New Orleans-Inspired BBQ Shrimp
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This sautéed barbecue shrimp in a Worcestershire-spiked butter sauce is one of those dishes you can throw together at a moment’s notice.
New Orleans BBQ shrimp has actually very little to do with barbecue. The Louisiana dish refers to sautéed shrimp in a garlicky, Worcestershire-spiked butter sauce. Typically made with copious amounts of butter, the shrimp are cooked and served with the shell on and then peeled at the table. It’s a rich and delicious dish but not very practical for a weeknight family dinner. This is my super-simple, easy-to-eat version. Butter is still the main ingredient in the sauce but I’ve scaled the amount way back, and the shrimp are peeled before cooking. If you keep shrimp in your freezer, it’s one of those shrimp recipes you can throw together at a moment’s notice. Bonus: kids love it!
What you’ll need to make New Orleans-Inspired BBQ shrimp
Before we get started, a few words on buying shrimp. While fresh seafood is obviously superior to frozen, I always buy frozen shrimp. Fact is, unless you live on the coast, it’s near impossible to find truly fresh shrimp. The “fresh” shrimp you see in the seafood case at the supermarket is typically thawed frozen shrimp, and you never know how long it’s been sitting out.
Almost all shrimp are cleaned and flash frozen shortly after being caught, so for the freshest shrimp, you’re better off buying frozen and defrosting it yourself. For this recipe, I buy extra-large frozen shrimp labeled “shell split and deveined.” Come dinnertime, all I have to do is run the shrimp under warm water to quickly defrost and then peel.
Step-by-step instructions
To begin, add the paprika, ancho chili powder, cumin, salt, and sugar to a bowl. Note that ancho chili powder is not the same as regular chili powder. Chili powder is a blend of spices, while ancho chili powder is a pure chili powder made from ground ancho peppers with deep rich flavor and mild to medium heat.
Mix to blend.
Toss the shrimp with the spices until evenly coated.
Melt 6 tablespoons of butter in a large skillet.
Add the minced garlic and cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, for about a minute. Do not brown.
Add the shrimp.
Continue cooking until almost done but still opaque in spots. Keep the heat at medium so the shrimp cook gently; if shrimp are cooked over high heat, they can seize up and become tough. Add the Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice and a few tablespoons of water.
Continue cooking for a few minutes more until the shrimp are cooked, then scatter the thinly sliced scallions over top.
Serve with buttered rice or toasted baguette slices.
You may also like
- Shrimp and Grits
- Ginger, Garlic & Chili Shrimp
- Peel n’ Eat Shrimp with Homemade Cocktail Sauce
- Sheet-Pan Garlic Butter Shrimp
- Orzo Risotto with Shrimp, Bacon & Peas
New Orleans-Inspired BBQ Shrimp
This sautéed barbecue shrimp in a Worcestershire-spiked butter sauce is one of those dishes you can throw together at a moment’s notice.
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon ancho chile powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 2 pounds extra large or jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined, thawed if frozen
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 3 large cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, from 1 lemon
- 2 tablespoons water
- 3 scallions, dark green parts, thinly sliced
Instructions
- Mix the paprika, ancho chili powder, cumin, sugar and salt together in a large bowl. Add the shrimp to the spices and toss to coat evenly. Set aside.
- Melt the butter over medium heat in a 12-inch skillet. Add the garlic and cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, for one minute. Do not brown. Add the shrimp and continue cooking over medium heat, stirring frequently, until the shrimp are almost cooked but still opaque in spots, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice and water and cook until shrimp are done, 1 to 2 minutes more. Scatter the scallions over top and serve.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (6 servings)
- Calories: 209
- Fat: 11 g
- Saturated fat: 7 g
- Carbohydrates: 5 g
- Sugar: 2 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 21 g
- Sodium: 928 mg
- Cholesterol: 216 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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This is one of my families favorite. We add chopped water chestnuts while cooking and then spoon the shrimp mix in lettuce and have shrimp lettuce wraps. The cool crisp lettuce is perfect with the spicy hot shrimp. I’ve also done this for my office ans a luncheon. It was a hit.
Thanks, Sharon. Love the idea of using this for lettuce wraps.
I absolutely love shrimp, this recipe is easy and simple and it looks great. Will be making this for my friends in work.
Everything I’ve made from your blog so far has been delicious! I’m excited to try this, too.
Just one question, though. Did you say you take them straight out of the freezer and run warm water over them to thaw? I also get frozen shrimp and ir’s annoying having to plan ahead so I can wait all day for them to thaw. I don’t make them as often as I would because of them. Is it really okay to thaw them quickly that way? You seem like you know what you’re doing. So, I’ll believe it if you say so and it would make life so much easier.
Hi Leela, That’s exactly what I do and it works perfectly…only takes a few minutes so no need to plan ahead. Of course, you don’t want to soak them in hot water or they’ll cook, but warm water will do the trick.
These are fantastic!
I had my husband cook this recipe. It was very delicious, even my very picky teen ask for seconds. Thank you.
This sounds great! I make one similar to this but with white wine and creole seasoning. I bake it at 350 until shrimp are done. I can’t wait to try yours!!
For a delish party appetizer instead of the usual boiled shrimp, would this dish be tasty served at room temperature?
Yes! You could keep the tails on so they’d be easier to pick up.
Made this last night for dinner. I steamed some asparagus and threw them in with the shrimp and servied over rice. Delicious!!! Nothing beats easy and great tasting!!
