Making perfectly crispy fried shrimp in the air fryer is so easy and the results are delicious! Ready to serve in 20 minutes, they are easy to prep and made with a few simple ingredients.
This post contains affiliate links, please read my full disclaimer here.
The full recipe with ingredients/instructions is available on the recipe card at the bottom of the post. Important tips/tricks are also included in the blog post.
I'm so excited to bring you this new air fryer shrimp recipe! This recipe makes delicious crunchy shrimp that is perfectly cooked and juicy, and the panko breadcrumbs add a wonderful crunch to each bite!
They are great to serve as a simple appetizer with your favorite dips or make it a fuller meal and serve with a fresh salad or veggie or turn it into a Southern Po'boy sandwich. This recipe takes only a couple of minutes of prep and results in the most delicious shrimp and tender seafood.
If you love this crispy air-fried shrimp, be sure to check out my Air Fryer Lemon Garlic Shrimp and Air Fryer Coconut Shrimp.
How To Make Crispy Air Fryer Shrimp
Prepare a dredging station by placing ¾ cup of flour, ½ teaspoon seasoning salt, ¼ teaspoon garlic powder, and ¼ teaspoon black pepper in one bowl. In a separate bowl, lightly beat the eggs, and in a third bowl, place the panko breadcrumbs. You can season the breadcrumbs at this stage too.
Place each shrimp in the flour, then the beaten eggs, and then the panko, making sure to shake off any excess flour and eggs before placing it in the panko.
Place the shrimp in a greased air fryer basket in a single layer, making sure the shrimp are not overlapping. Do not spray the shrimp at this point.
Air Fry on 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 6-9 minutes, flipping and spraying with cooking spray halfway through.
Remove when the shrimp is golden. Salt and pepper to taste.
Can you use frozen shrimp?
I find it's best to use fresh raw shrimp for this recipe so that they cook all the way through and the coating isn't overcooked. If you have frozen shrimp then defrost them and pat them dry before dredging them.
Do you keep the tails on?
I prefer to keep the tails on as they add more flavor and they are easier to dredge and dip in your sauce of choice! You can remove the tails if you prefer.
Make sure that the shrimp are shelled and deveined before dredging them.
Can you reheat air-fried shrimp?
These cooked shrimp are best served as soon as you've made them, but if you have leftovers they can be reheated in the air fryer and all that good crispiness will come right back!
Reheat the air fryer to 400F and cook the shrimp for 3 to 4 minutes until they are nice and crispy again.
Leftover fried shrimp will keep covered in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Other recipes this can be used in
This is a base recipe and can be changed to your liking. You could use smaller shrimp and make crispy popcorn shrimp. Just make sure to adjust the cooking time a bit and cook for less time so the shrimp does not overcook.
The same goes with jumbo shrimp. Just increase the cooking time but 1 or 2 minutes for large shrimp.
You can also serve this as an appetizer or use tail-off shrimp and add these crispy shrimp to salads, shrimp and grits, or make shrimp tacos.
Recipe Notes and Tips
- For best results, wait until the halfway mark to spray your shrimp. This will help it get super crispy.
- Cook the shrimp in batches if they cannot all fit in your air fryer basket. The second batch will cook much faster than the first. If you overcrowd the basket, the shrimp will steam rather than fry and won't be as crispy.
- Make these breaded shrimp gluten-free by using GF panko breadcrumbs.
- This shrimp is great served with your favorite dipping sauce, like homemade tartar sauce, cocktail sauce, or remoulade sauce. You could even just sprinkle on some hot sauce.
- I use my own seasoning mixture for this shrimp, but feel free to use your favorite seasoning, like lemon pepper seasoning, old bay, or cajun seasoning.
More Easy Shrimp Recipes
- Shrimp Po'boy sandwiches
- Pressure Cooker Shrimp Paella
- Indoor Grill Chilli Lime Shrimp
- Balsamic Shrimp and Sausage Skillet Dinner
- Shrimp & Bacon Scampi
More of my great air fryer recipes.
Watch this video tutorial and see how I make these shrimp from start to finish.
Crispy Air Fryer Fried Shrimp
Ingredients
- 12 oz medium shrimp peeled and deveined
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon seasoning salt
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 eggs lightly beaten
- 1 ½ cup of Japanese panko breadcrumbs
- Oil for spraying Canola, avocado, etc
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Prepare a dredging station by placing the flour, seasoning salt, garlic powder, and black pepper in one bowl. In a separate bowl, lightly beat the eggs, and in a third bowl, place the panko breadcrumbs.
- Place each shrimp in the flour, then the egg, and then the panko, making sure to shake off any excess flour and eggs before placing it in the panko.
- Place in a greased air fryer basket, making sure the shrimp are not overlapping.
- Air Fry on 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 6-9 minutes, flipping and spraying halfway through.
- Remove when the shrimp is golden. Salt and pepper to taste.
Suggested Tools
Video
Notes
- Wait until the halfway mark to spray your shrimp. This will help it get super crispy.
- Cook the shrimp in batches if they cannot all fit in your air fryer basket. The second batch will cook much faster than the first.
Nutrition
This post was originally published on 7/9/2020 and has been updated with new photos and helpful tips.
Mary says
I made a mistake and got frozen cooked shrimp with shells on, what is an easy way to remove shells
Tanya says
Hi Mary, I would not recommend cooked shrimp for this recipe. They will become rubbery.
STELLA BOWMAN says
Preheat?
Dave says
1st time air fryer would like to fry shrimp I usually use corn flour to fry shrimp could this be used instead of flour and bread crumbs.
Rob says
I think that this will be a delicious recipe. I'm curious, is this using raw shrimp or cooked shrimp? Could I use cooked shrimp (I have a couple pounds of it in the freezer)? TY
Tanya says
Hi Rob, thanks! It needs to be raw shrimp. Cooked shrimp will overcook and become tough.
Patrice M Auspitz says
Probably a dumb question since the shrimp would likely become tough but is it possible to use pre-cooked shrimp?
Tanya says
Hi Patrice, that's not a dumb question. Pre-cooked shrimp would likely overcook so I wouldn't use it.
Mary P. says
Excellent recipe.. I used Old Bay seasoning with jumbo shrimp and they were crispy and delicious and GONE! I left the tails on. Would be an amazing appetizer. I used Frank’s sweet chili sauce for my dip for OMG delicious… thank you for this.
Venus says
Tried this recipe tonight so good, I give you 5 stars, great crust on shrimp. Yum!w
Tanya says
Thanks Venus! 🙂
Christina says
Great recipe!! Super easy to make and they turned out tasty. My 8-yr old helped with the prepped and was impressed with how great it came out. Thanks for sharing!
Tanya says
Yay! I love that you made it with your 8-year old too. So glad you all liked the recipe 🙂
Dawn says
Hi there! I'm new to the air fryer world and would love to use up some shrimp with this yummy recipe but I don't have anything to spray oil at the flipping point. Is that a necessary step, and if so could I just melt butter or coconut and drizzle, or any suggestions? Thanks!!
Tanya says
Hi Dawn, the oil just make the shrimp browner and crispier. You could try drizzling with oil but it will be harder to get as much coverage with that method.
Dick Pearson says
The shrimp was absolutely perfect!! I overdid the panko a tad, but this was my first try and, as a 79 year old man, I thought I did great. I have done other recipes from Tanya, and all have been great. Think fish fillets ( I used cod).
Tanya says
Thank you so much! So glad you liked the recipe 🙂