These super-tasty crispy prawns truly taste amazing and are so easy to make. And that crispy coating, that really stays crispy, allows the flavour of the prawns to really shine. They’re easy enough to serve as a tasty appetizer but work equally as well as a full meal. I serve these with my hot honey but there are so many more options shared below.
The secret to the crispy coating is two-fold – a combination of flour and panko breadcrumbs, and a double-fry (which is easier than it sounds). Double-frying is the same method used for my delicious karaage chicken and it couldn’t be simpler.
It’s also lighter than it sounds because double-frying results in super-crunch but no greasiness.
If you love these, you’ll love my katsu prawns – fried in panko crumbs until golden and crunchy – and these prawn spring rolls too.
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Prawn vs shrimp
Ever wondered about the difference between prawns and shrimp? There is none. While there are different species available in different parts of the world, shrimp and prawns are the same thing – just with a different name depending on where you live. What is called shrimp in the US is a prawn in Australia. There is one exception; brown shrimp in Europe must be called shrimp, not prawns but other than that, the names are interchangeable.
Ingredients
These super crispy prawns (or crispy shrimp, depending on where you’re from) have just a handful of ingredients and they’re all easy to get hold of. You can use any prawns you like though nice big prawns will definitely get the best combination of crunchy golden coating to tender meat.
Jump to the recipe for full ingredients and instructions.
- Prawns: Any prawns or shrimp will work for this recipe. Larger ones will give the best result as you’ll be able to cook them long enough to get the coating perfectly crunchy and a little golden without over-cooking the prawn flesh. Smaller ones will work and the coating will get crispy but you will run the risk of over-cooking and the coating will be very pale. For these crispy prawns, I use XXL tiger prawns here which are about 13-16 prawns per 500g (13-14 per 1lb). King prawns would also be great and if you can get jumbo size go for it. You might want to just do 20 if using jumbos. Get prawns in the shell for the best texture and flavour.
- Eggs: Just a couple of large eggs to help the coating set.
- Garlic: Fresh garlic gives great flavour without overwhelming the prawn flavour.
- Seasoning: A good hit of both salt and pepper is all the seasoning you need.
- Flour: There are two types of flour used here – plain flour (aka all purpose flour) and cornflour (aka US cornstarch). Cornflour where I am is that very fine powder often used for thickening sauces. The combination of the two flours allows for super crisp texture (mostly from the cornflour) plus some golden colour (mostly from the plain flour since cornflour doesn’t brown). You can use self raising flour in place of the plain flour too.
- Breadcrumbs: I use panko breadcrumbs here for their super crunchy texture but you can use regular breadcrumbs if that’s what you have on hand.
- Oil: You’ll want to use a neutral-flavoured vegetable oil for frying your crumbed prawns. Canola oil or sunflower oil are very good.
How to make crispy prawns
This crispy fried prawns recipe is so incredibly simple but there is one important rule for the very best results: Get prawns in the shell. They can be fresh or frozen but in the shell prawns will have the best texture. Prawns that have been frozen without their shells always get this unpleasant crunchy texture and stay a bit translucent when cooked. For the right meaty texture that paying for prawns deserves, buy your prawns/shrimp in the shell and remove it yourself. It only takes about 15-20 minutes to prep this amount of prawns and the rest of the recipe is a breeze.
Jump to the recipe for full ingredients and instructions.
1. Prep the prawns
As I mentioned above, if you really want to the best fried prawns, you need to start with prawns that are still in their shell and prep them yourself. Fresh or frozen is fine. Pull off the head, then peel away the shell and legs, leaving just the tail intact. If you do it right, you can often pull the vein out as you pull off the head too. Now cut along the back of the prawn (opposite side to where the legs were) and slice about halfway into the prawn. Use the knife to scrape out the vein (digestive tract) if you can’t grab it easily. Last of all, press it out to butterfly just slightly.
Do I have to leave the tail on?
Technically, no, you don’t need to leave the tail intact but I do it for a few reasons. First, it looks pretty. It also makes for an easy way to hold the prawns if you’re serving them as an appetiser. Lastly, prawns and shrimp can be pricey, so leaving the tail on will slow people down when they’re eating them and make sure they really take the time to enjoy every bite.
2. The prawn seasoning
The seasoning is made up of just eggs, garlic, salt and pepper, mixed together in a large bowl. Add the prawns and mix them through too.
3. The prawn coating
These deep fried prawns have the easiest coating, or breading, of two types of flour and panko crumbs. Just combine those in a bowl first. Once the oil is nearly heated fully, you can coat a handful of the prawns in the breading mixture. Coat them well making sure to get it into the butterflied back too.
4. The first fry
Fry the breaded prawns in small batches of 5-6 – this will depend on the size of your pan. You don’t want to do too many at once or they’ll end up boiling in the oil instead of frying and that will lead to a soggy coating. So just a few at a time for 2-3 minutes, each batch. Don’t worry, the second fry is quicker. This first fry will cook the prawns through and get the coating just a pale golden. Scoop them out with a slotted spoon and rest on a wire rack over some paper towel.