We use to get something like this at one of our favorite restaurants and loved them. They served french bread with it to sop up the juice and it was yummy but I like the idea of rice with it. I think I will use yellow rice!
I made this tonight for dinner. We had it over rice. It was delicious!!!
If you buy the split shell shrimp you are going to get farm raised, not wild caught shrimp. Huge difference in flavor and the farm raised if from overseas, which most are, are raised in horrible dirty conditions. Buy USA raised shrimp, it has to be noted on the package or on the sign in the case what the country of origin is.
Oh my! This was so fabulous!! What an amazingly quick dish with so many layers of flavor! Will definitely be making this again and again and again!
Made this for dinner last night with a large salad. No leftovers. I missed adding the water since it was not mentioned in the ingredient list, but tuned out fine. I like the grits idea too.
Hi Danita, I added the water to the ingredient list to avoid confusion. Thanks for bringing that to my attention 🙂
Just saw the grits suggestion. I will try that next time for sure!
Super easy and delicious over rice.
I’m trying this tonight.
Easy. Declicious. Perfect. Laissez les bons temps rouler!
Thank you so much for posting. We really enjoyed this dish served over quinoa tonight. 🙂
Jenn – Delicious dish! Can you add vegetables to the shrimp while cooking or will that have unintended consequences?
Hi Joanne, I think it’d be fine, as long as you use quick cooking veggies. You may have a little less sauce to go around but it will still be good.
I have made this twice since pinning the recipe. It is fabulous!! Couldn’t find ancho chili powder so used chipotle chili powder I had on hand. I also cut the amount of cumin by half……not a big cumin fan. I served it with multi-grain angel hair pasta tossed with olive oil. A new staple in my house., So good!!
Loved this! I think grits would be a great side dish for this as well.
I made this dish tonight along with your black bean soup, and both were terrific! Our two boys love spicy food, so they added some Sriracha (rooster) sauce to it. I think next time I’ll just add some cayenne pepper along with the other spices. Thanks again for two more wonderful recipes, Jenn!!
Fixed this dish for Sunday dinner and it was delicous. There were no leftovers, defintely overate that night. Will be making this dish again & again. LOVED the sauce with the shrimp over rice. YUMMY…
Tried this shrimp for dinner on Sunday – not a bit left over!!!!! Quick and delicious!!
This looks fantastic! Can’t wait to give it a try! 😀
Can this be kept warm in crockpot to serve at a gathering?
Hi Kathy, This is one of those dishes best served right away, or reheated only once. I’d worry the shrimp would keep cooking in a crockpot and get tough. Sorry!
I made this for dinner tonight. It was a huge hit with everyone in my family. I didn’t have ancho chili powder, so I just used regular chili powder and it still came out awesome. I served it over rice. It was super easy to make and will definitely become one of my “go to” recipes.
Shrimp glorious shrimp!
Absolutely delicious – and thank you for the insight as to fresh vs. frozen! =)
I have so enjoyed growing up and living on the gulf coast ….I’ve been able to meet the shrimp boats as they arrive. There’s nothing like just-caught fresh shrimp and I hate buying frozen when I am traveling or visiting friends out of state ….but your recipe is true to its origins and one of my favorite ways to cook and eat shrimp. Delicious!
I made this for dinner tonight, and served it with a loaf of crusty bread. So good!
Thank you as always for delicious recipes!
Jenn- How much water?
Thank you for catching that, Mary! It’s 2 tablespoons. Will correct the recipe right now.
Amazing! I made this last night! It was so easy and so delicious! Just pinned it and posted it to facebook!!!
Can not wait to try this tasty dish during the lenten season! Sounds yummy!
Had this for dinner tonight – it was so easy and so good. Thank you once again!
Yum! I’ll need to look for this on the menu the next I visit New Orleans – but until then, can’t wait to try this out!
Cynthia—when you order in NOLA, you will get whole shrimp with head. I was told to suck the head then eat the shrimp—-Did NOT suck the head. The shrimp was best I have ever had.
Made these tonight. They are beautiful and delicious, however, I would call them Mexican shrimp instead of Barbeque as the chili taste is prominent and there is no grilled or smoked flavor to them. They are DELISH though! Served them with brown rice.
So glad you enjoyed, Wendy. I know, the name is definitely a misnomer.
Try serving grits instead of rice, for it to be truly New Orleans-y. We even have it for breakfast here!
This is another delicious recipe that I know I will make time after time. I already have all the ingredients. So easy, so looking forward to making this!
Sounds yummy! and easy enough to cut in half for the two of us! All I need is a lemon and I’m ready to cook!
I’m making this tonight with chicken instead of shrimp – can’t wait! The chicken is already bathing in seasoning in the fridge!
I make about 90% of these recipes when they come! It’s almost as if they were heaven sent! Can’t wait to make this one! Happy cooking! 🙂
I graduated from Univ of Louisiana. I love the food in that area. This looks very good.
This sounds wonderful. I will definitely be trying this out this week.
Well, this looks easy enough and I have all the ingredients. I see a delicious dinner in my future! Thank you!
Looks like another great recipe. Thanks.
sounds amazing. That’s what we’re having tonight!!!!!!!!!!!
Went to college in NOLA so this is a must try for dinner
Almost feel guilty planning this for a Lenten meal ; )
Really excited to try this out!
Definitely trying this this weekend.
Thank you for the shopping tip on purchasing shrimp! Great insight.
Do you live in Naples?