Air-fried shrimp tossed with bang bang sauce is an irresistible meal. It’s a delicious meal with high protein content coated with creamy sauce. Have it as an appetizer, snack, or lunch! It’s mouthwatering either way.
The air fryer helps them to crisp up at another level. Each bite has a good amount of crunch and just the right amount of proteins!
In this article, you’ll get all the necessary details regarding this recipe. Plus, I’ll answer several questions to achieve the best results!
Let’s get started!
Bang Bang Shrimps
Ingredients
Air-fried bang bang shrimp needs some simple ingredients!
- Jumbo shrimp: Use 3 ounces of peeled and drained fresh shrimp.
- All-purpose flour: ¼ cup all-purpose flour to coat the shrimps.
- Panko Crumbs: 1 cup of Panko crumbs. These are traditional Japanese crumbs made from dry-course breadcrumbs. It gives additional crunch to dishes!
- Cornstarch: Cornstarch will cause an incredibly crisp coating. However, you can replace it with rice powder.
- Mayonnaise: ½ cup of mayonnaise to prepare the sauce
- Spices: 2 chopped green onions, paprika powder, chili flakes, salt, and pepper to taste!
- Milk: 1 cup of skimmed milk for a healthier dish.
How To Make Air-Fried Bang Bang Shrimp?
Step 1: Preheat your air fryer to 400 degrees Fahrenheit (200 degrees Celsius). Lightly coat the bottom of the basket with frying oil.
Step 2: Then, make the sauce by mixing the mayo, sriracha, and chili sauce in a bowl to make bang bang sauce. Place aside this mixture. Add cornstarch, flour, and panko crumbs to a plate or a small bowl.
Step 3: Next, smudge the shrimp into the mayo mixture. Then coat it with panko and flour mixture. It’s easy when divided into batches. Repeat the step gain to double coat the shrimps. This order is essential to have the desired crunch.
Step 4: Arrange the breaded shrimp as a single layer in the air fryer basket—Cook for 5 minutes at 400F. After flipping, cook for a further 5 minutes.
Repeat with the rest of the shrimp. Do not overcrowd the air fryer basket with a lot of shrimp. Give room for thorough cooking of the individual pieces.
Finally, remove the shrimp from the air fryer. Top with some more bang bang sauce and serve.
Check out the video below for more information about air-fried bang bang shrimp:
What To Serve with Air-Fried Bang bang shrimps?
Bang bang shrimps are remarkable when:
- Served with green onions and lettuce leaves
- Topped with chopped fresh parsley or cilantro
- Drizzled with bang-bang sauce
- Spinach dip & french fries are performed next to it!
- Bang Bang sauce is served along with air-fried chicken as a mouthwatering starter!
- With Homemade sushi for seafood lovers!
- Quinoa-based shrimp avocado salad is also served alongside it.
Nutritional Information
1g of bang bang shrimps contains almost 537kcal. It’s an approximate calorie count for 3 ounces of raw shrimp that are air fried and dipped in bang bang sauce.
| Nutrients | Amount (g/mg) |
| Carbohydrates | 42g |
| Protein | 27g |
| Cholesterol | 301mg |
| Sugar | 11g |
| Fiber | 1g |
| Iron | 3mg |
| Calcium | 226mg |
Tips & Techniques
- Preheat the air fryer to 400 degrees F before adding the shrimp to avoid overcooking.
- To ensure even cooking, make sure there is space between each piece. The crispy texture is compromised if you place shrimps subsequently to one another.
- Achieve a golden brown hue with the help of cooking spray.
- Refrigerate the shrimp for a few minutes after breading. Cooling helps the breading to adhere and give the desired outcome.
- Before rolling into cornstarch, dry the fresh shrimp with a paper towel. It makes it easier for the cornstarch to adhere to the shrimp.
- Placed the cooked batch onto a paper towel to keep them crispy and tender. To keep the skin crisp, wait until they have cooled before tossing them with the sauce.
- Seasoning makes a lot of difference. Once cooked, season the shrimp with salt & pepper.
- Serve with rice as a meal or as an appetizer. Use thinly sliced green onions for garnishing.
