🍤 What Makes This Recipe So Good
Popcorn shrimp is so delicious. Tender, juicy shrimp coated in a crispy breading? Yes, please. Add a little tartar sauce or even some bang bang shrimp sauce or sriracha mayo and you’ve got the perfect combo of crispy and creamy. Unbelievable. The key to getting really perfect popcorn shrimp is all in how you cook it. Frying the shrimp gets them really crispy, but requires a lot of oil and more cleanup. The oven’s fine for a lighter option, but cooking takes longer and the breading never gets as “done” as I like it. Popcorn shrimp in the air fryer, though, is magic. It’s fast – only 6 minutes of cooking. Cleanup’s a breeze since everything’s done in the air fryer. And the texture? Amazingly crispy but still light, and the shrimp inside the breading is tender and juicy, never dry or rubbery. You might be used to snacking on popcorn shrimp by itself, but it’s honestly really versatile. Use it on salads or in tacos or on nachos. Stuff it inside crusty bread for an easy fried shrimp po-boy (use a little remoulade sauce for this one, you won’t regret it). Toss it into pasta. The options are endless!
👩🏼‍🍳 Chef’s Tips
When it comes to popcorn shrimp in the air fryer, it’s really important that you shake the basket halfway through the cook time, to toss the shrimp around. Just like with air fryer frozen french fries, shaking the basket flips the shrimp and moves them around so they cook evenly and completely. Since the basket is pretty full, it’s easy for the air inside the fryer to be blocked from reaching some spots on the shrimp. If you didn’t shake the basket, those spots wouldn’t cook, leaving you with soft breading or underdone shrimp. No need to defrost the shrimp first! You can take them straight out of the freezer and put them straight into the air fryer. If you’ve already defrosted the popcorn shrimp, or you’re reheating leftovers, you’ll follow the same general steps below. You’ll just need to lower the cook time.
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