45 Healthy Shrimp Recipes

Shrimp is extremely versatile and cooks quickly, making it a great protein option for busy weeknights or lazy weekends. This lean protein is also nutritious—shrimp is low in calories and boasts nutrients like selenium, vitamin B12, and more. With a mild, slightly-sweet flavor, shrimp pairs well with just about any sauce, veggie, or whole grain. 

Get tips for buying, prepping, and cooking shrimp in this ultimate guide to our favorite shellfish.

First up, our healthy take on classic shrimp and grits. The shrimp mixture takes on bold flavors from Creole seasoning, smoked paprika, thyme, and garlic—making for a robust mixture that’s complemented by the sweetness of the creamed corn. Aim for large shrimp here so the dish feels a little more special; we suggest 16/20 count shrimp or 10/15 count if you want them even bigger.

Spaghetti squash is a favorite ingredient for those seeking a lower-carb, gluten-free alternative to pasta. Here, we pair it with fresh shrimp for a healthy spin on classic shrimp scampi. You'll love our clever cooking method for the spaghetti squash, which makes for perfect "noodles."  

These healthy shrimp tacos come together quickly for a tasty, weeknight-friendly dinner. A hefty amount of toasty cumin adds deep flavor to quickly seared shrimp, while a wee bit of ground red pepper punches above its weight, contributing a fair amount of heat. Don’t worry, though—once the shrimp gets tossed into corn tortillas with avocado, rice, and beans, the heat is muted so the tacos are perfectly seasoned. 

This classic shrimp cocktail appetizer comes together incredibly quickly. Purchasing uncooked shrimp and then poaching them in the shell helps them stay tender, though they turn out just fine if you want to peel and devein them. The sauce is super simple and comes together while the shrimp are cooling; it’s well-balanced with tanginess from the vinegar and lemon, a little kick from the horseradish, and sweetness from the ketchup.

Sauteed shrimp and herby spaghetti squash combine for an easy, low-carb dinner that's packed with flavor. For a faster option, you can use an equal amount of raw zucchini noodles or ribbons in place of the spaghetti squash. For a heartier dinner, serve with 1 cup steamed green beans.

The shrimp is balanced with slight sweetness, bitter char, and tangy lime—a combination that complements the refreshing melon. Pick the ripest melons you can find; they should be firm but slightly soft and fragrant, especially near the stem end. Round out this dinner with your favorite grain or the Herb-Scented Rice Salad.

These stunning crispy shrimp cakes get a boost of flavor from spicy-sweet red curry paste. Cooking these over medium heat is key to getting the shrimp done without burning the exterior. Serve over fresh Bibb lettuce leaves.

Sweet fresh corn and butter-sautéed shrimp pair up deliciously in this seasonal soup. After tasting the delicious results of "milking" a fresh corn cob, you'll never shuck and chuck again. We fully tap the flavor of in-season corn with this kernel-to-cob cooking method, infusing our summer soup with a wealth of rich, sweet flavor. 

Shrimp is always a weeknight protein of choice, as it cooks quickly and is extremely versatile. The avocado-based dressing provides you with healthy fats to keep you full until breakfast!

Transport yourself straight to a Caribbean beach by making this air-fried coconut shrimp recipe. Coconut and panko team up to create an amazingly crispy coating for the shrimp; use finely shredded coconut to guarantee better crust adhesion. These beach-dive-inspired crustaceans are even better when dunked into the sweet-and-tangy honey-lime sauce.

This fragrant shrimp curry is protein-packed, with 24 grams per serving, and will keep you full for hours. Green curry paste is the base of the flavorful sauce—look for it in the Asian foods aisle of your supermarket.

This rich and creamy shrimp and grits recipe proves eating healthier can still feel indulgent at times. The hefty servings satisfy your appetite and keep you full longer. To time this just right, start the vegetables after the grits have been cooking for 10 minutes.

Try these quick broiled shrimp with a spicy rémoulade dipping sauce—a homemade alternative that takes minutes, tastes much better, and is much lower in sodium. Like cocktail sauce, the rémoulade gets a pungent kick from prepared horseradish, though you could also try Creole mustard. We leave the tails on the shrimp for easy handling. Keep a small bowl next to the serving plate for discarded shrimp tails.

