This blue-ribbon recipe for Buffalo Shrimp is quick and easy to prepare, and the perfect marriage of sweet, briny shrimp and spices. After the first bite, your taste buds will be doing the happy dance!
What is Buffalo Shrimp?
Oh my goodness, if you have never had this delicacy, you are in for a treat! Similar to buffalo wings, this version is made with shrimp coated with seasoned flour, then quickly pan-fried and topped with spicy buffalo sauce.
You can’t go wrong serving this dish as a game-day or party appetizer. And, they are a winner for a quick weeknight dinner. It only takes 15 minutes from start to finish to get this delicious seafood dish on the table, and it’s ridiculously easy to prepare.
Because they are so quick and easy to make, this versatile recipe is one of my favorite “go-to” dinner entrées.
If you are a fan of spicy foods, I’ll bet you will also like my Buffalo Chicken Dip with Blue Cheese, Easy Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese, and Spicy Buffalo Shrimp Po’ Boy Sandwich recipes too!
What to serve with this?
I like to keep it simple when serving these shrimp as an entrée and usually serve them with a side of Southern Potato Salad or Southern Broccoli Salad, and maybe some fresh tomato slices.
If I’m serving them as an appetizer, I serve them on a plate with festive skewers to make it easy for my guests to help themselves.
More Shrimp Recipes:
If you love shrimp as much as I do, you might also want to try these delicious recipes:
- Easy Crispy Pan-Fried Shrimp,
- Roasted Shrimp Pasta Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette
- Southern BBQ Shrimp and Cheese Grits,
- Southern Shrimp and Corn Fritters,
- Shrimp and Blue Cheese Pasta,
- Brown Sugar Glazed Bacon Wrapped Shrimp, and
- Grilled Spicy Coconut Shrimp.
Need more menu ideas or recipes with seafood? Check out all of my seafood recipes here!
How to make it:
The ingredients list is short: peeled and deveined shrimp, all-purpose flour, salt, pepper, garlic powder, olive oil, and buffalo sauce.
To prepare this dish, gather your ingredients and heat three tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
While the oil is heating, add one cup of flour in a gallon-size plastic storage bag. Add two teaspoons of kosher salt and one teaspoon of ground black pepper and garlic powder.
Add the shrimp to the flour mixture and shake well, making sure all of the shrimp are coated.
When the oil is hot, add the shrimp to your pan in a single layer.
Cook on one side for about two minutes, or until the shrimp are golden brown. Turn them over and cook for another minute or two or until both sides are golden brown and the flesh is slightly opaque. Do not overcook, or they will be tough.
When your shrimp are done, remove the pan from the heat. Add two tablespoons of buffalo or wing sauce to the pan. Stir and make sure all of your shrimp are coated with the sauce.
How to make buffalo sauce:
If you don’t have buffalo sauce, you can make your own by combining hot sauce with butter. The ratio is two parts hot sauce to one part butter. For example, one cup of hot sauce to one-half cup butter. Add a shake or two of garlic powder and voila, buffalo sauce.
That’s it! It couldn’t get much easier. And you won’t find a better entrée or a more delicious appetizer!
Sharon’s Expert Tips:
To keep this dish as healthy as possible, I recommend using olive oil for pan-frying. However, you can also substitute other vegetable oils or even butter.
This dish is best if you cook and serve it immediately. However, you can get everything prepped and ready ahead of time, including coating the shrimp in flour.
It’s up to you whether you want to remove the shrimp tails or not. I generally do when serving them as an entrée, and do not when serving them as an appetizer.
This recipe works best with shrimp, which are sized 21-25 shrimp per pound. The terms large, extra-large, and jumbo shrimp are not standardized. Shrimp counts are a much more accurate way of buying shrimp. The fewer shrimp per pound, the larger and more expensive they are.
If you substitute different size shrimp in this recipe, smaller shrimp will take less time to cook, and larger shrimp will take a little more time.
Your flour mixture can be reused. After coating the shrimp, seal the bag and store it in the freezer until the next time you make this dish.
If you love spicy food, increase the amount of buffalo sauce. If you don’t like spicy food, reduce the amount of sauce, and only partially coat the shrimp.
**If you make this recipe, please leave a star rating and a comment to let me know how you liked it!**
The Best Crispy Buffalo Shrimp Recipe - Quick and Easy
Ingredients
- 1 lb shrimp 21-25 shrimp per pound - peeled and deveined, with or without the tails removed
- 3 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 cup flour
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 2 Tbsp buffalo sauce or to taste
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
- Add the flour, salt and pepper and garlic powder to a gallon size ziploc bag.
- Add the shrimp and shake well.
- Shake off any excess flour and add the shrimp to the pan in a single layer.
- Cook on one side for about two minutes, or until the shrimp are light golden brown. Turn them over and cook for another minute or two or until both sides are light golden brown and the flesh is slightly opaque. Do not overcook, or they will be tough.
- When the shrimp are done, remove the skillet from the heat and add the buffalo sauce. Stir until well coated and serve hot.
Notes
Nutrition
*This recipe was originally published on December 18, 2015. It was republished on August 16, 2019, with expanded instructions, the addition of tips, and a few small tweaks to the recipe.
This looks amazing!