Shrimp Cocktail Recipe

Last Updated on June 17, 2025

A shrimp cocktail appetizer recipe is one of the easiest to make at home. Anytime you are entertaining guests or asked to bring an appetizer to cocktail parties, a shrimp cocktail is a healthy appetizer to consider.

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.

Shrimp Cooking Process 

The best and easiest way to cook shrimp for an Easy Appetizer is by poaching. This ensures that your shrimp have great flavor and are cooked perfectly. 

Start with a large pot. 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 tablespoon

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 cooks slowly and evenly in the hot water.

How Long To Poach The Shrimp

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 a large bowl of Ice Water Bath to cool the poached shrimp, but I stopped doing that. Since we are trying to develop sweet 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 

We are using raw, uncooked larger shrimp, and you can buy them in several different ways. 

First, if you live near the ocean, 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, uncooked shrimp at the seafood counter, 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 them. 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 Jumbo Shrimp, up to 25 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.

You may be tempted to buy pre-cooked shrimp, but I don’t recommend it. The shrimp are generally rubbery and lack the delicate seafood flavor of fresh ingredients.

Best Cocktail Sauce Recipe For Shrimp

The secret to a good Shrimp Appetizer is to make the best homemade shrimp cocktail sauce. It has to have a good spicy tang to it with a balance of acidity. Making your own zesty shrimp cocktail sauce will spoil you, and you won’t need the bottled stuff.

The ingredients in my seafood chili sauce are:

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

Mix all the ingredients in a small bowl. Give the seafood sauce a taste. You may want to add extra horseradish for a more tangy cocktail sauce.

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 a Mexican shrimp cocktail. Mexican cocktail is like Gazpacho and Avocado with chopped and whole shrimp served in Martini Glasses. The combination works for me. Of course, fresh Lemon Wedges on the side would be appropriate.

For a holiday celebration, you may like to have some more appetizer pairings.

You may like…

• A cheese board with cheddar cheese
• Gooey baked brie cheese
• Cream cheese with smoked salmon on toast
• A simple potato salad
• Cucumber appetizers with cherry tomatoes

Serve these with your favorite drinks or classic cocktails. A dry white wine or sparkling wine would be my choice.

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

FAQ’s

 

Jumbo shrimp and a classic cocktail sauce make the best shrimp cocktail. Give this healthy shrimp cocktail recipe a try next time you have a seafood craving or a New Year’s Eve party.

Here are some more tasty recipes to try:

• Shrimp cocktail with pickled daikon radish
• Green goddess salad with poached shrimp
• Oven baked breaded butterfly shrimp

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