"If you're cooking shrimp, you should taste the shrimp," says Chef Michael Schulson, the developer of this refreshing, flavor-packed take on shrimp satay (Indonesian-style grilled skewers). He reserves some marinade to serve as the sauce, saving time and uniting flavors. For extra charred flavor, cook the veggies in a cast-iron skillet directly on the grill instead of the stovetop.

We love a great gumbo, but the dish can feel a little too hearty for warm summer days. This dish keeps the classic elements of gumbo but with a fresh identity. Traditional? No. Completely delicious? Yes!

This summery dish is full of the season's freshest ingredients and pair perfectly with shrimp. Steaming the shrimp helps prevent overcooking and keeps it succulent. Watermelon makes a surprisingly good pairing.

This heaped platter wouldn’t be out of place at a picnic on a hot day, but it’s so satisfying on winter nights, too. The shrimp picks up plenty of acid and heat with a gentle pickle of citrus, crushed red pepper, and garlic. The warm potatoes, crunchy fennel, and celery slices make it a meal. If you don’t have 1-quart containers, you can pickle the mixture in a covered bowl or two large ziplock bags, turning occasionally.

Seared shrimp with a quick spice rub pairs with pan-charred summer vegetables in this simple dish that pops with fresh flavor. A little white wine vinegar balances the sweetness of the caramelized veggies and also complements the shrimp.

These shrimp and zucchini patties are a delicious expression of warmer weather—and best of all, you can have them ready in under 30 minutes.These patties cook quickly, just 3 minutes on each side.

Sesame shrimp is usually a dish that’s been fried and coated in a sticky-sweet sauce. Here we incorporate sesame seeds into a light, supercrisp panko coating. Brown sugar and Sriracha go into the egg white used in the breading—a brilliant way to achieve big flavor in little time and with less added sugar. We love a bit of crisp-tender stem with the broccoli, though you can save on prep by using two (12-ounce) packages of fresh broccoli florets instead.

A bright and tangy Asian cucumber salad makes a crisp compliment to quick sauteed shrimp. Gently smashing fresh cucumber slices helps them absorb more vinaigrette, almost as if they've been marinating overnight. It’s a popular technique in many parts of Asia because cucumbers take on sweet, sour, and spicy flavors so well.

You don’t need to grill outdoors to get smoky char on this shrimp dish, just a quick spice rub and a hot skillet. The fennel and shallots caramelize and become tender as they roast, and the orange slices become concentrated and fragrant. The multigrain medley is a fun alternative to brown rice; it includes brown, red, and wild rice, plus quinoa. Can’t find it? Use any precooked brown rice or quick-cooking quinoa.

We turned this popular appetizer into a quick, diet-friendly dinner solution for two. It's a fresh, low-calorie alternative to takeout. In place of bottled peanut sauce, you can instead try our Miso-Chili-Garlic Sauce.

This buttery, savory sauté can be spooned on toasted baguette slices as an appetizer, or spread over a larger piece of toast for lunch. It also goes great over pasta as a full-on dinner.

These superfast bowls satisfy with filling brown rice noodles and fresh shrimp. If you can’t find brown rice noodles, substitute your favorite whole-grain linguine or fettuccine.

Precooked rice and ground turmeric speed up this Spanish shrimp dish and keep cost in check. Let the rice sizzle in the pan to get the prized crispy layer.

This five-ingredient main is a great way to get more seafood into your weeknight rotation. Seek our shrimp that's free of sodium tripolyphosphate (STP), a common preservative that significantly boosts the sodium in your shrimp. Can't find riced cauliflower? Make your own by pulsing cauliflower florets in a food processor until crumbled. Easy!

Salty, umami-packed prosciutto complements the sweet shrimp and tomatoes in this streamlined 20-minute main.

Shrimp and peas are a delicious duo in this easy, comforting main dish, but you could substitute any combination like mushrooms and asparagus, chicken sausage and spinach, or parboiled butternut squash and pecans. Here, we apply the risotto cooking method to pasta: The orzo in oil coats the grains so they will absorb the stock slowly and release their starches into the sauce.

Put your knife away—store-bought pesto and precut broccoli florets mean no chopping required. Your Dutch oven pulls triple duty in this recipe by cooking the pasta, blanching the broccoli, and bringing the whole dish together, all in one pot.

