Peel-and-Eat Boiled Shrimp with Cocktail Sauce
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Ready to dig in? These Maryland-style boiled shrimp are packed with flavor—peel, eat, and enjoy a hands-on seafood feast!
One of my family’s favorite summer traditions is heading to seafood shacks, where we sit around brown paper–covered picnic tables and dig into peel-and-eat shrimp, blue crabs, and crab cakes. Even better is recreating the experience at home with a backyard seafood boil. Boiled shrimp are quick, easy, and so much fun to eat. I love making them Maryland-style—simmered in beer and Old Bay, with homemade cocktail sauce on the side. Cooking shrimp in the shell locks in flavor and moisture, and it means less work for the cook!
Boiled shrimp pairs nicely with cornbread, fresh corn salad, or any number of summery corn dishes.
“This is the best Maryland-style spiced shrimp I have ever had, and I’m from MD!”
What You’ll Need To Make Peel-And-Eat Boiled Shrimp With Cocktail Sauce
- OLD BAY: Adds a signature blend of bold, zesty spices that perfectly complements the shrimp. The primary spices in Old Bay are celery salt, red and black pepper, and paprika.
- BUTTER, BEER & WATER: These work together to create the flavorful cooking liquid for the shrimp. Butter adds richness, beer lends a subtle malty note, and a bit of water dilutes the beer flavor slightly so it doesn’t overpower the shrimp.
- EXTRA-LARGE SHRIMP: Meaty enough to hold up to boiling. I like frozen, deveined shrimp — they’re usually cleaned and flash-frozen right after being caught. Unless you live near the coast, “fresh” shrimp at the fish counter is often previously frozen anyway, so you’re better off buying frozen and thawing at home.
- KETCHUP, PREPARED HORSERADISH, LEMON JUICE & CAYENNE: The building blocks of a great cocktail sauce. Ketchup gives you a sweet-tangy base, horseradish adds that signature spicy kick, lemon juice brightens everything, and a pinch of cayenne brings just enough heat to keep things interesting.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-By-Step Instructions
Step 1: Heat the cooking liquid. Combine the beer, water, butter, and Old Bay in a large pot or Dutch oven and bring to a boil.
Step 2: Boil the shrimp. Add the shrimp, turn the heat down to medium, and cover with a lid. Cook for 3 to 6 minutes, stirring once so they cook evenly, until the shrimp are pink but still tender. Be careful not to overcook!
Step 3: Make the sauce. Combine the ketchup, horseradish, lemon juice, and cayenne pepper in a small bowl and stir to combine.
Step 4: Serve. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the shrimp to a platter. Serve hot or cold with beer, cocktail sauce, and plenty of napkins. Enjoy!
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Ingredients
For the Shrimp
- 2½ tablespoons Old Bay seasoning
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 cup beer
- 1 cup water
- 2 pounds extra large shrimp (26-30 per pound), shell split and deveined, thawed if frozen
For the Cocktail Sauce
- 6 tablespoons ketchup
- ½ tablespoon prepared horseradish (see note)
- 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
- Pinch cayenne pepper
Instructions
For the Shrimp
- Combine the Old Bay, butter, beer, and water in a large pot and bring to a boil. Add the shrimp, turn the heat down to medium, and cover the pot with a lid. Cook, stirring once, for 3 to 6 minutes, or until the shrimp are pink and just cooked through. Using a slotted spoon, remove the shrimp from the broth and transfer to a serving platter. Serve hot or cold with cocktail sauce.
For the Cocktail Sauce
- In a small bowl, whisk together the ketchup, horseradish, lemon juice, and cayenne pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary.
- Note: Prepared horseradish can be found in the refrigerator aisle at your supermarket.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (6 servings)
- Calories: 220
- Fat: 7 g
- Saturated fat: 4 g
- Carbohydrates: 8 g
- Sugar: 4 g
- Fiber: 0 g
- Protein: 31 g
- Sodium: 344 mg
- Cholesterol: 259 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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We LOVE this recipe. I used Guiness Nitro IPA instead of Corona to give it more of a hearty flavor and I only had salted, sweet cream butter on hand, and it didn’t make the shrimp too salty (which we were anticipating upon adding that to the Old Bay). I will definitely be making this again and again.
donthe shrimp have to be thawed or can they be frozen still
Hi Malik, I thaw them first.
I just add Old Bay and beer and butter. Outstanding, I have thrown them in frozen and just add 1 minute more to be cooked so delicious
Thanks for this great recipe!
Charlotte
Shrimp and sauce were fantastic! Just like being in Maryland. Kids liked it too. Will make again!!
Love this recipe! Making it tonight for the second time!!
I make this about once a month and we really pig out. So easy and so delicious! We lived in Maryland for six years and would get wonderful steamed shrimp there. Now that we live in Missouri, it’s nice to be able to reproduce that wonderful flavor again. I sometimes add onion slices to the liquid to add more flavor and also sprinkle on extra Old Bay just before serving. You may want to adjust the horseradish in the cocktail sauce to suit your taste as it can be a little hot depending on the horseradish you use.
i’m from Canada what here is equivalent to old bay
Hi Lila, Check out this recipe and you can make your own. It’s delicious on seafood! http://www.food.com/recipe/old-bay-seasoning-copycat-189447
You can buy Old Bay seasoning in Canada. It comes in a yellow container like Keenes Dry Mustard.
I just cooked this… not my cup of tea.:(
The shrimp came out great! I made a small batch because I had some leftover shrimp from another recipe. Will have to go buy more for a larger batch. thanks.
I first shared this with neighbors in our FL Gulf Coast community where shrimp is plentiful and actual FL natives with lots of shrimp experience exist. Served chilled with the cocktail sauce. What a hit! Eight people downed four pounds of these yummy tidbits in something under an hour. I am now the official peel-n-eat shrimp lady and have added a warm version served with drawn butter and a bit of fresh lemon juice.
As a born and bred Marylander, this recipe captures the taste and fun of Maryland style peel n eat shrimp! Perfect for a summer evening. Thank you Jennifer !!