epicurious5.0
Shrimp Cocktail
This recipe for the best homemade shrimp cocktail starts with perfect poached shrimp dressed up with classic cocktail sauce—plus two other optional sauces.
👥 4 Servings⏱️ Prep & Cook: 25 min🔥 Cook: 20 min👤 Jesse Szewczyk📖 epicurious
🥘 Ingredients
Check off ingredients as you prepare them:
🍳 Cookware
- ●pan
- ●saucepan
- ●bowl
📝 Preparation Steps
1
Shrimp
2
Scoop 8 cups ice into a bowl; set aside. (Alternatively, measure out 8 cups cold water; set aside.) Combine ⅓ cup Diamond Crystal or 3 Tbsp. Morton kosher salt, ¼ cup sugar, 2 Tbsp. Old Bay seasoning, and 6 cups water in a medium saucepan. Cut 2 lemons in half; squeeze juice into pan, then add lemon halves. (It’s okay if there are seeds in the liquid.) Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve salt and sugar.
. Old Bay seasoning2 Tbspmedium lemons2
3
Add 1½ lb. extra-large or jumbo shrimp, deveined (about 16 to 20 if using extra-large, or 10 to 15 if using jumbo) to pan and cook until pink and starting to curl, about ⏱️ 3 minutes. Immediately add reserved ice (or cold water) and transfer pan to the fridge or freezer. Let shrimp sit ⏱️ 10 minutes.
½ lb. extra-large or jumbo shrimp, deveined (about 16 to 20 if using extra-large, or 10 to 15 if using jumbo)1
4
Drain shrimp, then pat dry and peel, leaving the tails on. Place in an airtight container and chill until ready to serve. Do Ahead: Shrimp can be cooked and peeled 1 day ahead. Keep chilled.
5
Sauce and Assembly
6
Mix 1 cup ketchup, 3 Tbsp. prepared horseradish, 2 tsp. finely grated lemon zest, 2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice, 1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce, 1½ tsp. hot sauce (preferably Tabasco), ½ tsp. freshly ground pepper, and ½ tsp. celery salt in a medium bowl to combine (you should have about 1½ cups cocktail sauce).
ketchup1 cup. prepared horseradish3 Tbsp. finely grated lemon zest2 tsp. fresh lemon juice2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce1 Tbsp½ tsp. hot sauce (preferably Tabasco)1
7
Arrange shrimp on a bed of crushed ice in a large bowl. Serve with lemon wedges, cocktail sauce and/or Green Cocktail Sauce and/or Old Bay Remoulade if desired. Do Ahead: Cocktail sauce can be made 5 days ahead. Cover and chill.
Lemon wedges (for serving)Green Cocktail Sauce and/or Old Bay Remoulade (for serving; optional)
Reviews & Ratings
Share your thoughts and feedback about this recipe
Write a Review
Community Feedback
0 ReviewsLoading reviews...