Shrimp Salad Recipe
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This Shrimp Salad comes together in 30 minutes and is one of my favorite light meals. I mix tender shrimp with mayo, fresh dill, and crunchy celery for the perfect balance of creamy and crisp. It’s simple, flavorful, and great on its own or piled onto toasted bread.
I’ve always loved cooking shrimp because they’re quick, easy, and always taste great. If you’re into shrimp like I am, you’ve got to try my shrimp scampi or this delicious Bang Bang shrimp. They’re both fast favorites around here and perfect when you want something simple but satisfying.
Shrimp Salad
Shrimp salad is a classic bound salad of cooked shrimp, mayonnaise, herbs, and vegetables. It’s a traditional, easy-to-make side or main dish popular at delis and served during summer. This dish was considered a delicacy amongst women in the early twentieth century.
My shrimp salad recipe is super flexible, so feel free to make it your own. I like tossing in bell peppers and fennel for extra crunch and flavor, but you can skip them if you want. Play around with it and add what you love, it’s hard to go wrong with a salad this tasty.
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Shrimp – It is best to use medium to smaller-sized shrimp, such as a 26/30 or 31/40. The shrimp can be fresh or frozen and thawed.
- Onion – You can use a shallot or a white, red, or sweet onion. I also add a whole minced garlic clove.
- Vegetables – I used a combination of celery, red bell pepper, and fennel. Classically, celery will suffice. Feel free to use an orange or yellow bell pepper.
- Herbs – Fresh or dry dill will work in this shrimp salad.
- Mayonnaise – Any full-fat mayonnaise is best to use.
- Spices – I used pickling spice when poaching the shrimp to help add incredible flavors.
- Lemon – Freshly squeezed lemons are used in the shrimp poaching liquid and in the salad to brighten it up.
- Seasonings – I only used coarse salt and freshly cracked pepper. You could also use a seasoning salt such as Old Bay.
How to Make Shrimp Salad
Prep the shrimp: First thing I do is remove the shells and then carefully devein each shrimp.
Boil the water: I pour 2 quarts of water into a medium pot and bring it to a boil. Then I add the juice of 2 lemons, toss in the squeezed lemon halves, and stir in the pickling spice to infuse the water with flavor.
Season the water: Once the pot is boiling, I add coarse salt until the water tastes as salty as the ocean. It usually takes about 2 to 3 tablespoons, and this step helps season the shrimp from the inside out.
Cook the shrimp: I drop the shrimp into the boiling seasoned water and let them cook for about 90 seconds. I keep a close eye on them because overcooked shrimp can turn rubbery fast.
Cool the shrimp: As soon as they’re done cooking, I transfer the shrimp to a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking process. This step, called shocking, keeps them tender and perfectly cooked. I look for that loose C shape, not a tight C shape.
Chill the shrimp: I strain the shrimp from the ice water and pop them in the fridge to chill until I’m ready to mix everything together.
Prep the vegetables: While the shrimp are chilling, I dice the red onion, celery, garlic, dill, bell pepper, and fennel so they’re ready to go when it’s time to assemble the salad.
Mix the salad: In a large bowl, I combine the chilled shrimp with mayonnaise, a squeeze of lemon juice, onions, celery, garlic, bell pepper, fennel, salt, and pepper. I give everything a good stir until it’s evenly coated and creamy.
Chef Tip + Notes
I highly recommend for making my shrimp salad is to keep a close eye on the shrimp while they’re in the ice water. If they sit too long, they soak up too much water and lose that nice tender texture. Just a quick chill does the trick.
- Use a binder: I make this a bound salad by mixing everything with mayonnaise or a creamy dressing to hold it all together.
- Make it your own: This recipe is super flexible, so I always say go ahead and swap or skip ingredients based on what you like or have on hand.
- Serve it low-carb: When I want to keep things light, I scoop the shrimp salad into a halved avocado instead of using bread.
- Cut large shrimp: If I’m working with bigger shrimp like 16/20 or 13/15, I chop them into 1” bite-sized pieces after cooking to make them easier to eat.
- Flavor the water: I make sure the poaching liquid is well-seasoned. I’m not drinking it, but it’s key to flavoring the shrimp from the inside out.
Serving suggestions
I like to enjoy this shrimp salad just as it is, but it’s also great piled onto toasted bread with some crisp lettuce. Sometimes I add sliced tomatoes and thin red onion for a little extra crunch and flavor.
Since my wife and daughter are big salad fans too, I often serve this alongside our favorites like my spring salad or a classic Niçoise salad for a fresh and colorful spread.
Make-Ahead and Storage
Make-Ahead: You can make this salad up to 1 day ahead for freshness. You may need to drain slightly, add in more mayonnaise, and re-season before serving.
How to Store: Cover and keep the shrimp salad in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. This will not freeze well.
More Shrimp Recipes
Video
Shrimp Salad Recipe
Ingredients
For the Shrimp:
- 2 pounds peeled and deveined fresh 26/30 shrimp
- Juice of 2 lemons, about 4 to 6 tablespoons
- 3 tablespoons pickling spice
- coarse salt to taste
For the Salad:
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- ¼ peeled and small diced large red onion, about 1/3 cup
- 2 small diced ribs of celery
- 1 small diced garlic clove
- 1 ½ tablespoons minced fresh dill
- ½ seeded and small diced red bell pepper
- 2 tablespoons finely minced fresh fennel
- juice of ½ lemon, about 1 to 1 ½ tablespoons
- Coarse salt and freshly cracked pepper
Instructions
- Remove the shells and devein the shrimp.
- Add 2 quarts of water to a medium-sized pot and bring it to a boil along with the juice of 2 lemons, the squeezed lemons, and pickling spice.
- Generously season the liquid with coarse salt until it is as salty as the ocean. This will be about 2 to 3 tablespoons.
- Place the shrimp in the boiling seasoned water and cook for 90 seconds. Do not overcook the shrimp.
- Remove the shrimp and add them to a container of ice water to help stop the cooking process. This is known as shocking. The shrimp should be in a loose C shape, not a tight C shape.
- Strain the shrimp and chill them until you need them.
- In the meantime, prepare the onions, celery, garlic, dill, bell pepper, and fennel.
- In a large bowl mix together the shrimp, mayonnaise, lemon juice, onions, celery, garlic, bell pepper, fennel, salt, and pepper.
- Serve as is or on toasted bread with lettuce and optional sliced tomatoes and thinly sliced red onions.
I’ve been boiling my shrimp using lemon and pickling spice for all of my life. I boil r the tails and shrimp shells first and add the spices and lemon plus Old Bay seasoning. I freeze the broth and I for the next time. I use boiled shrimp in shrimp, curry, shrimp cocktail, shrimpy shrimp, and shrimp ceviche, you name it.