisiana flair. It’s a quick recipe that’s perfect for summer evenings and can easily be doubled or tripled to feed a group.

What Makes This Recipe So Good

Juicy shrimp and a flavorful butter sauce. What could be better? This recipe is SO easy to make and you can enjoy it in a variety of ways. Serve it on a baguette for a po-boy style sandwich. Fill lettuce cups or tortillas for BBQ shrimp tacos. Layer the shrimp on top of a giant salad or pair it with a hearty helping of noodles or rice.
I cooked these on the stovetop, but this is a great grill recipe for your summer cookouts. Use larger shrimp and thread them on skewers, then just coat them with sauce and toss them on the grill for 1 to 2 minutes per side. So easy, and you get those incredible smoky grill flavors! If you’re using shrimp that won’t fall through the grate, you can skip the skewers and put them right on the grill. Be sure to serve them with plenty of extra sauce – it’s incredible!
You can easily double or triple the recipe to feed a large group! Just make sure you make plenty of sauce – trust me, you’ll be glad you did.

Chef’s Tips

When you’re cooking shrimp, go by visual cues rather than the clock. When they’re perfectly cooked, they’ll be opaque and slightly curled, like a “J”. If they’re grey and translucent, they’re not ready yet. If they’re bright white and shaped like a tight “C” or an “O”, you overdid it.
The lemon juice can make the butter separate and look curdled. Don’t panic, it’s totally fine! Just keep stirring until the sauce is fully incorporated. To prevent that from happening, use room-temperature butter and be sure to take the skillet off the heat before you add the butter in.
If you buy unpeeled shrimp, don’t throw away the tails! You can add them to your garden for a more nutrient-rich soil. Toss them in to your next seafood sauce or soup for more flavor. Use them for a homemade seafood stock.

Overhead, zoomed out view of a large bowl of BBQ shrimp with crusty bread.

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Jasmine Comer

Jasmine Comer is a food photographer and recipe developer from North Carolina. She grew up in the kitchen watching her mom cook all types of delicious meals. In 2016 she established Lively Meals, a food blog where she creates healthy recipes. This led to creating recipes for other blogs as well. In her free time she enjoys exploring new places and spending time in nature. Ultimately she’s grateful to be doing work she loves—cooking good food and sharing it with people.