Dinner, Recipes, Snacks

Easy Shrimp Cocktail

Shrimp cocktail is a classic appetizer. Quick, easy, and super fancy. Once you make homemade, you’ll never buy store bought again. Add this easy shrimp cocktail to your next party and you’ll be sure to impress your guests!

Thanksgiving my brother and his family were in town. Seafood here in Florida can’t be beat. An easy shrimp cocktail was added onto the menu. Even though shrimp cocktail might not be a traditional dish for Thanksgiving, we added it as an appetizer. This ‘recipe’ is one of those non-recipes, but watching his method helped me recreate the appetizer for Christmas. It’s really that simple to make this shrimp cocktail.

The difference lies in the shrimp you use. Lucky to live in Florida where fresh seafood is readily available. You could say I’m spoiled and a bit of a snob, but I’d call it just one of the perks of living here. It’s important to note that shrimp differ not only in taste but also quality depending on how they’re sourced. The Key West Pink Shrimp are known for their sweet, tender meat. Key West Pink Shrimp reside in the clean coral sand off of the coast of Key West and result in the perfect shrimp to peel and eat. Regardless of the type of shrimp you use, aim to buy shrimp larger in size. In the seafood industry they categorize the number of shrimp per pound, where 26/30s (26 to 30 shrimp to the pound) is good, but the 16/20s is even better!

Plate of shrimp for Easy Shrimp Cocktail — Key West Pink Shrimp

Ingredients: Easy Shrimp Cocktail

Shrimp: Key West Pink Shrimp (16/20) – A two-bite size is perfect for a shrimp cocktail. As mentioned above, look for a 16-20 count at the seafood counter of your local market. Otherwise, if buying frozen, look for packages labeled extra jumbo. If you can find Key West Shrimp, even better!
Water – You’re poaching the shrimp – cooking at a rolling boil for just a short time – so you’ll want the shrimp to be covered. Rougly 6 cups for a pound of shrimp should be enough.
Ice – Here in Florida it’s hot (even in the winter). I had my ice stored in the freezer until ready. Once you’ve cooked your shrimp, you want the cooking to stop so you’ll immerse the shrimp in ice water. Additionally, you’ll serve the shrimp over ice to keep them chilled.
Lemon – Have the lemon handy for people to spritz the shrimp with lemon juice. Some recipes online season the poaching water with the acid. Remember, this is easy shrimp cocktail and I kept it simple and let the shrimp shine through.
Cocktail Sauce – I’ve never made homemade cocktail sauce. The sauce in the rings at the store do taste medicine like, however, I found a brand that is tasty and doesn’t require a homemade route (which requires buying horseradish and chili sauce).

How To Make Easy Shrimp Cocktail

Prepare the shrimp. If using frozen shrimp, defrost in the refrigerator overnight, about 24 hours. Quick method defrosting: place them in a colander and run cold water until no longer icy.
If your shrimp is not peeled and deveined, use kitchen shears and/or a knife to cut through the top of the shell. Remove the shell but leave the tail on. Use a paring knife to then cut a shallow line down the back of the shrimp and remove the dark digestive tract. Wash the shrimp and then drain in a colander.
In a large pot (or Dutch oven) add enough water that the shrimp will be covered, about 6-8 cups. Bring to a boil.
Meanwhile as the water comes to a boil, in another large bowl add 4 cups of cold water and 2 cups of ice. Place in the sink ready to immerse your shrimp in the ice water bath.
When the water comes to a full boil, add the shrimp to the pot, stir and cook until opaque, loosely curled, between 2 1/2 minutes to 3 1/2 minutes. (The cook time will be dependent on the size of the shrimp. For the 16/20s, I found that 3 minutes was the perfect cook time).
Drain shrimp in a colander, however, be ready to transfer the shrimp immediately to the ice water bath. Chill until cool. Drain shrimp after chilling with a colander.
Arrange cold shrimp over ice on a platter and serve with chilled cocktail sauce. Garnish with lemon wedges and parsley.

Other Shrimp Recipes

Easy Shrimp Cocktail

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Print Recipe

Total Time: 13 minutes
Yield: 4 1x

Ingredients

Units Scale

1 lb shrimp, 16-20/pound, peeled and deveined
12 cups water, divided
2 cups ice
Cocktail Sauce, for serving
Parsley, for garnish
1 lemon, for spritzing

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Instructions

Prepare the shrimp. If using frozen shrimp, defrost in the refrigerator overnight, about 24 hours. Quick method defrosting: place them in a colander and run cold water until no longer icy.
Cut. If your shrimp is not peeled and deveined, use kitchen shears and/or a knife to cut through the top of the shell. Remove the shell but leave the tail on. Use a paring knife to then cut a shallow line down the back of the shrimp and remove the dark digestive tract. Wash the shrimp and then drain in a colander.
Boil. In a large pot (or Dutch oven) add enough water that the shrimp will be covered, about 6-8 cups. Bring to a boil.
Prepare. Meanwhile as the water comes to a boil, in another large bowl add 4 cups of cold water and 2 cups of ice. Place in the sink ready to immerse your shrimp in the ice water bath.
Add. When the water comes to a full boil, add the shrimp to the pot, stir and cook until opaque, loosely curled, between 2 1/2 minutes to 3 1/2 minutes. (The cook time will be dependent on the size of the shrimp. For the 16/20s, I found that 3 minutes was the perfect cook time).
Drain shrimp in a colander, however, be ready to transfer the shrimp immediately to the ice water bath. Chill until cool. Drain shrimp after chilling with a colander.
Arrange cold shrimp over ice on a platter and serve with chilled cocktail sauce. Garnish with lemon wedges and parsley.