These blackened shrimp are perfectly spiced and packed with flavor, plus they come together in about 5 minutes. With an optional remoulade sauce for delicious dipping, these blackened shrimp are also perfect on salads, in tacos, or any other time you need flavorful shrimp and fast!
What Makes This Blackened Shrimp So Good
- It’s SO quick and easy! Mix up a little sauce, stir up a few spices, and toss the shrimp in the skillet for 3 minutes max. You’ll have dinner on the table in no time at all!
- The seasoning forms a slight crust on the cooked shrimp, which gives them a beautiful crispiness without having to deep fry anything!
- Both the blackened shrimp and the remoulade are low calorie, low carb, and keto-friendly! Perfect if you want to keep things light without sacrificing flavor.
- The remoulade sauce is out-of-this-world INCREDIBLE! It’s totally optional so you can skip it if you want, but you’ll be missing out. Trust me. It’s creamy and a little spicy, and it goes so, so, so well with seafood and, really, fried foods in general. Even if you skip it with your blackened shrimp, be sure to bookmark this page for the next time you have crab cakes or fish sticks or even fried pickles.
Key Ingredients for Blackened Shrimp with Remoulade Sauce
Shrimp – If you can score fresh shrimp right off the boat, do it. If you can’t, no problem, just stick to the frozen shrimp at the store! The “fresh” shrimp are tempting, I know, but I’ll let you in on a little secret… they were frozen, too. Yup. And now they’re thawed and sitting in the case. Grab some wild-caught shrimp from the freezer section instead and you’ll have flavorful, perfect-texture blackened shrimp.
Hot Sauce – A little hot sauce in your remoulade turns the flavor profile up to 11. Now, if you’re not big on “hot”, you can start with just 1/4 teaspoon, taste, and adjust as needed. The type of hot sauce you use will change the flavor slightly, too. Crystal Hot Sauce, a Louisiana staple, has a deep, smoky flavor thanks to its primary ingredient – cayenne peppers. Tabasco, on the other hand, uses tabasco peppers and has a more prominent vinegar flavor. The debate around which is “better” gets pretty heated (no pun intended) but whichever one you like best will work in this sauce!
Chef’s Tips
- You can serve the remoulade sauce as soon as you make it, but it’s really best if you let it chill (covered) in the fridge for at least an hour. The flavors meld and amplify as it rests which makes it even more delicious.
- Blackened shrimp is an amazing snack or meal on its own, with remoulade, on grits, in tacos or lettuce wraps, or with pasta and alfredo sauce. Want to keep it keto? Use palmini pasta and keto alfredo sauce.
- You’re totally in control of the seasoning on this blackened shrimp! If you’d like it more on the mild side, use just 1/8 of a teaspoon of cayenne pepper. If you’re someone that likes it hot, use 1/4 teaspoon.
- It’s not super necessary, but if you’d like even more of that amazing Creole flavor, let the shrimp sit in the bowl for 20 to 30 minutes before cooking. This gives it a little time to marinate and really soak up all those seasonings!
- Don’t overcook your shrimp! Perfectly cooked shrimp curls lightly, like the letter “J”. Very curled shrimp, in the shape of a “C”, are overcooked!
Other Shrimp Recipes You’ll Love
- Shrimp Gumbo
- Instant Pot Shrimp
- Shrimp Etouffee
- Cajun BBQ Shrimp Poboy
- Shrimp Bisque
- Frozen Shrimp in the Air Fryer
- Baked Shrimp
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Blackened Shrimp with Remoulade Sauce
Equipment
- Small bowl
- Medium bowls (2)
- Large skillet
Ingredients
For the Remoulade Sauce (Optional)
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons whole grain mustard Creole mustard preferred
- 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
- 1 teaspoon Cajun or Creole seasoning Louisiana, Tony Chachere's, etc.
- 2 teaspoons capers roughly chopped
- 1 teaspoon horseradish
- ½ teaspoon pickle juice dill or sweet
- ½ teaspoon hot sauce Tabasco, Crystal, Louisiana, etc.
- 1 clove garlic minced, smashed
For the Shrimp
- 1 pound raw shrimp 26 to 30 count, peeled, deveined
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ – ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper see Notes
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
- 1-2 tablespoons olive oil
Instructions
For the Remoulade Sauce (Optional)
- Add all ingredients to medium bowl. Whisk until combined.
- Serve immediately, or cover and chill at least one hour (preferred).
For the Shrimp
- Combine all spices together in small bowl to create blackened seasoning.
- Place shrimp in medium bowl. Add blackened seasoning. Toss or stir to coat shrimp.
- In large skillet, heat olive oil over medium-high heat.
- When oil is hot, add shrimp to skillet. Cook until opaque, approximately 1 minute per side.
- Remove shrimp from skillet and serve.
Notes
- Use 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper for a light spiciness or 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper for a mild-medium spiciness.
- Make it Dairy Free: Use veganaise in the remoulade.
- Make it Gluten Free: This recipe is naturally gluten free, but be sure to check the label on each ingredient you use to make sure that specific version doesn’t contain gluten.
Nutrition
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Cheryl Malik is the recipe developer, writer, and photographer behind the healthy, flavorful, family friendly recipes at 40 Aprons. She’s been a blogger for 10+ years and is known for her delicious recipes and detailed recipe instructions. Cheryl is a mom of three who lives in Memphis, TN.
Gina Johnson-Higgins says
When I tried your Eggroll in a Bowl recipe I was hooked! All the recipes you share are really flavorful and the directions are easily followed. So impressive and tasty! You make me seem to be a fantastic cook and I thank you!!!!
Cheryl Malik says
Thank you so much for the wonderful review!