Sweet and Spicy Shrimp (10 Minute Appetizer)

 Sweet and Spicy Shrimp are an easy to make hot shrimp appetizer recipe in only ten minutes!  The bold flavors turns ordinary shrimp into a special dish.

Sweet and Spicy Shrimp Recipe

I am all about shrimp especially when it comes to appetizers.

You could probably say I'm a shrimp hoarder. At any given time I have three bags in my freezer. I always buy them peeled and de-veined. Why would I want to do that myself?

When I have a shrimp craving or just need a really quick dinner, I throw a bag in a colander and run some cold water over them. They are defrosted in just a few minutes and they cook even quicker. There are so many ways to cook them and one of my favorite ways is in only ten minutes using my cast iron pan. Lately I like to cook everything in my cast iron pan especially scallops and frittatas.

Ingredients

• olive oil
• salted butter
• large shrimp, peeled and deveined
• Sriracha sauce
• honey
• balsamic vinegar
• ketchup
• onion powder
• paprika
• optional chopped green onions or cilantro for garnish

Instructions

See recipe card below for full ingredients and instructions.

• Heat olive oil and butter and cook shrimp in a pan.
• Add Sriracha sauce, honey, vinegar, ketchup, onion powder and paprika to the pan. Stir the shrimp and sauce and cook for another minute or until shrimp are fully cooked. Remove shrimp with a slotted spoon and keep warm.
• Continue to cook sauce for another 5 minutes until it starts to thicken. Pour sauce over shrimp.
• Garnish with green onion or cilantro before serving.

While I usually serve this dish as a shrimp appetizer, you can add some roasted asparagus and brown rice to make it a meal or entree. However you serve the sweet and spicy shrimp is fine but just know they are not going to last long.

They also go great with beer. And plenty of napkins! You don't want any of that sweet and spicy sauce on your face.

This is the type of dish that cooks quicker than you can call your family or friends to the table. The shrimp are quickly seared and the delicious sauce simmers in the pan for a few minutes until it thickens a little. Can cooking be any easier?

Summer is here and it's the perfect time for seafood especially this shrimp appetizer!

Variations

• As mentioned above, if you'd like to take this dish and make it as an entree rather than an appetizer or side, you could add a vegetable like asparagus and serve it over rice (either brown or white would work fine)! This shrimp would also be delicious over some pasta.
• To increase the heat of your shrimp, try boosting the amount of Sriracha or include additional spices like chili powder or cayenne pepper.
• Serving this dish at a party or BBQ? Make the sauce separately and serve it as a dipping sauce with cocktail shrimp instead.

FAQ

How to Pick the Best Shrimp

• Typically, the easy way to buy shrimp is to get them in frozen bags. It's also easy to thaw and cook them right out of the bag for shrimp appetizer recipes!
• If you would rather try fresh shrimp, make sure the shrimp don't smell like ammonia or have shells that are slimy. They should be firm with solid tails.
• For a recipe like this one, aiming for medium to large -sized shrimp is the best option. Still, this would work with jumbo shrimp, and especially if you're serving it over rice, make sure to take the tails off when cleaning them.

Storing Your Dish

• Cooked shrimp typically lasts up to 1 to 2 days in the fridge. Be sure to store your shrimp in an airtight container. I don't like to store cooked or raw seafood for very long.

How to Reheat

• One way to reheat this recipe from the refrigerator is to place it in a microwave-safe bowl and heat it up for increments of 45 seconds or so, stirring in between for equal heating.
• You could also heat up a pan with a little bit of oil and cook for 2-3 minutes, or until the shrimp has reached your desired temperature.

More Shrimp Appetizers

1. Cilantro Lime Shrimp from Simple and Savory
2. Old Bay Shrimp - The Easiest Shrimp Cocktail Recipe 
3. Greek Shrimp Skewers
4. Preserved Lemon and Caper Shrimp
5. Spicy Shrimp Tacos with Cilantro Slaw

Pairing Suggestions with Sweet and Spicy Shrimp

1. Marinated Mushroom Salad
2. Baked Eggplant Parmesan Rounds
3. Strawberry Feta Skewers with Basil
4. Mango Guacamole from Sally's Baking Addiction
5. Broccoli Salad from Cookie and Kate
6. Kicked Up Olives

If you like this recipe for Sweet and Spicy Shrimp , please give it a 5-star rating below!

Print Recipe

5 from 11 votes

Sweet and Spicy Shrimp

This tasty shrimp appetizer is on your table in 10 minutes!

Prep Time5 mins

Cook Time10 mins

Total Time15 mins

Course: Appetizer

Cuisine: Seafood

Keyword: shrimp, sweet and spicy shrimp

Servings: 4 to 6 servings

Calories: 236kcal

Author: Lisa Grant

Ingredients

• 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• 2 Tablespoons salted butter
• 1 pound large shrimp peeled and deveined
• 1 ½ Tablespoons Sriracha
• 2 Tablespoons honey
• 1 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 2 Tablespoon ketchup
• ½ teaspoon onion powder
• ½ teaspoon paprika
• chopped green onions or cilantro for garnish

Instructions

• Heat olive oil and butter on medium high heat in a cast iron pan. Add shrimp and cook for 1 to 2 minutes or until they start to turn pink.
• Add Sriracha, honey, vinegar, ketchup, onion powder and paprika to the pan. Stir the shrimp and sauce well and cook for another minute or until shrimp are fully cooked. Remove shrimp with a slotted spoon and keep warm in a bowl.
• Continue to cook sauce for another 5 minutes or until it starts to thicken. Pour sauce over shrimp.
• Garnish with green onion or cilantro before serving.

Nutrition

Calories: 236kcal | Carbohydrates: 10g | Protein: 23g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 300mg | Sodium: 1095mg | Potassium: 102mg | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 315IU | Vitamin C: 8.3mg | Calcium: 164mg | Iron: 2.5mg

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