Easy Baked Shrimp (Family Favorite!)

This easy baked shrimp recipe has the best flavor and is completely no-fuss! It’s perfectly seasoned with garlic and herbs.

Shrimp are a big winner here: They’re delicious, they’re a healthy, lean protein, and Then to cook quickly. (And our 3 year old is obsessed with it.) Alex and my usual way of cooking it is these sautéed shrimp. But the other day we said to each other: why not try baked shrimp in the oven? Well, you wouldn’t believe the “Wows!” calls after every bite. This method is Then easy and the shrimp will be juicy and perfectly seasoned with garlic and herbs. Go your way all other shrimp recipes! This is the perfect healthy, quick and easy dinner.

Do you want an even faster variant? Go for the grilled shrimp.

A recipe for shrimp in the oven… in 5 minutes!

This Baked Shrimp recipe couldn’t be simpler. The only difficult part is waiting for the oven to preheat. Thereafter: it’s only about 5 minutes in a hot oven. Or if you don’t have time to preheat: use the grill method in the recipe below! The exact time depends on the size of your shrimp. Here are some tips for preparing these fried shrimp:

• Use any size shrimp. Just remember that cooking time will vary depending on size. Cook the shrimp until opaque, 4 to 6 minutes.
• Bake or grill. The benefit of grilled shrimp is that you don’t have to wait for the oven to preheat!
• Add breadcrumbs if desired. It’s optional, but adding breadcrumbs makes the crunchy coating the crispiest. Go for the grilled shrimp.
• Check and rate the degree of doneness. Remove the pan from the oven and assess the cooking process. You can always cook more: but you can’t undo the overcooking!

Baked Shrimp Seasoning

This recipe uses simple spices, but they taste plain perfect. The combination of garlic and herbs takes succulent shrimp to new heights. In addition to salt and pepper, we used the following:

• Garlic
• Dried oregano
• onion powder
• Fresh Lemon Juice (after cooking)
• Fresh parsley or cilantro (after cooking)

You can also opt for a Latin American twist, which we use in making our Shrimp Rice Bowl. Try it with ½ teaspoon smoked paprika powder, garlic powder, onion powder and cumin.

Variations and Additions!

Of course, there are many other ways to flavor this baked shrimp recipe! Here are a few more adder ideas that would spice up this dish, or other ways to spice it up:

• The feta falls apart. Top with feta for a Mediterranean or Greek vibe.
• lime coriander. Substitute cumin for oregano and lime for lemon juice. (See also Cilantro Lime Shrimp.)
• curry powder or paste. Amplify the flavors by adding curry powder or curry paste to taste (skip the oregano).

How to serve baked shrimp

Make it a meal! All you need to flavor these shrimp is a vegetable, a grain, or a salad. Here are our top recommendations:

• Couscous: Go Mediterranean-style and make Easy Couscous (or Israeli Couscous).
• Rice or Quinoa: Make a quick casserole: Head to How to Cook Rice, Coconut Rice, Cilantro Lime Rice, or Perfectly Seasoned Quinoa.
• Steamed or Sauteed Vegetables: Some of our fastest veggie side dishes include: Lemon Peas, Best Sauteed Mushrooms, Sauteed Broccoli, Sauteed Spinach, Lemon Herb Cauliflower, or Sauteed Kale.
• Salad: Some quick and easy salads to combine: Plain Arugula Salad, Goat Cheese Salad with Arugula, Kale Salad, Perfect Italian Salad, or Chopped Lettuce.

Fresh or frozen shrimp: which to use?

You can use fresh or frozen shrimp for this fried shrimp recipe. Frozen shrimp are of course very convenient! But is it that good quality? Actually yes:

• Both fresh and frozen shrimp will work! One myth about fish is that “fresh fish is best,” but frozen fish isn’t necessarily inferior in quality. In fact, it could be higher.
• Why? As soon as an animal dies, it begins to decompose; Freezing suspends this process. If a fish is frozen when you catch it and stays frozen until it gets to your kitchen, it’s of higher quality than a raw fish that took a week to get to your plate.

Want to know the best way to defrost shrimp? Go to Defrost Shrimp.

This Baked Shrimp recipe is…

Pescetarian, gluten free and dairy free.

More favorite shrimp recipes

Shrimp make the fastest weeknight dinners! Here are a few more of our favorite healthy shrimp recipes:

Last update: May 2021