5. The second fry
Now, fry the prawns a second time for 45-60 seconds. This time round, you’re just trying to get the prawns heated right through at the same time as setting that coating to crunchy golden perfection. Transfer them back to the wire rack for any excess oil to drain off, then serve them straight away.
Tips and tricks
- I’ve said it already but please buy prawns with the shells on. Prawns are almost always frozen immediately after being caught and if they’re shelled then frozen, they get this weird crunchy texture after cooking. Shell them yourself and you’ll find you get a meatier, much more satisfying texture.
- Pale golden = perfect. These prawns will not get a deep golden brown, and that’s because they just have a light, mostly cornflour-based coating. Cornflour doesn’t brown or at least, it takes a long time to do so and if you leave your deep fried prawns in long enough for that to happen the prawns will be well overcooked. A light golden is all you need to achieve here for a super crunchy texture.
- Don’t coat the prawns until they’re right about to go into the oil.
- Get everything set up before you start frying so you can focus on the frying once it starts. You need to be able to focus your full attention on that hot oil and keeping the temperature where it needs to be.
- Speaking of the oil, don’t fill the the pan more than half way and use a deep pan for the safest use.
Storage
The second-fry on these crispy prawns means you can actually prep these ahead of time. Cook them up to the end of the first fry and chill on the wire rack over a tray for up to 24 hours. Don’t cover them (hence, I prefer to only leave them a few hours). Then you can do the second deep fry right when you want to serve them. They’ll be hot, perfectly cooked through and perfectly crunchy.
If you have leftover crispy fried prawns, store them in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days.
Can you reheat prawns?
Yes, you can reheat prawns but only once. If you’re doing the two fries at separate times, it would not be safe to then go and reheat them again but if you’re doing the whole recipe at once, then you can reheat any leftovers later. You can do this in a moderate oven (180C/350F) or in a little oil in a pan on the stovetop for 6-10 minutes.
While I serve these prawns with hot honey most often, they’re also really lovely with this creamy white wine sauce.
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Ingredients
- 28 shell-on XXL prawns any type/size fine, cooking time will vary
- 2 large eggs beaten
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt (or kosher salt)
- 1 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
- ½ cup panko breadcrumbs
- ⅓ cup cornflour (US cornstarch or potato starch) (plus 2 Tbsp extra)
- ¼ cup plain flour (all-purpose flour) (plus 1 ½ Tbsp extra)
- Neutral flavoured vegetable oil for frying
For best results, always weigh ingredients where a weight is provided
Equipment
- Deep large saucepan
- deep frying thermometer
- Wire rack
Instructions
- Peel the prawns leaving the tail intact. Cut about ½ way through the prawn to devein and par butterfly. Dry thoroughly with paper towel. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, mix the egg, garlic, salt and pepper.
- In a medium bowl, combine the cornflour, plain flour and breadcrumbs.
- Cover a tray in paper towel and place a wire rack over the top.
- Heat enough oil to reach about 2 inches up the side of a deep saucepan, over medium high heat until it reaches 170C/340F. Keep the temperature between 160C-170C (320F-340F) throughout the cooking process by adjusting the stove temp as needed. If it gets too hot, cool it down quickly by adding a little fresh oil, making sure not to overfill the pan.
- Mix the prawns through the egg mixture, then 5-7 at a time, coat them in the flour mixture. You don’t want to crowd the pan so just do enough that there will be gaps between them as they fry. Towards the end you may notice you have more crumbs than flour left in the bowl, so add the extra flour just if required.
- Fry in batches for 2-3 minutes until they curl up and are just pale golden. After the first one, test for doneness by cutting into the thickest part – it should be opaque white. Use this amount of time for each batch and try not to overcrowd the pan.Cooks note: These prawns won’t get a deep golden brown since they have a high proportion of cornflour which doesn’t brown easily.
- Transfer the prawns to the wire rack for any excess oil to drip off. Bring the oil back to temp before the next batch.
- Once all the prawns are done, bring the oil back up to temperature and fry the whole lot again but in two batches just for 45-60 seconds until hot through and slightly more golden. This second fry sets the crunchy texture and makes sure they’re all hot through at the same time.
- Serve immediately. See notes for suggestions.
- Please take a moment to leave a comment & rating. It's appreciated and so helpful.
Notes
- Tablespoons: I use a standard Australian 20ml tablespoon (equal to 4 teaspoons). Check yours before measuring.
- Serving: These are great served as a meal with a simple coleslaw and maybe some rice. I love serving with hot honey to drizzle over the top. Other sauces that work great are aioli, gochujang mayonnaise, nam jim sauce, sweet and sour sauce, sweet chilli sauce or Thai ajaad sauce.
- Nutrition details are approximate only – scroll below the recipe to find the full nutritional information.
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2 Comments on “Crispy Prawns (Crispy Shrimp)”
Seriously good and they turned out so crispy
So happy you love them, Maggie. Thank you so much for dropping back to leave a review.