Roasted Shrimp Cocktail

I’ve never been the biggest fan of shrimp cocktail, but before you start coming after me with pitch forks and start doing voo doo on me, you should hear me out. I’ve got some good explanations for my line of reasoning. The main reason why I don’t care for shrimp cocktail is because I don’t like cold shrimp. In fact I hate cold shrimp. There’s something so weird to me about eating cold shrimp served over ice. Maybe I’m the weirdo. I know I know, that’s the way it’s supposed to be served and many people (like the entire world) really love shrimp cocktail no matter if it’s cold or not. More power to them. I just can’t handle it. Sorry mom. Don’t get me wrong though, if there’s cold shrimp at a buffet or at a party, I’ll be the first in line stuffing it into my pockets.

Since I love the idea of shrimp cocktail and have always wanted to really enjoy it, I thought the best way to achieve such a feat (and overcome my fear of cold shrimp), would be to cook the shrimp and eat it warm. Roasted Shrimp Cocktail has since been my newest obsession and brings me the best of all the shrimp cocktail world. I like to serve it with not one but two sauces for dipping because to me, shrimp cocktail is all about the sauce. Cocktail sauce is very near and dear to my heart as a child because I used to eat it all the time with all of the breaded and fried shrimp. All of it. I was addicted to fried shrimp, still am, but because it’s not the healthiest of ways to eat it, I’ve settled for roasted shrimp cocktail instead. I’m sure my doctor is thankful for that decision.

Continuing with our Seafood Week on the blog, I thought this recipe would be a great follow up to the Crunchy Fish Sticks from earlier in the week. Just as a recap, I wanted to do a Seafood Week because there’s a serious lack of fish dishes in my blog. My mamma wanted me to up my “under the sea” recipes and because my mamma always knows best, I thought it best to listen to her and get right on it. So here we are, two recipes into our awesome Seafood Week. I’m saving the best for last so stay tuned for the third and final installment on Friday. You won’t want to miss it. In the meantime let’s refocus on this roasted shrimp cocktail your new favorite recipe. Cross my heart and kiss my elbow.

Let’s start by seasoning the shrimp. Toss the shrimp on a baking sheet with olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic, crushed red pepper flakes and New England Seasoning Blend (like Old Bay). Toss it like you mean it, like your life depends on it. Then toss again.

**Note: For this recipe I’m using jumbo shrimp that has been peeled and deveined, but the tails have been left on. You need that little handle to be able to pick up the shrimp and dip them. The larger sized shrimp is always perfect for shrimp cocktail, if you ask me. Which I know you were.**

Roast in a 400ºF for about 8 to 10 minutes, until pink and crispy around the edges. Remove from oven and allow to cool down slightly before serving. Just slightly, remember the whole point of this cocktail recipe is that the shrimp is warm.

**Note: It’s important that you do not, DO NOT, over cook the shrimp, or else you’ll end up with dry and rubbery shrimp. Make sure to keep an eye on them at eight minutes. You don’t want them to look gray or opaque. If they need more time, let them keep roasting.**

While the shrimp cook and cool down a bit, you can turn your attention to the sauce. We need a cocktail sauce for dipping because that’s the whole point of shrimp cocktail. I’m not just going to give you one sauce though, what am I an animal? I’m going to provide you with two sauces, because two is always better than one and because I wanted two sauces.

Let’s start with the cocktail sauce because that’s the more traditional sauces to serve this with. I like to think of myself as traditional.

 In a medium bowl, combine the ketchup, chili sauce, prepared horseradish, lemon juice, hot sauce, salt and pepper. Whisk until evenly combined.

**Note: You can add as much or as little of the horseradish and hot sauce as you’d like, depending on how hot or spicy you like your sauce. I like it fairly hotter than normal so I added more than usual.**

Now if you’re a plain Jane and love cocktail sauce and only cocktail sauce, then you can totally stop here and call it a day because  you’re about to eat one of the best appetizers you’ve ever made. But if you want to take things one step further, however, then you should most definitely proceed to the next sauce because the next sauce is the best sauce. It’s a Cajun remoulade sauce because whenever I think of shrimp, I think of Cajun cooking. Can you blame me?

In a medium bowl combine the mayo, mustard, lemon juice, hot sauce, capers, salt, pepper, Old Bay and parsley. Stir until evenly combined. Give it a taste and keep tasting it because it’s that good.

Once the shrimp is cooked and has cooled a bit, so that you won’t burn off your tongue and mouth, you can then go ahead and get ready to serve the shrimp cocktail. Pour both sauces into small bowls and serve alongside with the warm shrimp.

Again, because I don’t care for cold shrimp I like to serve this shrimp cocktail warm with a few lemon wedges for guests to squeeze on, themselves. I love this dish because it’s super easy to whip up and easily adjustable with the amount of guests you’re having over. Or if you’re not having any guests over and this is just for you, then it’s the perfect amount. I’m not going to lie to you and say that it’s good, no. This is more than good. It’s great. It’s the only shrimp cocktail I’ll eat. I’m not afraid to admit that I ate all of the shrimp by myself after I finished shooting it. I sat on the floor next to the board and ate it all with no regrets. If that isn’t love, I don’t know what is. I hope you’ll enjoy it as much as I do!

Roasted Shrimp Cocktail

Roasted Shrimp Cocktail is made with jumbo roasted shrimp that's seasoned and roasted in the oven. Served with homemade cocktail sauce and remoulade.

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Total Time 25 minutes mins

Ingredients

• 2 pounds jumbo shrimp peeled with the tails left on and deveined
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves minced
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon black pepper
• ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning

For the cocktail sauce

• 1 cup ketchup
• ¼ cup tomato chili sauce
• 2 to 4 tablespoons horseradish
• couple dashes hot sauce
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• pinch of salt
• few grinds black pepper

For remoulade sauce

• 1 cup mayo
• 3 tablespoons grainy mustard
• 3 tablespoons capers chopped
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon fresh parsley chopped
• couple dashes hot sauce
• pinch of salt
• few grinds black pepper

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 400ºF.
• Toss the shrimp, on a baking sheet, with olive oil, garlic, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes and Old Bay seasoning until evenly combined. Roast for about 8 to 10 minutes or until pink and no longer opaque. Remove from oven and allow to cool. Serve with cocktail sauce and remoulade. Enjoy!
• To make cocktail sauce: In a medium bowl, whisk together the ingredients until evenly combined. Cover and place in the fridge until ready to serve. Will last in the fridge for about 2 weeks.
• To make remoulade: In a medium bowl, whisk together the ingredients until evenly combined. Cover and place in the fridge until ready to serve. Will last in the fridge for about 1 week.

Notes

yields: about 4 to 6 servings

Author: The Candid Appetite