A delicious, upscale meal in a hurry. These baked colossal shrimp are swimming in the most delicious lemon garlic butter sauce. It’s perfect for a weekend party or date night for two at home!
It’s the easiest showstopper seafood recipe on either side of the Atlantic. Easy Baked Colossal Shrimp with lemon garlic butter gives you that beachside vibe but with an upscale presentation. Like you’re eating in a white-tablecloth restaurant and you snuck in wearing flip-flops.
Dust off the sand, friends, and pull up a chair. Shrimp’s on!
Here is what you need to make Easy Baked Colossal Shrimp:
6-8 colossal shrimp, (U10), or 1 1/2 pounds jumbo shrimp
4 tablespoons butter
3 garlic cloves, diced or minced
2 teaspoons lemon zest
1 teaspoon coarse sea salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Flat leaf parsley, chopped, for serving
Lemon wedges, for serving
But first, let’s talk about shrimp sizes:
Are you excited about making some fancy colossal shrimp? Bad news. Your shrimp might not really be colossal! It might only be jumbo. Or…(gasp)…LARGE.
The American Shrimp Processors Association tells us to pay less attention to the named size of the shrimp (Colossal! Super Colossal! Jurassic Colossal!) and to pay more attention to the shrimp count listed on the bag. In the United States, the shrimp count refers to the number of shrimp required to make up a full pound. (In Europe, the count is shrimp per kilogram, which is 2.2 pounds. This requires regular and on-the-spot math in the freezer aisle every single week.)
Turns out there is no regulation around the named size of shrimp. So a bag labeled “Colossal Giant Shrimp” with “31/35” per pound, will be sold in a neighboring store as “Large Shrimp” with the same “31/35” per pound. The shrimp count per pound must be accurate, the named size is open to interpretation.
Now that we have that settled, here is a handy-dandy chart to memorize for your next exam in the shrimp aisle.
Extra Colossal Shrimp U-10 (under 10 shrimp per pound)
Super Colossal Shrimp U-12 (under 12 shrimp per pound)
Colossal Shrimp 13-15 (between 13-15 shrimp per pound)
Extra Jumbo Shrimp 16-20 (between 16-20 shrimp per pound)
Extra Large Shrimp 26-30 (between 26-30 shrimp per pound)
The recipe today can be used for any size shrimp. The size I used came out to 6 shrimp per pound, so in the chart above, they would fall under “Extra Colossal.”
Finally, the biggest shrimp is not an indication of a better seafood – delicious, high quality, juicy shrimp can be found at every size. So grab a bag of whatever you like, and let’s get this main dish on the table in mere minutes.
Step-by-step instructions:
This recipe is good for shell-on or shell-off shrimp. Since the shrimp cooks at a lower temperature (350) in a lovely lemon butter sauce, I prefer to take off the shell, leaving the tail on. Start by cleaning and deveining your colossal shrimp. Then preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.
Add 4 tablespoons of butter and 3 diced or minced garlic cloves to a 2-quart baking dish. Transfer the butter and garlic dish to the oven, leaving the butter to melt in the oven for 5-6 minutes as the oven preheats.
Once the butter has melted and the garlic is fragrant, remove the baking dish from the oven. To the butter and garlic, add your raw colossal shrimp, salt, pepper and lemon zest. Toss the shrimp in the butter sauce to distribute, then arrange the shrimp in a single layer in the baking dish. Return to the oven to bake for 12-16 minutes, or until shrimp is cooked through.
Once shrimp has been removed from the oven, plate, then pour over lemon garlic butter from baking dish. Garnish with lemon wedges and fresh parsley.
Lemon garlic baked colossal shrimp is perfect when paired with boiled potatoes and a fresh green salad. Don’t forget the baguette to soak up any extra lemon butter sauce!
Make it once and this easy baked shrimp recipe will be added to your family favorites list for special occasions and celebrations for years to come.
FAQs about Easy Baked Colossal Shrimp
Absolutely. Just thaw the shrimp in your refrigerator overnight, or in a large bowl of very cold water on the day of cooking. Please remember that it is never safe to thaw shellfish on the counter at room temperature.
This colossal shrimp dish is perfect with simple boiled potatoes and a Mediterranean Tossed Salad. Other options include Garlic Brown Rice and Quinoa with Seasoned Green Beans, zucchini noodles with lemon zest and parmesan, or simple baked potatoes with Savory Napa Slaw. If you’re looking for a spicy kick, serve with Garlic Butter Shrimp Boil Sauce.
Wrap the leftover shrimp tightly with plastic wrap or transfer to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. To reheat, gently poach the shrimp in leftover lemon butter garlic sauce over medium low heat until warm throughout.
If you’re looking to fully repurpose the shrimp, make a shrimp boil hash with the leftover boiled potatoes and shrimp. Start by sautéing onions and garlic in a frying pan in neutral oil. Add in your cold, diced potatoes and cook until golden brown and crispy. Sprinkle with Old Bay Seafood Seasoning. Add in your leftover diced shrimp and toss until just heated through. Serve with a poached egg and seafood boil sauce on the side.
Check out the Baked Colossal Shrimp web story to see this recipe in action!
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Easy Baked Colossal Shrimp with Lemon Garlic Butter Sauce
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 2-3 1x
Description
It’s the fastest, easiest, fancy dinner you’ll find anywhere! Succulent baked colossal shrimp will wow even the biggest food expert in your life.
Ingredients
6–8 colossal shrimp, (U10), or 1 1/2 pounds jumbo shrimp
4 tablespoons butter
3 garlic cloves, diced or minced
2 teaspoons lemon zest
1 teaspoon coarse sea salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper
Lemon wedges, for serving
Fresh flat-leaf parsley, for serving, optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Add butter and diced garlic to a 2-quart baking dish. Place in the oven as it preheats, allowing the butter to melt and the garlic to heat.
- Clean and dry your shrimp. When the butter is melted, remove the baking dish from the oven. Add to the dish the colossal shrimp, lemon zest, salt and pepper. Toss the shrimp to fully coat, then arrange in a single layer.
- Return the baking dish to the oven and bake shrimp for 12-16 minutes, or until the colossal shrimp is cooked through.
- Remove from oven, drizzle with the lemon garlic butter sauce from the baking dish and serve with lemon wedges and diced fresh parsley.
Notes
This shrimp can be baked with the shell on or shell off. I prefer the shell off, tail on.
Because shrimp labeled “colossal” still have differences in size, so cook times will vary. Shrimp are cooked through when they reach an internal temperature of 120 degrees F.
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 20
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Oven baked
- Cuisine: American, Seafood
Keywords: easy shrimp, easy shrimp dinner, colossal shrimp, shrimp with sauce, baked shrimp
[…] my favorite seafood boil these days is to throw a pan of jumbo shrimp in the oven and bake it for 10 minutes. In the meantime I boil some tiny potatoes and make this […]