Crunchy Fried Shrimp

Fried shrimp is one of the fastest, most satisfying meals you could make. The entire process takes less than 15 minutes, and that could even be from starting with frozen shrimp! I love having frozen shrimp ready because they defrost so quickly. I put them in a colander or sieve and run it over cold water for 3-5 minutes and they should be good to go.

The ingredients are simple, the only hard part is doing the batter, which really isn't that hard either. They only take about 2 minutes to fry up and taste great in a shrimp po'boy, on their own as a meal, as an appetizer, or even to top a salad. I typically serve them with tartar sauce and cocktail sauce.

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Ingredients:

1 lb shrimp peeled and deveined

1 cup milk

1 egg

2 cups cornmeal

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

salt and pepper

optional: Bay or Creole Seasoning

oil for frying (canola/vegetable/peanut oils are optimal)

Lets get cooking

1. In a bowl or shallow dish, combine the egg and milk. Whisk together until they are smooth and well combined.

2. In another bowl or shallow dish, combine the cornmeal, flour, salt and pepper to taste, and optional bay/creole seasoning. Whisk until they are thoroughly mixed together.

3. Using one hand, drop a few shrimp at a time in the egg mixture, then with either tongs or your hands, put them into the cornmeal mixture until it is thoroughly coated. If you are making large amounts, you want to have a rack to tray to hold the shrimp as you prepare them. Repeat until you have coated all the shrimp.

4. Put at least 1-2 inches of oil into a frying pan or saute pan, and heat it on medium high. You are aiming for an oil temperature of 375 degrees. Once it is as this temperature, or you see the oil shimmering, add in 6-7 shrimp at a time and fry on each side for no more than 1 minute. Flip after the 1 minute and cook another minute and then drain on a paper towel. Repeat until all the shrimp have been fried.

4. Serve them hot and fresh! Here are some recipes for sauces to go with you shrimp:

Cocktail Sauce

Tartar Sauce

Enjoy!