Vegetable spiralizers make creating your own veggie noodles fast and fun. If you don’t have one, look for already spiralized zucchini noodles near the prepared vegetables in your produce department. Here we show you how to make a batch of homemade pesto that tastes so fresh and delicious, you might be tempted to pass on the premade stuff forever. Double it and save some for later in the week, or freeze the extras to enjoy a taste of summer on a chilly winter day. Already peeled and deveined shrimp save on prep time

If you’re a fan of crab cakes, you’ve got to try these Thai-flavored shrimp cakes. The sweet, salty taste of shrimp really shines through when seasoned with the classic Thai trifecta of flavor: fish sauce, lime juice, and chili sauce.

To ensure even cooking and cakes that hold together well, be sure to take an extra minute to finely dice all the veggies. To turn any leftovers into lunch, serve shrimp cakes on a toasted whole-wheat English muffin with a smear of Sriracha mayo, lettuce, and tomato.

Fresh bread gives gazpacho body, making it a substantial summer entrée soup. Use bread from the bakery section for the best results (bread from the supermarket aisle can be overly soft and sweet).

This sophisticated shrimp bisque is worthy of a special occasion but is also easy to make. Cooking the shrimp shells deepens the flavor.

Pepper was the primary heat source in Indian dishes until the Portuguese introduced chiles in the 1500s. Both are used for this fiery shrimp dish from Goa, a former Portuguese colony, in southern India.

Traditionally, feni (a Goan cashew fruit or coconut palm liquor) would go into this type of dish. This recipe, inspired by author and Indian food expert Julie Sahni, calls for gin—an aromatic nod to the dish’s origins that also helps carry the spice notes.

This incredibly easy seafood dinner uses fresh pineapple and a teriyaki-style sauce for the classic sweet-and-tangy profile of Hawaiian shrimp. The pineapple also concentrates as it bakes and helps keep the rice mixture from becoming too dry. Rather than spreading the rice to the far edges of the sheet pan, keep it closer to the center and layer the vegetables and shrimp on top. This way their juices seep right into the rice, and the teriyaki drizzle coats every bite.

This stew is based on the savory rice porridge congee, which has roots in Chinese, Thai, and Korean cuisines. Though the dish uses some classic Asian ingredients—such as fish sauce, ginger, and bok choy—the flavors are not aggressively Asian. Instead, it’s warm, creamy, and comforting in a chicken and dumplings sort of way. The dry rice gets pulverized in a mini food processor for two reasons: The smaller pieces cook to a porridge consistency, and the rice “dust” thickens the stew.

Fresh herbs and lemon make a bright, tasty topper for succulent shrimp. Fish and shellfish are excellent sources of protein for fewer calories than most meat. Paired with spinach and rice pilaf, this weeknight-friendly main comes together in just 15 minutes.

Practice and show off your knife skills by making this main course salad. Zest the orange before segmenting it. To give precooked shrimp a refresh, toss them in a good 1/2 teaspoon salt, then rinse and pat dry. Cutting the shrimp in half symmetrically makes it go further and makes them easier to eat.

Fragrant fresh rosemary and mild cannellini beans are a fantastic duo. You can also mash the two together for crostini or stir them into soup. Add the rosemary to the dressing rather than to the simmering pot of beans so its flavor doesn't overpower. Poaching shrimp in the shells helps keep the shrimp from overcooking.

These shrimp skewers are an improved twist on standard kebabs (button mushrooms, chunks of bell pepper, and wedges of onion). If your shiitake mushrooms are smaller, keep them whole and skewer from end to end rather than through the center. Bright green, ridged shishito peppers have a mild heat and are 10 times better when grilled; serve with dip at your next party and watch them instantly disappear.

Ridged shishito peppers are usually pleasantly bitter with mild to medium heat, but watch out: Every so often, you'll get one that packs a fiery punch. They're typically pan-charred and served with a sprinkling of coarse salt, but this recipe calls for cooking them over an open flame on the grill for even more delicious char and smoke flavor.

Feel free to add your own touches—such as swapping in whole-grain pasta for a nutrition boost or trying goat cheese in place of feta—to make this dish personal for your preferences. If you don't have dry vermouth on hand, you can substitute dry sherry or a dry white wine (such as Sauvignon Blanc or unoaked Chardonnay). Or you could skip the alcohol altogether and use more chicken stock instead; stir in a teaspoon or two of white wine vinegar to balance the flavors with a little acidity.