The Perfect Shrimp Cocktail Recipe

Shrimp cocktail is one of the most ordered appetizers in restaurants and it is one of the easiest to make at home. Anytime you are entertaining guests or asked to bring an appetizer to a party, shrimp cocktail is a natural.

Making this shrimp cocktail recipe is so much better than buying a pre-made shrimp ring from a grocery store. The shrimp is usually rubbery and tasteless compared to what you can make at home yourself.

Cooking Process For Shrimp Cocktail

The best and easiest way to cook the shrimp is by poaching. This ensures that your shrimp are flavorful and cooked perfectly. 

Start with a large saucepan or small stockpot. One that can easily hold 3 quarts of water. Then add some flavorings to the water.

Kosher salt – 1 tablespoon

Sugar – 1 tablespoon

Old Bay seasoning – 1 ½ tablespoons

Bay leaves – 2

Black peppercorns – 20 to 25

Bring the water to a boil and keep it at a slow boil for at least 10 minutes. This way the bay leaves and peppercorns can release their flavors.

Set a timer for 2 minutes. The poaching of the shrimp goes fast.

Once the water has boiled for 10 minutes, remove it from the heat and wait for 10 to 20 seconds for the boiling action to cease. Then add your raw shrimp and start the timer.

The shrimp that I used was 16 – 20 per pound size. They were perfectly cooked through after 2 minutes in the hot water. You can tell that they are cooked because they will be pink and white with no gray streaks in the thickest part. 

Smaller shrimp might cook faster and bigger shrimp may need an extra 30 seconds in the poaching liquid.

Once the shrimp are done, use a kitchen spider to remove them from the pot and place them onto a double layer of paper towels. (You can also pour the shrimp and water into a strainer over your sink).

I used to use an ice water bath to cool the poached shrimp, but I stopped doing that. Since we are trying to develop flavors for the shrimp, washing them off with ice water seemed counter-productive. 

To cool the shrimp for eating, place them in a bowl and refrigerate them for 30 minutes or place them in your freezer for 10 minutes. 

And here’s a Pro’s tip: If you like a bit of spice, the peppercorns have been softened by being boiled and are nice to bite into along with the shrimp.

What Shrimp To Use for the Shrimp Cocktail Recipe

We are using raw, uncooked shrimp and you can buy it several different ways. 

First, if you live near the oceans you might be able to buy shrimp straight off the boats or in fresh fish markets near the water.

For most of us though, shrimp will be bought frozen. Your grocery store may sell thawed shrimp which would eliminate that step for you.

I purchase frozen shrimp when it is on sale to keep in my freezer. We live close to a Fresh Thyme Market that has a sale on shrimp every month. (Fresh Thyme has 73 stores in 11 Midwest states). 

I buy the 16-20 size shrimp in 2-pound bags and it is easy-peel and deveined. If you can find easy-peel shrimp, get it. It is so much easier to peel the shells off the shrimp. 

You might also find some that have been peeled with the tail left on. 

The best shrimp for the shrimp cocktail is any large shrimp up to 30 per pound. I would avoid any smaller shrimp than that.

To thaw the shrimp, place them in a saucepan and add cold tap water with a tablespoon of salt. Stir the salt around a bit and the shrimp should be defrosted in about 30 minutes.

Once they are defrosted, peel the shells off but keep the tail on. The tail gives you a nice handle to hold onto when eating the shrimp.

Making the Cocktail Sauce

The secret to a good shrimp appetizer is the sauce. It has to have a good spicy tang to it with a balance of acidity.

The ingredients in my sauce are:

• Ketchup
• Prepared Horseradish
• Fresh Lemon Juice
• Crystal Hot Sauce
• Worcestershire Sauce
• Lemon Zest
• Kosher Salt

Mix all the ingredients together in a small bowl. And like many recipes, if you make this the day before, the sauce will improve as the flavors have time to meld together.

The ketchup I used was Heinz original which has corn syrup in it. I haven’t tried it but they now make sugar-free ketchup that might be a good choice for making the shrimp cocktail sauce. 

What to Serve Along With Shrimp Cocktail?

The first thing that comes to mind is Salsa and Chips. That would be so much like Mexican shrimp cocktail. Mexican cocktail is like gazpacho and avocado with chopped and whole shrimp served in martini glasses.  The combination works for me.

You could also make this a light meal by serving the cocktail with a salad and some good bread.

FAQ’s

 

Give this shrimp cocktail recipe a try.

And here are some more tasty recipes to try:

• Shrimp cocktail with pickled daikon radish
• Beef au jus sauce recipe
• Green goddess salad with poached shrimp
• Homemade chicken fettuccine alfredo recipe
• Oven baked breaded butterfly shrimp