You’ll love the perfect combination of sweet and salty of this 30-minute one pot meal. A delicious weeknight dinner for whole family to enjoy!
Time-Saving Tips:
- Peel and devein shrimp – When purchasing shrimp, ask the store to peel and devein the shrimp for you. They may charge a small fee, but it’s totally worth it.
- Buy ready-to-use grated garlic and ginger to save even more precious time!
- Prepare sides – Put a pot of rice or your choice of sides prior to preparing the shrimp, so that you can have a complete meal in less than 30 minutes!
Ingredient notes:
- Coconut milk – I suggest you use full fat canned coconut milk and not the carton varieties. You want a thick, creamy, coconut milk, NOT the thinner variety often found in cartons. If you prefer to use reduced-fat coconut milk you may need to use corn starch to thicken the sauce.
- Shrimp – You can use frozen or fresh shrimp. You’ll need 2 lbs of large shrimp, which is roughly 26-30 per lb.
TIP: Shrimp must not smell like ammonia or have shells that feel soft or slimy.
How to Make This Recipe:
Don’t forget to start with cooking a pot of rice!.
- Sauté shrimp in a large skillet (12-inch) over medium-high heat for 2-3 minutes. Once they’re opaque, they are cooked. Transfer the cooked shrimp onto a plate.
- Add coconut milk, garlic, ginger, lime juice, ginger, lime zest, sugar, and salt into the skillet. Bring it to a boil over medium-high heat and then reduce to medium and simmer to thicken, about 8 minutes.
- Once the sauce has thickened, add the shrimp back for a couple of minutes to heat through.
- Serve over rice and enjoy!
How do I know when the shrimp is cooked?
Shrimp changes from a translucent color to opaque (white with pink streaks) when cooked.
TIP: Don’t overcook shrimp as it’ll become tough and rubbery.
Can I use frozen shrimp?
You can use frozen shrimp, but just factor in the additional time to thaw the shrimp. I like to thaw it overnight in the refrigerator. To do this:
- Place the shrimp in a colander with a bowl underneath it to catch any excess water.
- Defrost the shrimp for approximately 12 hours in the fridge.
I shared a tip on quickly thawing frozen shrimp here.
How to peel and devein shrimp:
To peel shrimp, simply pinch and twist. To devein shrimp:
- Use a sharp knife and make a shallow cut down the back of the shrimp.
- Spread where you made the shallow cut open and locate the dark string.
- Pull the dark string out and your done. Repeat for the rest of the shrimp.
What sides can I serve with this dish?
This dish has such a delicious sauce and I like it over a bed of plain white rice. But if you prefer, you can serve it with:
I hope you love this recipe as much as I do! Let me know once you’ve tried it by leaving a comment below or sharing a photo and tagging @busy_cooks on Instagram!
Creamy Coconut Shrimp
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil or olive oil
- 2 lbs large shrimp (26-30 per lb, peeled and deveined)
- 1 (14oz) can coconut milk
- 3 tablespoons minced garlic
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
- 1 tablespoon freshly grated lime zest
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
For serving:
- Cooked white rice
- Lime wedges
Instructions
- In a large skillet, heat coconut oil over medium high heat.
- Add shrimp and sauté, stirring frequently, until opaque and cooked through, 2-3 minutes.
- Transfer the shrimp onto a plate.
- Add coconut milk, garlic, ginger, lime juice, ginger, lime zest, sugar and salt into the skillet.
- Bring it to a boil over medium high heat. Then reduce the heat to medium and simmer to thicken, 5-8 minutes.
- Add shrimp back into the skillet and cook another 2-3 minutes.
- Serve over steamed rice with lime wedges on the side.
Nutrition
* Disclaimer: All nutrition information are estimates only. Read full nutrition disclosure.
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Reader's Reviews
Hey I liked the recipe but I have a sweet tooth so I had to adjust the amount of sugar I used. Only, instead of shrimp I used cauliflower to make a vegan version of this recipe. It’s really good!
Thank you for sharing your feedback, Rose!
this recipe is gross.
Bummer that you didn’t like the recipe. Would you mind sharing more on what specifically you didn’t like?
Thank you for your recipes this will make cooking easyer for me to cook for my mother
Hi, Darlene. I’m so glad you found our recipes and that they’re helpful for you! Hope you enjoy everything you cook. Thank you for your feedback!
A local restaurant which has since gone out of business had this on the menu! It was my favorite! I have been scouring the internet looking for it. Thank you so much!
Yay, so glad you were able to find the recipe! Sorry to hear your local restaurant had to close. Thank you for sharing your feedback, Shannon!
Mine came out great ! But it was a little too sweet for my liking any recommendations?
Hi, Carolina. So glad you liked the recipe. While I think 1 tablespoon of sugar that the recipe calls for rounds up the flavor, you may reduce it to your taste, or omit it altogether. Thank you for your feedback.
My first time trying this recipe and it came out so delicious and you really need to have it over rice so then the sauce we’ll go somewhere besides just sitting in the pan. I can’t wait to try it again with rice.lol
Silvia, thank you for sharing your feedback. So happy you liked it.
I saw 1 TB of sugar to add in ingredients but in recipe this was not added?
Judi, so sorry for confusion. Sugar goes in with coconut milk and seasonings in step 4. I’ll correct the recipe directions.
This recipe is delicious and very easy to follow. It did not take for me more than half an hour for serving. My kids really enjoyed this meal.
So glad you and your family enjoyed this dish. Thank you for your feedback, Fatima!
Coconut milk is one of my favorite things to make a sauce from. It’s so creamy and delicious!
Agreed! Thank you, Megan!
this looks easy and very tasty with the bonus of being sweet and salty. only problem is that I will be the only one eating this as my family doesn’t like coconut.
Hi, Judy. I know what you mean, not everyone loves coconut, especially in savory dishes. If anything, you could half the recipe and make it just for yourself. 😉 Thanks for stopping by.
My family loves shrimp, I’ll have to try this!
They’re going to love this dish then. Hope you’ll try it, Lindsay! Thanks for stopping by.