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The Lowdown on My Shrimp Po Boy
This authentic Shrimp Po Boy recipe has the same flavors as the Po Boy’s you will find on the streets of New Orleans.
I have spent so much time in New Orleans now that I claim it as my home away from home. And, when I get NOLA sick, I make this Shrimp Po Boy to keep myself sane.
It’s got crispy cajun-fried shrimp on a French baguette with all the classic fixin’s, lettuce, tomatoes and pickles that’s drizzled with a Creole remoulade sauce making it the real deal boos.
Get into it, Boo!
– Jocelyn
Shrimp Po Boy Ingredients
For the Remoulade Sauce:
- Mayonnaise: The base of the sauce. If you want something lighter, Greek yogurt works, but it wonโt have the same richness or taste.
- Dill pickle relish: If you donโt have relish, finely chop some dill pickles.
- Lemon juice: Bottled works in a pinch, but fresh is best.
- Hot sauce: Adds heatโuse whatever brand you like or skip it if youโre not into spice.
- Capers: These give the sauce a little briny kick. If you donโt have them, you can leave them out.
- Paprika: Smoked or regular both work, but smoked paprika gives the sauce more oomph.
- Creole or Dijon mustard: Creole mustard has a bit more spice, but Dijon works fine too.
- Worcestershire sauce: Adds umami and a little sweetness.
- Garlic: Fresh is best, but garlic powder works if thatโs what you have. Use 1/2 teaspoon per clove.
For the Fried Shrimp:
- Shrimp: Medium-sized, peeled, deveined, and tail-off makes them easier to eat in a sandwich.
- Kosher salt: Seasons the shrimp before frying. Regular salt works too, but use a little less.
- Paprika, garlic powder, cayenne, black pepper: The spice blend that gives the shrimp flavor. If you want less heat, cut back on the cayenne.
- Flour and cornmeal: The combo gives the shrimp a crispy, slightly crunchy texture.
- Buttermilk: Helps the breading stick and keeps the shrimp tender. If you donโt have it, mix 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or white vinegar into 1 cup of regular milk and let sit undisturbed for 10 mins. Homemade buttermilk!
- Hot sauce: Goes into the buttermilk for extra flavor.
For the Poโ Boy Assembly:
- French bread: Something soft on the inside with a little crunch on the outside works best. A good baguette or hoagie roll also does the trick.
- Dill pickles: Classic for that extra tang.
- Shredded lettuce and sliced tomatoes: Keep it simpleโcrisp iceberg and ripe tomatoes work best.
How to make Classic shrimp po boys
What to serve with fried shrimp po boys
- Classic Sides: Serve these fried poboys up with traditional sides like hush puppies, Southern potato salad and fried okra.
- Chill Drinks: Make a big ole pitcher of lemonade or sweet tea to serve along with these.
- Game Day Party: Get your poboys on a platter and serve along with lemon pepper wings, Southern chili, and salted caramel chocolate chip cookies.
Recipe Variations and Additions
- Gluten-Free: Swap out the flour in the shrimp batter for gluten-free and replace the bread with your fave gluten-free option.
- Add Blackened Flavor: Coat the shrimp in this delish homemade blackened seasoning and sear for some serious spicy kick.
- Use Garlic Bread: Instead of regular French bread, use homemade garlic bread for your bread base.
- Add Fried Green Tomatoes: Replace the tomato slices with fried green tomatoes.
Tips for making the best homemade shrimp po boy
- Get the Right Shrimp: You want plump shrimp you can eat in one bite. If your shrimp are too big, they make your sandwich difficult to eat. Look for size 16/20 shrimp (basically this means there are 16-20 shrimp per pound). Buy shrimp that are peeled and deveined with the tails off.
- Oil Temp is Important: Heat the oil to 350ยฐF to ensure the shrimp fry quickly and come out super crispy and not soggy from absorbing oil.
- Make the Remoulade Ahead: I would make this a few hours or even a day ahead so those flavors can really come together and pop.
- Let the Batter Rest: Let the shrimp rest in the refrigerator for 20 minutes before frying. This helps the coating to stick to the shrimp better. You donโt want all of your delicious, crispy coating falling off the shrimp as you fry them.
