Bang Bang Shrimp

This crispy Bang Bang Shrimp is coated in a creamy, sweet-and-spicy sauce that rivals your favorite restaurant version! It's an easy, crowd-pleasing appetizer for game day, parties, or whenever you're craving a little restaurant-style indulgence at home.

Course Appetizer, Main Course, seafood

Cuisine American, Asian-inspried

Keyword bang-bang-shrimp, copycat-bang-bang-shrimp, fried-shrimp-recipes

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 10

Total Time 25

Servings servings

Calories 621kcal

Ingredients

1 cup buttermilk
1 large egg
2 lb medium-large shrimp peeled and deveined
3/4 cup panko bread crumbs
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup cornstarch
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp lemon pepper
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp granulated garlic or garlic powder
vegetable or peanut oil for frying
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup Asian-style sweet chili sauce (I use Thai sweet chili sauce)
2 Tbsp sriracha hot sauce may adjust to taste
1-2 Tbsp honey

Instructions

Shrimp: In a medium bowl whisk together buttermilk and egg. Add shrimp to the mixture, tossing until evenly coated. Chill for 30 minutes.
In a gallon size plastic storage bag toss together panko breadcrumbs, flour, cornstarch, salt, lemon pepper, garlic and onion powder. Set aside.
Remove shrimp from chilled buttermilk, draining in a colander to allow excess to drip off. Add shrimp to the breading mixture in bag, seal and toss until evenly coated.
Once coated, open bag and place back into the refrigerator to chill for 30 minutes. Repeat the process, sealing and tossing to coat with breading about halfway through chilling (15 minute mark) and again just before frying.
Prepare: Heat vegetable oil in a deep pot or dutch oven to 360-365°F.
Working in batches, cook shrimp until golden and crispy turning as needed for about 2-3 minutes total. Transfer to a paper towel-lined sheet pan or platter.
Sauce: Meanwhile, to make the sauce in a small bowl whisk together mayonnaise, sweet chili sauce, sriracha and honey in a small bowl. Set aside.
Serve immediately, drizzled with sweet chili sauce serving any additional on the side. (May toss shrimp lightly with sauce, if preferred)

Notes

Shrimp - Choose a medium-large sized shrimp for this recipe. When in doubt go bigger, not smaller.
Don't Overcook - Shrimp cooks very quickly. The number one rule for cooking shrimp is not to overcook it. If you do, it will have the texture of a pencil eraser. Adapt the cooking time according to the size you're using to recreate this recipe.
Should the shrimp have tails on or off? I typically make this recipe with shrimp that have the tails removed.
Homemade Buttermilk - If you don't have buttermilk on hand, add 1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice or white vinegar per 1 cup of whole milk. Allow it to sit on the counter for 5-10 minutes, then stir and proceed with the recipe instructions.
Add Sauce Last - To maintain the crispness of the fried shrimp, I prefer to drizzle it lightly with sauce and serve the remainder on the side for those who may like to add more. Should you choose to toss the cooked shrimp with sauce, only do so just before eating then immediately serve.

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