Crispy Coconut Shrimp

The last few days have been super relaxing down the shore. We’ve been blessed with beautiful (but hot!!) weather so I’ve been able to spend a lot of time outside and on the beach which has been so nice. I’ve let myself be more loose with my to-do list but still make sure to get in a daily workout and meditation – it just makes my day overall better and is worth the time! This adorable beach town has been so cute and inspiring that I decided to switch up my meals with a fun and yummy seafood dish!

I’ve never made coconut shrimp before but I love the flavors in the ingredients. I decided to take a leap of faith and try it out and was shocked that on the first try it came out incredibly flavorful and perfectly crispy – and blog worthy!

The process ended up taking me a while because I made 2+ pounds of shrimp (which was so good it was gone in less than two days!) but when you’re starting to run out of ingredients, just add as needed. I pretty much ended up doubling the recipe, as the ingredient list below is meant for 1 pound of shrimp, which serves about 4 people.

Crispy Coconut Shrimp

Prep Time: 20 Minutes     Cook Time:     30 Minutes     Total Time: 50 Minutes

Let’s Get Started:

1/3 cup all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
2 large eggs, beaten
¾ cup Panko bread crumbs
1 cup sweetened shredded coconut
1 pound raw large shrimp, peeled and deveined
vegetable or coconut oil

1 cup Almiera organic whole wheat basmati rice

Let’s Get Cookin’:

Set up 3 medium bowls. Combine flour, salt and pepper in one. Beat eggs in the second bowl. Combine Panko and coconut in the third bowl.

Dip the shrimp into the flour, then eggs, then coconut mixture. Press firmly to make sure coconut and Panko are sticking to the shrimp. Set coated shrimp aside on a plate while you coat the remaining shrimp.

Add enough oil to cover the bottom of a large skillet on medium heat. Fry the coconut shrimp in smaller batches – 7 or 8 at a time. You do not want to crowd the pan. Flip the shrimp after 2 minutes and fry the other side for 2 more minutes. If you like your coconut shrimp to be a bit darker, fry each side for 3 minutes.

Place the finished coconut shrimp on a plate lined with a paper towel. If you are making them as an appetizer, serve with a sweet Thai sauce (1 part Thai sweet chili sauce to 2 parts orange marmalade). If you are serving as an entrée, serve with rice. I particularly loved this Almiera rice because it was light and accentuated the crisp of the shrimp.

Let’s Get Creative:

There are so many ways to get creative with this recipe. Coconut shrimp are delicious on their own and I felt that they didn’t even need a dipping sauce. However, you can get creative with the sauce should you desire one! The sweet Thai chili sauce (above) would be delicious with it!

You can also get creative with the seasonings. Finely chopped cilantro would be a lovely addition.

Enjoy & Stay Classy! xx