How to store & reheat shrimp po boys
It’s best to store all of the components separately. Add the shrimp to an airtight container after it cools and pop in the fridge. Keep the fresh veggies and remoulade in separate containers in the fridge. Finally, add your bread to a ziptop bag and keep at room temp.
The shrimp should last up to 2 days. The bread should stay fresh about 1-2 days, and the remoulade lasts the longest staying all good for about 5 days.
When you want to reheat the shrimp, I prefer using an air fryer at 350ยฐF for 4-5 minutes or oven at 375ยฐF for 8-10 minutes flipping halfway to keep the crunch popping. Just don’t microwave boos.
More New Orleans inspired recipes
Shrimp Po’ Boy Recipe
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Equipment
Ingredients
For the Remoulade Sauce
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 2 tbsp dill pickle relish
- 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 2 tsp hot sauce
- 2 tsp capers roughly chopped
- 1 1/2 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp Creole mustard or Dijon
- 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 2 garlic cloves minced
For the Fried Shrimp
- 3 tsp kosher salt
- 2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 2 lbs raw medium shrimp (about 45), peeled, deveined and tail off
- Canola or Vegetable oil for frying
- 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup yellow cornmeal
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 3 tbsp hot sauce
For the Po'Boy Assembly
- 4 French loaves 8 inches long, split horizontally
- dill pickles for garnish
- Shredded iceberg lettuce
- Sliced tomatoes
Instructions
For the Remoulade Sauce
- Mix everything together and chill in the refrigerator until you are finished frying the shrimp
For the Fried Shrimp
- Mix the salt, paprika, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, and black pepper together then divide the spice mixture in half
- Season the shrimp with half of the spice mixture
- Mix the flour, cornmeal and the rest of the spice mixture together in a bowl
- In a separate bowl, mix the buttermilk and hot sauce together
- Dip seasoned shrimp in the buttermilk, then coat with flour mixture shaking off any excess. If you like a thicker coating you can repeat this step. Chill the shrimp in the refrigerator for 20 minutes.
- Pour the oil into a deep, wide pot to the depth of about 2 inches. Heat the oil to 350ยฐ Fahrenheit
- Working in batches, fry shrimp until golden brown about 3-4 minutes per batch. Transfer to paper towels to drain.
To Assemble Po'Boy
- Build your sandwich with on the French bread with mayonnaise or Remoulade, dress your sandwich with lettuce, tomato, and pickles then pile on the shrimp.
I made the sandwich & mmmmmmmmmm LOVED it. Hope to get a cookbook of yours. I purchased your desert book & mmmmmm again LOVE it!
The sauce is absolutely incredible. Made this tonight for my wife and I. Amazing recipe thank you!
Great recipe my family loved it!! I
Made this tonight with crusty French sub rolls and ooooooh boy! The sauce was out of this world good!! I used no substitutes from the iceberg shreds to the hot sauce and finished every last bite of this delicious sandwich. Thanks so much
The only way this could be any better is if someone made it for me
Fantastic!!!!!
Ma’am, THANK YOU! I can’t tell you how grateful I am for this. I’m a northerner, whose parents lived in Alabama for many years, They took me out for a shrimp po’ boy on one of my visits and I fell in love! There are restaurants here in Illinois that offer a version, but none of them use a remoulade sauce – usually, it will be a garlic aioli or something like that – and NONE of them give me the sheer foodie happiness that I experienced with the real deal. THIS made me happy!
Delicious!! Made these tonight and I followed the recipe almost to the letter, the one thing I did different was double the garlic. Four cloves instead of two because we love garlic. Everything else I followed exactly and they were fantastic! Holy smokes, thank you so so much for sharing. Will definitely make again and again!!
Iโm making this tonight to go on nice crusty French bread. On the side weโre having a copycat of Crazy Johnnieโs Crazy Potatoes. Weโre all counting the hours to dinner.
Please share your recipe for Crazy Johnnieโs crazy potatoes
Simply fantastic! Had to load mine up with the Crystal hot sauce and it was perfect just as prepared. Thank you for a great, simple recipe!