- For the best outcome, you might need to tweak the time or temperature according to your air fryer’s model.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Bang Bang Shrimp?
American restaurant named Bonefish Grill first introduced Bang Bang Shrimp. The recipe consists of a creamy hot sauce from Thai chilies that coat the shrimp.
It turned out to be a crunchy and spicy snack altogether. This sauce was titled Bang Bang sauce because the Thai chilis make your entire tongue go “bang” from the heat.
What Size of Shrimp is Best For This Recipe?
Sizes of shrimps determine the cooking time for your recipe.
There are different labels on shrimp at various grocery stores. They are numbered as: (16–20, 21–25, etc.). This number is given on each pound of shrimp.
- Jumbo shrimp is labeled as 21/25 and contains 5 to 6 shrimps.
- Extra Large: It is labeled as 26/30 and contains 6 to 7 shrimps.
- Large shrimp: It is labeled as 31/35, having 8 to 9 shrimps
- Medium Large: It is labeled as 36/40, having 9 to 10 shrimps in total
Extra large shrimps are best for this recipe. Choose the amount of shrimp according to the size of the air fryer. It’s better to remove the tails from the shrimp before putting them in the bang bang sauce.
How to Cook Shrimp in a Skillet?
Here’s how you can cook it quickly on a skillet:
- First and foremost, bread the shrimp as directed in this recipe.
- Then, heat some oil in a non-stick skillet. Once the oil turns hot, add the coated shrimp and cook for 8 -10 minutes. Flip halfway and cook each side thoroughly.
- Let it cool, dish it out and drizzle with your favorite bang bang sauce! Enjoy!
How Long Do You Cook Shrimp In An Air Fryer?
The shrimp needs 8-10 minutes to cook in the air fryer. However, the cooking time varies depending on the size of the shrimp. Use smaller shrimp for cooking faster. Large shrimps take 15-10 minutes to give an evenly cooked interior and a crispy exterior!
What Can be an Alternative to Panko Breading?
The crispy texture of the shrimp is achieved with the panko breading. You can use regular bread crumbs instead of panko if you don’t have any.
Even though it won’t produce a crust as crunchy as panko, it will still give the air-fried shrimp an excellent texture. You shouldn’t use Italian breading as a replacement for panko breading. It’ll add spice to breading, which we don’t want!
Gluten-free brown rice flour breadcrumbs are also available in the market. These crumbs are large. You can crush them with your finger before applying them to the shrimp. Add a little garlic powder and onion powder to the coating if you’d like it to have more flavor.
How Long Do You Air Fry Frozen Shrimp?
Frozen shrimps are easy to make!
Brush them with oil and air fry the frozen shrimp at 400 F. It takes 6-8 minutes to give perfect results.
What To Use To Season Shrimp?
Kosher salt, garlic powder, lemon oil, and maple best fit to season the shrimp. Grilled garlic makes the taste surprisingly delicious. You can also add Italian seasoning.
Medium heat helps the seasonings to absorb better, while high and low heat can lead to a superficial taste.
Can I Substitute Ordinary Bread Crumbs for the Panko?
Absolutely, if the bread crumbs are homemade!
In our opinion, nothing surpasses fresh breadcrumbs. When it comes to store-bought, I like Panko. Normal bread crumbs are too fine and don’t crisp up nearly as well as Panko, so please avoid the blue jar!
What can I Do to Make This Healthier?
You can substitute Greek yogurt with mayo if you want.
Otherwise, they’re perfectly healthy! (You could omit the breading, but the crunch is part of what makes these so tasty.)
The combination of crunchy shrimp and creamy, spicy-sweet sauce is insanely irresistible. It never gets old, no matter how many times we make it.
Conclusion
- Air-fried bang bang shrimp taste delicious. Bang Bang sauce is made of Thai chili that gives spice to the fried shrimp.
- You can use different sizes of shrimp; medium-sized shrimp work great for this recipe. It takes 5-7 minutes to cook at 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Added seasonings enhance absorption for frozen shrimp and take longer to cook than those kept at room temperature.
- Different air fryers have varying times and temperatures for cooking food. You should consult the manual before starting the recipe to ensure excellent results.