Last Updated February 14th, 2021 at 10:35 pm by Lisa
An easy appetizer and party food, Shrimp Cocktail is made by oven roasting large shrimp, then dip them in fresh homemade cocktail sauce!
This recipe is one of my favorite things to serve for happy hours, holidays, and celebrations. Roasting shrimp is the way to go versus traditional boiling, it's so much easier, and the roasting adds deep rich flavor...
Why This Recipe Is AMAZING!
- Roasting adds tremendous flavor vs boiling shrimp does not!
- The seasoning also adds to make the shrimp taste incredible.
- The shrimp can be served right out of the oven.
- No boiling pots of water or draining.
- The color of the shrimp is vibrant.
- Homemade cocktail sauce is easy and SO much better than store versions.
Here Is All You Need...
- wild shrimp - buy tail-on, peeled deveined large shrimp 20-25 count also called jumbo. Wild shrimp is a natural seafood product and is my recommendation for the best tasting shrimp cocktail. Pro Tip: decide to defrost overnight in the fridge or rinse under cool water before your party.
- olive oil - good extra virgin olive oil.
- sea salt - kosher sea salt is my go-to!
- ground black pepper - ground fresh is packed with flavor.
- Chili Garlic Sauce - Heinz or Vietnamese brand, these are easy to find in any grocery.
- ketchup - brings that sweet tomato flavor into the cocktail sauce and the color.
- lemon - zest and juice one real lemon, adds amazing tang and brightness.
- prepared horseradish - adds a nice spicy bite, and balances the sweet chili sauce.
- Worcestershire sauce - adds a tangy depth of umami flavor.
- celery - finely chopped adds a crisp clean crunch to the cocktail sauce.
- Tabasco - or a hot sauce you love adds just a bit of heat.
Let's Make Cocktail Sauce...
Mix all these ingredients...
Chili garlic sauce, ketchup, lemon zest and juice, Worcestershire sauce, prepared horseradish, celery, Tabasco hot sauce in a small bowl, chill in the fridge.
cook the shrimp
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Remove the frozen shrimp from the bag, place in a colander, and rinse under water. Your shrimp will be ready to cook in about 15 minutes. Or you can defrost your shrimp overnight in the refrigerator. Place the bag of shrimp in a bowl to catch the moisture.
- Peel and devein the shrimp if not already clean, and leave the tails on if possible, this gives your guest a little "handle" to dip the shrimp!
- Place on a sheet pan with olive oil, salt, and pepper, toss to coat evenly, and spread into one layer.
- Roast 8-10 minutes, until just pink, they will be firm. Set aside to cool.
- Arrange the roasted shrimp on a platter with the homemade cocktail sauce in a bowl.
Frozen Shrimp Tips:
You can defrost Shrimp 2 Ways...
- Place the frozen shrimp bag in a bowl and let it thaw overnight in the fridge.
- A faster method is to remove the shrimp from the bag and put it in a bowl of cold water, change out the water a couple of times. The shrimp should be ready to cook in about 15 minutes.
Shrimp are graded by the seafood industry and brands in different terms, and it is confusing.
A good average serving size* per person is about 4 ounces of shrimp, here is a way to know what the package means:
Extra Colossal U/10 2-3/shrimp serving
Super Colossal U/12 2-3/shrimp serving
Colossal U/15 3-4/shrimp serving
Extra Jumbo 16/20 4-5/shrimp serving
Jumbo 21/25 5-6/shrimp serving
Extra Large 26/30 6-7/shrimp serving
Large 31/35 8-9/shrimp serving
Medium Large 36/40 9-10/shrimp serving
Medium 41/50 10-12/shrimp serving
Small 51/60 12-15/shrimp serving
Extra Small 61/70 15-17/shrimp serving
Tiny 71+ 18+/shrimp serving
More Of My Appetizer Recipes:
Easy appetizers make a party!
Appetizer parties are a relaxed way to entertain with a couple of chip dips like Guacamole and Salsa Verde served with tortilla chips. People rave about this oven-baked Jalapeno Popper Dip or make fast and easy French Onion Dip, great to whip up in minutes served with potato chips.
For holiday parties, try a few of these Thanksgiving Appetizers. These easy holiday recipes include Deviled Eggs, Brie and Bacon Palmiers, and a gorgeous Crostini Bar!
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Shrimp Cocktail With Homemade Cocktail Sauce
Ingredients
cooked shrimp
- 2 lbs wild shrimp tail-on, peeled, deveined large/jumbo shrimp 20-25 count
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ sea salt
- ½ fresh ground black pepper
cocktail sauce
- ¼ cup Chili Garlic Sauce Heinz or Vietnamese brand
- ½ cup ketchup
- 1 lemon zest and juice
- 1 tablespoon prepared horseradish
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire
- 1 cup celery 3 stalks finely chopped
- optional: ¼ teaspoon hot sauce Tabasco
Instructions
make cocktail sauce
- Mix all the cocktail sauce ingredients; chili garlic sauce, ketchup, lemon zest and juice, Worcestershire sauce, prepared horseradish, celery, Tabasco hot sauce in a small bowl, chill in fridge.
cook the shrimp
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Remove the frozen shrimp from the bag, place in a colandar and rinse underwater. Your shrimp will be ready to cook in about 15 minutes. Or you can defrost your shimp overnight in the refrigerator. Place the bag of shrimp in a bowl to catch the moisture.
- Peel and devein the shrimp if not already clean, and leave the tails on if possible, this gives your guest a little "handle" to dip the shrimp!
- Place on a sheet pan with olive oil, salt, and pepper, toss to coat evenly and spread into one layer.
- Roast 8-10 minutes, until just pink, they will be firm. Set aside to cool.
- Arrange the roasted shrimp on a platter with the homemade cocktail sauce in a bowl.
Notes
shrimp:
I recommend buying good wild-caught shrimp vs farm-raised, the flavor and natural product are worth a bit extra on the price. Now, the packages can be confusing! I have a full chart of shrimp in this recipe post, but here are some of the common shrimp sizes and names to help you navigate your purchase. For this recipe, any shrimp will work, but I would buy jumbo or extra-jumbo shrimp. Once you defrost them, they shrink in size as the ice melts away! Extra Jumbo 16/20 4-5/shrimp servingJumbo 21/25 5-6/shrimp serving
Extra Large 26/30 6-7/shrimp serving
Large 31/35 8-9/shrimp serving
Medium Large 36/40 9-10/shrimp serving
defrost shrimp 2 ways:
- Place the frozen shrimp bag in a bowl and let it thaw overnight in the fridge.
- A faster method is to remove the shrimp from the bag and put it in a bowl of cold water, change out the water a couple of times. The shrimp should be ready to cook in about 15 minutes.
Oh my goodness- this is the BEST cocktail sauce and the shrimp. YUM! Such a flavorful recipe we serve each holiday season. Incredible flavors!