Time is one of the most precious commodities on a busy weeknight, but eating a healthy dinner is important too. To avoid running to your delivery app of choice or picking up another bag of greasy fast food on the way home from work, you need to have some quick-cooking recipes in your back pocket. If you have some shrimp in the freezer and these quick shrimp recipes on hand, you’re only 15 minutes away from a healthy meal.
Shrimp, the most popular seafood in the U.S., can be stashed in the freezer and thawed in the fridge the night before or in minutes under cold water to create a quick weeknight meal that the whole family will love. Add a few spices, some veggies, or pasta and you can have dinner on the table in minutes. These quick shrimp recipes prove that a healthy, restaurant-quality dinner at home is never far away. Plus, don’t miss 22 Meals to Melt Belly Fat in 2022.
This dish is an homage to gambas al ajillo, a simple but genius combination of shrimp slow-cooked in olive oil that’s been infused with lots of garlic, smoked paprika, and a touch of chile heat. Add a side of roasted veggies and some crusty bread and dinner is served.
Get our recipe for Spanish Garlic Shrimp.
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When you lower the calories and carbs by using cauliflower, you can add back in flavor in the form of a touch of real butter and parmesan cheese to these “grits.” Cajun-seasoned shrimp adds the perfect touch of spicy when served over the creamy mock grits.
Get the recipe from Eating Bird Food.
Panko and coconut combine into an irresistible coating for shrimp. Serve these crunchy, oven-fried shrimp with cumin-spiced black beans and asparagus for a complete meal. You can use the coating on chunks of chicken too if you have family or friends that aren’t shrimp fans.
Get our recipe for Crispy Coconut Shrimp.
Skip takeout and put together this garlicky, sweet, and savory stir fry in just minutes. Add any veggie you want and serve over fluffy rice for a complete dish.
Get the recipe from The Seasoned Mom.
Store-bought coleslaw mix is the key to cutting the prep work out of these easy, spicy shrimp tacos. You can create your own spice mix or cheat and use your favorite seasoning packet.
Get the recipe from Show Me the Yummy.
Soy sauce, sambal oelek, rice vinegar, tomato paste, and sugar—though you can also use honey—are the keys to unlocking deep flavoring just minutes. Don’t skip the sambal oelek, an Indonesian chile paste; once you add it to a stir fry you will never go back.
Get the recipe from i am a food blog.
Three simple pantry ingredients—crushed tomatoes, white wine, and a pinch of red pepper flakes—create the base of this Little Italy favorite.
Get our recipe for Low-Calorie Shrimp Fra Diavolo.
It takes only 6 ingredients and a handful of minutes to make this delicious shrimp noodle dish. The secret is to add 1/4 cup of the starchy, noodle cooking water when adding the soy sauce to the sauteed ingredients to make a luscious sauce.
Get the recipe from i am a food blog.
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A true Southerner might fault you for using quick-cooking grits, but you don’t have to tell. The rest of the ingredients—turkey kielbasa, shrimp, mushrooms, and scallions—come together in minutes on the stove.
Get our recipe for Southern-Style Shrimp and Grits.
Take-out-worthy shrimp and broccoli don’t take long, but if you have an Instant Pot it is done in the blink of an eye. Plus, the flavors of soy sauce, minced garlic, ginger, oyster sauce, brown sugar, and rice wine vinegar will permeate the shrimp and veggies better.
Get our recipe for Instant Pot Shrimp and Broccoli.
You can quickly boil some shrimp and drop them in an ice bath or buy pre-cooked cold shrimp and then toss with celery, onion, chives, mayo, lemon juice, hot sauce, and salt. Pile everything on a toasted hot dog roll and enjoy with your favorite light beer.
Get our recipe for the Best-Ever Shrimp Roll.
The trick to achieving the best-ever coating on these air-fried shrimp is to toast the coconut before coating the shrimp. Serve this with veggies and rice for a complete meal.
Get our recipe for Air Fryer Coconut Shrimp.
These healthy rice paper-wrapped rolls are filled with shrimp, super-thin rice noodles, crunchy veggies, and mango. Serve as a light lunch or dinner with a glass of sauvignon blanc on the side.
Get our recipe for Shrimp and Mango Summer Rolls.
The best thing about making your own lo mein is that you can pack it with as many veggies as you desire. That will cut down on the calories and up the fiber level. Plus, garlic, ginger, oyster sauce, and soy sauce ensure that you will not sacrifice any flavor.
Get our recipe for Low-Calorie Shrimp Lo Mein.
Once you find the perfect recipe for shrimp scampi, you will never pay restaurant prices for such a quick and easy meal ever again. This one goes light on the butter and olive oil and maximizes the garlic and lemon flavor this classic dish is known for. Toss in some broccoli, which goes great with the lemon-butter flavor, for a little more fiber
Get our recipe for Shrimp Scampi With Linguine Pasta.
If you love a good restaurant spinach salad with warm bacon dressing, then this is the recipe for you. We’ve cut the calories by maximizing the flavor in the dressing without overdoing it with the oil or bacon fat. But you still get the crispy bacon and chopped hard-boiled eggs that the salad is known for, plus shrimp adds satiating protein.
Get our recipe for Healthy Shrimp and Spinach Salad With Warm Bacon.
As you can see, it’s easy to make this low-fat, high-protein shellfish a part of your weeknight rotation. Be sure to take advantage of frozen shrimp sales and stock up. A quick bath under cold water is all it takes to make shrimp the star of any night.
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