14 Easy Recipes That Start With a Bag of Frozen Shrimp
It’s one of Ree Drummond’s favorite cooking shortcuts.
If you’ve been a PW fan for a while, you know Ree Drummond has quite a few cooking shortcuts to make life easier. After all, she’s had to feed a big family and a ranch full of cowboys on a regular basis. One of her secrets? “I love stashing a bag of shrimp in my freezer for easy meals.” In fact, she stocks up on it so she can whip up a tasty shrimp recipe on a moment’s notice if need be.
Cooking frozen shrimp is great for anyone who might feel intimidated by buying it fresh from the store. It’s frozen at its freshest, and often peeled and deveined for you already. Plus, shrimp defrosts quickly and cooks lightning fast. You only need a few minutes per side! That means you can have a shrimp pasta dish like fancy-sounding shrimp scampi on the table in just 15 minutes.
Beyond easy dinner ideas, frozen shrimp can also make for an excellent appetizer when company comes over. Whip up Ree’s shrimp cocktail for an elegant display or chow down on shrimpo de gallo for taco night. No matter what frozen shrimp recipe you decide to toss together, just make sure you read the instructions to see whether it calls for cooked or raw, with the tails on or off, and whether you even need to defrost it first.
Shrimp Scampi
Yes, in just 15 minutes you can have this meal ready to eat. Angel hair pasta tossed with butter, lemon, wine, and garlic is always a good idea! This is perfect for frozen shrimp that is peeled, deveined, and with the tails removed.
Get Ree's Shrimp Scampi recipe.
Ginger Shrimp Salad
If you want something light and fresh to eat, this easy salad is the way to go. The tangy ginger-lime dressing can't be beat! Just remember to thaw the shrimp before marinating it.
Get Ree's Ginger Shrimp Salad recipe.
Grilled Shrimp Skewers with Cilantro Lime Rice
The secret to using frozen shrimp for these tasty skewers is to defrost them and pat dry with paper towels so the jerk seasoning adheres well. Dryier shrimp will also develop a nicer char on the grill.
Get Ree’s Grilled Shrimp Skewers with Cilantro Lime Rice recipe.
Garlic Shrimp
You’re just 20 minutes away from this Spanish tapa-style dinner. The garlic-butter sauce is so tasty, you’ll want to serve it with bread to sop up all the goodness. Frozen peeled and deveined shrimp will just need to be defrosted first.
Get the Garlic Shrimp recipe.
Marinated Shrimp
While precooked shrimp won’t soak up the zingy marinade in this Southern classic appetizer, you can absolutely use peeled and deveined raw shrimp that has been defrosted.
Get the Marinated Shrimp recipe.
Shrimp and Grits
Give easy, cheesy grits a Cajun kick and get dinner on the table in just 20 minutes after the shrimp has defrosted. The fastest method is soaking them in cold water for about 20 minutes, though you can also let them defrost overnight in the fridge if you have time.
Get Ree's Shrimp and Grits recipe.
Popcorn Shrimp
The best frozen shrimp to use for this seafood shack favorite are medium-sized (41 to 50 count) that are peeled and deveined. Pat them dry, coat them well, give them a good golden fry, and serve hot.
Get Ree’s Popcorn Shrimp recipe.
Shrimp Salad Rolls
Got a bag of frozen, precooked shrimp? Great, you’re one step closer to this cold shrimp salad. Pile it high on toasted buns or serve over a bed of lettuce for a taste of summer.
Get Ree’s Shrimp Salad Rolls recipe.
Shrimp Pesto Pasta
If you have time to make pesto from scratch, by all means, do so! But if you don’t, using jarred pesto is as easy as... well, using frozen shrimp. You can use tail-on shrimp or slide them off before cooking.
Get Ree's Shrimp Pesto Pasta recipe.
Shrimp Cocktail
Ree’s secret to great shrimp cocktail is poaching defrosted shrimp in a flavorful mixture before letting them cool. Oh, and definitely make the cocktail sauce from scratch. Your taste buds will thank you!
Get Ree’s Shrimp Cocktail recipe.
Shrimp Pasta Salad
Oh, hello new favorite potluck side dish! It’s got the classic cast of characters: creamy dressing, crunchy vegetables, and perfectly cooked pasta, but then you take it to the next level with Old Bay-spiced shrimp. A precooked bag works well here.
Get the Shrimp Pasta Salad recipe.
Shrimp Alfredo
You’re just 30 minutes away from a restaurant-quality pasta dish. The sauce is really quite simple (five minutes!) and you can absolutely use defrosted frozen shrimp to cut down on prep.
Get Ree’s Shrimp Alfredo recipe.
Shrimp Fried Rice
Frozen shrimp isn’t the only shortcut you can use here. Go ahead and use frozen or leftover rice and frozen vegetables for an easy dinner any day of the week.
Get Ree’s Shrimp Fried Rice recipe.
Shrimpo de Gallo
If you like the freshness of pico de gallo, wait until you try Ree’s spin on the flavorful dip. You can use precooked shrimp to make prep even easier; just make sure it’s fully defrosted before chopping it up.
Get Ree’s Shrimpo de Gallo recipe.
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