Brown Sugar Glazed Bacon Wrapped Shrimp – A Quick and Easy Recipe

Brown Sugar Glazed Bacon Wrapped Shrimp is amazingly delicious fresh, briny shrimp wrapped in sweet and smoky glazed bacon and baked until they reach perfection!  Easy, simple, and utterly addictive.

If you are like me, just the name of this dish is enough to send you into sensory overload. It contains my two favorite foods: smokey bacon and fresh gulf shrimp. But when you add brown sugar to the equation, well, let’s say mouth-watering doesn’t even begin to describe how delicious this salty-sweet combination is.

Here’s what’s in it:

Besides kosher salt and lemon pepper, which enhance the flavor, you only need four additional ingredients:

• Bacon: what’s not to love? The sweet, smoky flavor of bacon and fresh shrimp is a match made in heaven.  
• Fresh gulf shrimp: beautiful, jumbo shrimp with their slightly sweet and briny taste are the star of this dish. 
• Brown sugar: if you have never had bacon dredged in brown sugar, you are in for a treat. 
• Chili powder: adds just the slightest taste of heat, which pairs beautifully with the brown sugar. 

You will also need toothpicks to secure the bacon on the shrimp.

How to make it:

1. If you are ready to get started making this delicious dish, gather all of your ingredients, and preheat the oven to 400°F.
2. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with foil or parchment paper. Place a large wire rack (the kind you would use to cool a cake or cookies on after baking) on the baking sheet and spray liberally with non-stick cooking spray. 
3. Add the brown sugar and chili powder to a shallow bowl and mix well.
4. Cut the bacon in half and dredge both sides in the brown sugar mixture. Arrange the bacon slices in a single layer on the rack.
5. Bake for ten minutes or until the bacon is partially cooked but still pliable.  Cool five minutes or until you can handle it.
6. Sprinkle salt and pepper lightly over the shrimp and wrap each with a piece of bacon. Secure with a toothpick and place back on the wire rack. Sprinkle any remaining brown sugar mixture evenly over the top.
7. Bake, the bacon-wrapped shrimp for another eight to ten minutes, or until the bacon, is crispy and the shrimp are done.
8. Serve immediately! Enjoy!

How to serve:

This is the ultimate appetizer or can also be served as a fantastic entree! Perfect for a game-day crowd, a holiday party, or just a cozy evening for two!

The secret – precook the bacon:

I tried my hand at making this dish several times before I got it right. I was never able to figure out how to get the shrimp and bacon cooked properly together. If I cooked the bacon where it was nice and crispy, the shrimp was tough and overdone. And if the shrimp were nicely done, the bacon was raw.

The secret to making sure both the bacon and shrimp are cooked perfectly is to precook the bacon for about 10 minutes in the oven before wrapping them around the shrimp. The results, oh my goodness, well, you will have to try this recipe yourself to see if I got it right!

But, be forewarned, make plenty because these tasty morsels are irresistible!

Tails or no tails:

It’s up to you. If I am serving this dish as an appetizer, I usually leave the tails on. For the main dinner dish, I often pull them off. But I have also reversed this, and it works either way. 

Sharon’s tips:

• This recipe works best if you use jumbo shrimp. This means that there are 16 to 20 shrimp per pound. 
• If you use larger shrimp, you will have to add a few extra minutes to the cooking time. On the other hand, if they are smaller, they will not need to cook quite as long. This also means that your bacon might not be quite as crispy either.
• If the shrimp are small or medium, cut the bacon into thirds. The amount of bacon you will need depends on how many shrimp you have; you need one piece of bacon for every two jumbo shrimp.
• You can add a little Old Bay seasoning if you like. 
• If your shrimp is frozen, you can quickly thaw them in minutes by putting them in a colander and running cold water over them.
• You can use your broiler pan if you don’t have a wire rack.
• Be sure to use regular sliced bacon, not thick.

Related recipes:

If you have followed my blog for any amount of time, you know I love these sweet crustaceans! And, of course, I have lots of other recipes on my blog. Here are a few of my favorites that I know you will like too!

• Spicy Coconut and Lime Grilled Shrimp
• Delicious Shrimp and Blue Cheese Pasta
• Southern Shrimp and Corn Fritters
• Roasted Shrimp Pasta Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette
• The Best Crispy Buffalo Shrimp
• Easy Crispy Pan-Fried Shrimp
• The Ultimate Creamy Shrimp Creole
• Smoked Shrimp – A Quick and Easy Recipe
• Blackened Shrimp

Need even more recipes or menu ideas? Check out all of my seafood recipes here. 

★ If you make this dish, please leave a comment and give this recipe a star rating. I would love to know how you liked it!

Thank you so much for visiting Grits and Pinecones!

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4.39 from 13 votes

Brown Sugar Glazed Bacon Wrapped Shrimp - A Quick and Easy Recipe

Brown Sugar Glazed Bacon Wrapped Shrimp is amazingly delicious fresh, briny shrimp wrapped in sweet and smoky glazed bacon and baked until they reach perfection!  Easy, simple, and utterly addictive.

Course Appetizer, Main Dish

Cuisine American

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 40 minutes

Servings 20 shrimp

Calories 91kcal

Author Sharon Rigsby

Ingredients

• ▢ 1 pound jumbo shrimp peeled, deveined and tails removed (16-20 shrimp), fresh or frozen,l,
• ▢ 9 pieces bacon cut in half, regular sliced, not thick
• ▢ 1 cup light brown sugar
• ▢ 1 Tbsp chili powder
• ▢ 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• ▢ 1/4 tsp lemon pepper

Instructions

• Preheat your oven to 400°F.
• Line a large rimmed baking sheet with foil or parchment paper. Place a large wire rack (the kind you would use to cool a cake or cookies on after baking) on the baking sheet and spray liberally with non-stick cooking spray.
  
• Add the brown sugar and chili powder to a shallow bowl and mix completely.
• Cut the bacon in half and dredge both sides in the brown sugar mixture. Arrange the bacon slices in a single layer on the rack.
• Bake for 10 minutes until the bacon is partially cooked but still pliable. Cool 5 minutes or until you can handle it.
• Sprinkle salt and lemon pepper lightly over the shrimp and wrap each shrimp with a piece of bacon. Secure with a toothpick and place back on the wire rack. Sprinkle any remaining brown sugar mixture evenly over the top.
  
• Bake for another 8-10 minutes, or until the bacon is crispy and the shrimp are cooked.
  
• Serve immediately and enjoy!
  
• *The nutritional analysis is based on 1 jumbo shrimp wrapped in bacon.

Video

Notes

This recipe works best if you use jumbo shrimp. This means that there are 16 to 20 shrimp per pound. 

If you use larger shrimp, you will have to add a few extra minutes to the cooking time. On the other hand, if they are smaller, they will not need to cook quite as long. This also means that your bacon might not be quite as crispy either.

If the shrimp are small or medium, cut the bacon into thirds. The amount of bacon you will need depends on how many shrimp you have; you need one piece of bacon for every two jumbo shrimp.

You can add a little Old Bay seasoning if you like. 

If your shrimp are frozen, you can quickly thaw them in minutes by putting them in a colander and running cold water over them.

You can use your broiler pan if you don't have a wire rack.

Be sure to use regular sliced bacon, not thick. 

Nutrition

Calories: 91kcal | Carbohydrates: 12g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 0.4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 48mg | Sodium: 195mg | Potassium: 55mg | Sugar: 12g | Iron: 0.7mg

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*This recipe was originally posted on July 18, 2016. Republished on January 25, 2020, with new images, expanded directions, and tips, and a “how-to” video.