When I was a young kid, getting to eat at a seafood restaurant was a special treat. Crab Stuffed Fried Shrimp was served with the Seafood Platter, my favorite meal. This was common in restaurants such as Don’s Seafood in Lafayette, Louisiana, or Pappadeaux in Houston, Texas. It was a masterpiece of fried seafood. There was fried catfish, fried hushpuppies, fried shrimp, fried crawfish, and of course breaded and fried crab stuffed shrimp… Oh, and of course French fries. It was served with sauces like Tartar Sauce, Cajun Red Sauce, with sides like Dirty Rice, and buttered French bread. It was a feast for the eyes as well as the belly.
As I grew older, I realized that my metabolism was not keeping up with so much fried food. So, I came up with some healthier alternatives. To be clear, this recipe is not one of them. Occasionally I like to indulge, but usually on a much smaller scale. This recipe is an indulgence to be sure. Two of these bad boys is plenty to fill me up these days.
Crab Stuffed Fried Shrimp Recipe
Crab Stuffed Fried Shrimp
Equipment
- paring knife
- cutting board
- glass bowls or dishes
- wax paper
- large skillet
- spider strainer
- baking sheet
- paper towels
Ingredients
- 1 pound 8-16 count jumbo shrimp – fresh, cleaned and deveined
Crab stuffing
- ½ sleeve club crackers
- 1 green onion – finely chopped
- ¼ bell pepper – finely chopped
- 6 ounces crab claw meat
- 2 tbsp mayonnaise
- ⅛ tsp onion powder
- ⅛ tsp garlic powder
- ⅛ tsp lemon pepper
- ⅛ tsp Old Bay Seasoning
- ⅛ tsp Cajun seasoning – like Tony Chachere's
- 2 tsp Dijon mustard
Breading
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- 1 lemon
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups plain breadcrumbs
- 4 cups cooking oil – for frying
Instructions
- Butterfly each shrimp by cutting along the back and leaving the tail intact. Rinse and pat the shrimp dry.1 pound 8-16 count jumbo shrimp
- Add the crackers into a bowl, and crumble them up as well as a you can by hand. It’s ok if there are small chunks of cracker. Carefully fold together the crumbled crackers, green onion, bell pepper, crab meat, mayonnaise, onion powder, garlic powder, lemon pepper, Old Bay Seasoning, Cajun seasoning and Dijon mustard. Be careful not to break up the delicate crab meat too much.1/2 sleeve club crackers, 1 green onion, 1/4 bell pepper, 6 ounces crab claw meat, 2 tbsp mayonnaise, 1/8 tsp onion powder, 1/8 tsp garlic powder, 1/8 tsp lemon pepper, 1/8 tsp Old Bay Seasoning, 1/8 tsp Cajun seasoning, 2 tsp Dijon mustard
- Form into egg-shaped balls. The mixture should be moist enough to hold together, but firm enough to keep their shape.
- Add a flayed-out shrimp on top of each ball. Gently but firmly press the shrimp and stuffing together in the palm of your hand, keeping the egg shape intact.
- Add the eggs, cornstarch, lemon zest and juice from half a lemon into a small bowl, and whisk it thoroughly.2 large eggs, 1 tsp cornstarch, 1 lemon
- Add the flour and the breadcrumbs into separate small bowls. Carefully dredge each shrimp ball in the flour, shaking off any excess. Dip the floured shrimp balls in the egg wash, then roll them in the breadcrumbs until fully coated.1 cup all-purpose flour, 2 cups plain breadcrumbs
- Heat cooking oil in a small pot until it reaches 350°F (175°C). Fry the shrimp balls in batches of 4 for 2-3 minutes, or until golden brown and crispy.4 cups cooking oil
- Drain on paper towels. Add a few drops of lemon juice.
- Serve the fried shrimp immediately with tartar sauce, or remoulade. Add a dash of Tabasco if desired. Garnish with fresh lemon wedges, and parsley.
PRIVATE NOTES
Nutrition
More Information
When making stuffed shrimp, use as much or as little stuffing as required, depending upon the size of the shrimp. Use about 1 tbsp per shrimp, if you want poppers or to be used as a side item. If they are the main course, use as much as you can roll in your palm. The choice is yours!
A note on seafood
If you live near the coast you can usually find freshly caught seafood. Freshly caught will absolutely give you the best crab or shrimp. If you are not so lucky, there are alternatives. You can still use the canned claw meat that you can find at your local seafood market or grocery store. Walmart carries a line of frozen shrimp that is actually pretty good.
The shrimping industry has developed a technology called IQF – Individual Quick Freezing. Cleaned and deveined shrimp are blasted with liquid nitrogen, instantly freezing them to the core. Some boats are outfitted with this technology, which produces the freshest possible quality shrimp. They are processed and frozen as soon as they are removed from the net.
Once frozen, the shrimp are then bagged for sale. Because they are frozen individually, they don’t stick together like they would in a frozen block of ice. You can keep a bag in the refrigerator, then take out as many or as few as you need. Best of all it allows grocery stores that are no where near the coast to provide good quality seafood.
Related Recipes
Tartar Sauce
Cajun Red Sauce
Lemon Aioli
Blackened Fish or Chicken
Margarita Marinade for Seafood
Rice Dressing
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