We’ve added curry for extra oomph in this Crispy Coconut Shrimp but if it’s not your thing, add a bit of your favorite spice. It’s easy and delicious!
I had just uncovered a stash of large shrimp the other day and had it in my mind to make something with them. I have one of those refrigerators with the pull out freezer drawer; you just never know what you are going to find in there…am I right?
So I was hankering for something shrimp-ish when I spied a recipe on Facebook for Crispy Coconut Shrimp. Perfect.
That recipe was made to be gluten free so I had to do some further research to get a recipe using a panko; which are bread crumbs with gluten. In doing so I noticed that every recipe was pretty much identical in their ingredients and decided to not mess with success…someone surely knew this dish better than me so I forged ahead.
I am so grateful I only cooked half of that stash. Now, I won’t go so far as to say they were bad but they were sure bland. I had thought that only a half teaspoon of salt was pretty light-handed considering it was a pound of shrimp and quite a bit of other ingredients. The coating included flour, eggs, coconut and panko and I wish I had gone with my first instincts and upped the salt a bit. But beyond that?
It still needed something else. The bland wasn’t just from lack of salt so I tried a second time and came up with a winner. I don’t often go through multiple trials with recipes I’m working on but this time I’m grateful I did…the effort was minimal but the end result was vastly improved.
Beyond doubling the salt, I decided that I wanted to ditch the notion of unsweetened coconut and use a sweetened version while also adding both curry and garlic powder to the mix. The big difference?
The first batch of Crispy Coconut Shrimp needed the Chili Sauce to be good and the 2nd did not…the coconut flavor was more pronounced and the addition of just a bit of spice really pumped up the volume. I can’t say it tasted like curry or garlic but it sure tasted good!
I started with a smallish amount…you might try adding a bit more of the curry if you really like that flavor, I probably will too the next time I make it! Here are the ingredients I used for my final dish (ingredient list and instructions at bottom of post):
- 1/2 cup All Purpose Flour
- 1 tsp curry powder
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 eggs
- 1 Tbsp water
- 3/4 cup Panko bread crumbs
- 1 cup sweetened shredded coconut
- 1 lb raw shrimp peeled with tails on
- Oil for frying – I used canola oil flavored with 2 Tbsp of butter; butter is optional
- Sweet Chili Dipping Sauce (I used Mae Ploy; but it’s also optional)
- Lemon Wedges…I like to spritz just a hint of fresh juice on the shrimp and then garnish each serving with a lemon wedge.
Don’t let the frying business scare you off either; a bit of oil in a skillet and it was quick and easy. I do like to add a bit of butter or ghee to my oil when I fry something to add just a touch of flavor. Try it, you might like it too.
This Crispy Coconut Shrimp was meant to be an appetizer but quite frankly…with some rice and a simple salad it became dinner. I do love small bites for dinner but it’s usually at a restaurant when my friends and I order multiple appetizers. This time we did it at home and I recommend you do the same!
More Shrimp Dishes
- Indian Stir Fried Shrimp in Tomato Cream Sauce
- Shrimp Scampi and Parmesan Cheese Dip
- Thai Butternut Squash Soup with Shrimp
- Caribbean Shrimp and Grits
- Thai Peanut Shrimp Skewers with Pineapple and Red Pepper
- New England Bloody Mary with Shrimp Cocktail
PIN IT! ‘Crispy Coconut Shrimp with Curry’
Crispy Coconut Shimp is seasoned with a hint of curry for a truly divine appetizer or light meal. Use large shrimp for this recipe!Crispy Coconut Shrimp with Curry
Ingredients
Garnish
Instructions
Notes
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6
Serving Size:
1 grams
Amount Per Serving:
Calories: 186Total Fat: 7gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCarbohydrates: 24gProtein: 5g
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