This air fryer shrimp recipe is easy to make in just 5 minutes and is seasoned perfectly with a tender texture. Serve these crispy air fryer shrimp as a delicious snack with your favorite dip or as part of a meal.
Contents
🌟 Why this recipe works
Air fryer recipes are great. It takes half the time to air fry foods compared to oven-baking, and you get crispy results every time like these air fryer shrimp.
Cooking shrimp in the air fryer is the best way to enjoy the world's favorite seafood! After just 5 minutes of cooking, they become crispy outside with a juicy, tender center.
Shrimps absorb flavors well, making them perfect for flavor combos, and for these air-fried tender shrimp were using garlic seasoning to add savory flavor and olive oil to make them crispy.
It's so easy to make 5-ingredient juicy shrimp in the air fryer that any home cook can make this foolproof recipe. They're perfect for a quick snack when hunger strikes or serving with flavorful pasta recipes like alfredo sauce.
My favorite thing about air fryer shrimp is you can cook them without making any mess, which is what all home cooks love - a delicious recipe without the cleaning at the end.
Plus, they are much healthier cooked in the air fryer machine than the pan-fried shrimp recipes and only need a spoon of olive oil.
🍽 Key Ingredients
Air fryer shrimp are easy to make with some savory seasoning and a drizzle of oil.
Fresh shrimp - I use fresh shrimp (either jumbo shrimp or the smaller shrimp) from the local market because that's my preference, but you can use frozen if you prefer. Just thaw them before adding the seasonings.
Seasoning - Keeping it simple and flavorful with garlic powder, salt, and pepper. You could use fresh minced garlic for a more intense garlic flavor if you prefer.
🔪 How to make
Air fryer shrimp are amazingly delicious, super tender, and full of flavor. Learn how to cook this recipe with my easy-to-follow instructions and helpful top tips.
Preparations
Step 1
Wash, deshell, and devein the shrimp. Pat dry with paper towel.
Step 2
Place shrimps in a large bowl and mix with olive oil.
Step 3
Add the black pepper.
Step 4
Mix well with garlic powder and salt.
Cooking Instructions
Preheat air fryer to 400 degrees Fahrenheit (200 degrees Celsius)
Step 5
Place marinated shrimp in the air fryer basket and cook shrimp for 5 minutes, turning halfway.
Step 6
Take the cooked shrimp out and serve them immediately with a squeeze of lime and your favorite dipping sauce.
💭 Cooking tips
Don't overcrowd the basket.
Cook the shrimp in batches for best results if you have lots of them. Lay them singular in the air fryer basket so the hot air can circulate properly and cook the shrimp evenly.
Using frozen shrimp
Thaw and remove the shells from the shrimp, then pat them dry and toss shrimp in seasoning before air frying.
Deveined shrimp
Although eating the shrimp intestines won't hurt you, it does make a difference to the shrimp taste. To remove the intestines, make a slit in the back of the shrimp and use a knife or a toothpick to gently remove the black intestines.
Quick clean up
To make cleaning the air fryer a breeze, place the prawns on top of aluminum foil in the air fryer, then carefully remove the foil and prawns after 5 minutes of cooking, and your fryer will be spotless.
📖 Recipe Variations
I love making different variations of air fryer shrimp, from cheesy to breaded and spicy.
Breaded
Give the prawns a golden crunch by coating them in panko breadcrumbs. Mix the prawns with 100g breadcrumbs and the seasonings before air frying. They are extremely moreish land ook amazing.
Chili
If you like spice in your food, these air-fried prawns taste delicious when adding half a teaspoon of chili powder or cayenne pepper to other seasonings. Cajun spice mix also works well mixed with prawns.
Lemon and parmesan cheese
This is one of my favorite variations. Simple add a tablespoon of lemon juice to the marinade and let the prawns sit in the marinade for 30 minutes, then coat each prawn in parmesan cheese and air fry them for 4 minutes.
🥗 What to serve with
These perfectly seasoned air fryer shrimp taste delicious, and they are perfect for serving on top of pasta, spicy shrimp tacos, and salad dishes. Here are a few suggestions to try at home.
Cauliflower rice
This is an easy side dish to prepare in more or less the same time as it takes to make the air-fried shrimps, and If you love the latin-inspired cilantro lime rice, then this cauliflower rice is a must try to pair with these delicious garlic shrimp.
Simple shrimp pasta
This 20-minute garlic butter and parmesan cheese pasta perfectly complement these crispy prawns. Plus, the recipe uses everyday ingredients in your cupboard, so you never need to go shopping.
Mushrooms
This air fried crispy mushrooms are the perfect side dish to combine with shrimp. Yum!
Cilantro Lime Sauce
Try the best ever cilantro lime sauce with your crispy shrimp! This sauce pairs perfectly with shrimp and is the perfect dipping recipe.
🙋 Frequently Asked Questions
Can I put frozen shrimp in the air fryer?
Yes, you can cook frozen shrimp in the air fryer. Although if you want to marinate them, you should thaw first, otherwise the seasoning will not coat the shrimp.
Can I use pre-cooked thawed shrimp?
Yes, you can use pre-cooked thawed shrimp the same way as fresh shrimp in the air fryer. Just take a few minutes of cooking time off the recipe. 3-5 minutes is good enough to get them nice and hot.
Should I peel the shrimp before air frying?
In this recipe, it is necessary to remove the shell so that the marinade infuses the shrimp. As well as peeling shrimp, you should also devein them to remove the bad-tasting intestines.
🧊 Storing and ♨️ Reheating
This air fryer shrimp recipe is great for storing any leftovers for eating the next day.
Refrigerated - Transfer any leftover shrimp to an airtight container and place it in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Frozen - Place the remaining shrimp on a baking tray lined with parchment paper and freeze it until the shrimp are solid. Put the frozen shrimp in an airtight container and freeze for 4 months.
Reheating - Preheat the air fryer to 400 degrees Fahrenheit, then reheat frozen shrimp for 5-6 minutes and refrigerate shrimp for 2-3 minutes.
To heat the prawns in the oven, place them on a baking tray in a preheated oven at 400 and cook the frozen shrimp for 10 minutes and 5 minutes for refrigerated shrimp.
For microwave users, heat at two 30 second intervals on high power and four 30 second intervals for frozen.
👪 Serving Size
14 air fryer shrimp is enough for 2 portions or a generous, healthy snack for one. If you use the jumbo prawns, you could get 3 portions from 14 of them.
If you love air fryer shrimp and want more air fryer recipes to try, take a look at air fryer mushrooms and air fryer chicken tenders. They're just as delicious and as easy to make as these garlicky crispy shrimp!
📋 Recipe
Crispy "5 minute" Air Fryer Shrimp
Ingredients
- 14 fresh shrimps - shells removed and deveined
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
Preparations
- Wash, deshell, and devein the shrimp.
- Place shrimps in a large bowl and mix with olive oil, black pepper, garlic powder, and salt.
Cooking Instructions
- Preheat air fryer to 400 degrees Fahrenheit (200 degrees Celsius)
- Place marinated shrimp in the air fryer basket and cook shrimp for 5 minutes, turning halfway.
- Take the cooked shrimp out and serve them immediately with a squeeze of lime and your favorite dipping sauce.
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