Popcorn Shrimp Recipe

The land meets the ocean for a mouthwatering shrimp popcorn combo with a porky twist.

The shrimp popcorn creation uses pasture-raised pork rinds to crust the outside of the shrimp.

Take your appetizers to the next level with this popcorn shrimp recipe.

Shrimp Popcorn Recipe

As always, getting high-quality ingredients naturally yields a more delicious and nutritious result. We used wild-caught shrimp, pork rinds from ethically sourced pork and baked with minimal ingredients (pork skin and salt), pasture-raised eggs, and a homemade spice blend.

What Is Popcorn Shrimp?

Popcorn shrimp got its fame from several shrimp fritter recipes which evolved from Cajun cuisine. Prudhomme published a recipe of Cajun popcorn in his cookbook in 1984.

Popcorn shrimp is one of the best finger foods to serve at parties . Our recipe is with a meaty twist. The typical popcorn shrimp recipe contains gluten or wheat and is cooked in vegetable oil.

Instead our healthy popcorn recipe is gluten free and nutrient dense.

How To Make Popcorn Shrimp

A huge trick here: If using frozen shrimp, let thaw, rinse, and dry very well. It’s best to use once it is room temperature.

Even with fresh shrimp use paper towels to dry well as this is extremely important with how the pork rind crust sticks onto the shrimp.

Have fun making your pork rind flour blend. You can use a blender or food processor, or crush the rinds using a large plastic bag and a rolling pin. Add your spices to this mixture and combine well. We also added baking soda to this mixture - a trick to get a note of flakey crust when breading! 

For your wet mixture, whisk two eggs with the juice of half a lemon. The purpose of the lemon is not only to add freshness to a fishy dish, but also to activate the baking soda and get that crispy crust. 

Try to use organic spices for the recipe.

How Healthy Is Popcorn Shrimp?

Shrimp are a great source of iodine, selenium zinc, and also essential fatty acids like DHA.

1 serving of this recipe provides 230 calories per serving and with 39 grams of protein alone.

What To Serve With Popcorn Shrimp?

I like to serve my popcorn shrimp with a fresh crisp salad of baby gem lettuce, fresh tomatoes, diced cucumbers, olives, and fresh basil. This goes well with a spring or summer dinner.

If you want to use the popcorn shrimp as an appetizer then using mayonnaise would work well. We have our own low PUFA mayonnaise made from coconut oil you can try here.

Popcorn Shrimp Recipe

Serves: 2-4 servings
Prep time: 15 minutes approx
Cooking time: 10-12 minutes
Skill level: Medium

Healthy Popcorn Shrimp Ingredients

• 1 lb or ½ kg  wild-caught shrimp 

Egg wash: 

• 2 eggs 

• Juice of 1/2 lemon

• Optional: a few dashes of coconut aminos 

Dry: 

• 1 bag crushed pork rinds (pasture-raised with just pork), 2.5 oz/ 70 grams or greater (we used salted)

• 1/2 tsp baking soda

• 1/2 tsp garlic powder

• 1/2 tsp onion powder

• 1/4 tsp black pepper

• 1/4 tsp smoked paprika

Optional but highly recommended: 

• 1/4 tsp turmeric for color

• 1/4 tsp chipotle chili powder or cayenne 

• 1/4 tsp cumin

Healthy Popcorn Shrimp Ingredients

1. Preheat your oven to 355 F / 180 C.

2. Let your shrimp thaw and come to room temperature before starting. Rinse and pat dry if necessary. 

3. Combine pork rinds and dry ingredients in a food processor or blender. Alternatively, empty them all into a large plastic bag and smash with a rolling pin until you achieve a fine flour. Pour into a wide, shallow bowl or plate.

4. In a separate bowl, whisk together egg wash ingredients.

5. Place shrimp into egg wash, then, one at a time, coat them in the dry breading mixture and place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Try not to overcrowd the shrimp so that the breading process is not too messy and so that they can bake properly and get crispy rather than soggy. 

   *You’ll see that in these pictures, we tried coating the shrimp in the breading mixture first, and then adding to the egg wash. Let’s just say that this was not our favorite technique! 

6. Bake for 9-12 minutes. Shrimp cooks rather quickly, so bake until the breading looks rich in color. If you have an air fryer or your oven has a convection setting - we definitely recommend putting this to use. 

   To serve: 

   Fresh salad, mayonnaise, or a homemade greek yogurt dip.

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Popcorn Shrimp Nutrition Facts
(per serving based on 4 servings)

Calories: 230.3
Protein: 38.7
Carbs: 0.2
Fat: 8.3
Fiber: 0
Vitamin B1: 0mg
Vitamin B2: 0.2mg
Vitamin B3: 0.3mg
Vitamin B5: 0.4mg
Vitamin B6: 0mg
Vitamin B9: 10.3ug
Vitamin B12: 0.3ug
Choline: 93mg
Vitamin A: 125IU
Retinol: 37.3ug
Vitamin C: 0.1mg
Vitamin D: 18IU
Vitamin E: 0.3mg
Vitamin K: 0.1ug
Calcium: 97.6mg
Copper: 0.5mg
Iron: 1.2mg
Magnesium: 48mg
Manganese: 0.1mg
Potassium: 382mg
Selenium: 14ug
Zinc: 2.1mg
Omega 3: 0.1g
Omega 6: 1g

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