Learn how to make the best tender and juicy shrimp at home! This recipe makes the BEST and most DELICIOUS cajun blackened shrimp in just 10 minutes. Serve this mouth-watering shrimp on tacos, burrito bowls, salads, or rice! 
In case you haven’t noticed, I’m a little obsessed with shrimp. We make shrimp at least once a week because it cooks quickly and is great on pretty much anything. I always have a bag of frozen shrimp in the freezer for the times when you just need a quick and healthy meal in minutes.
This cajun blackened shrimp recipe is one of the best and my absolute favorite ways to cook shrimp. The spice mixture sticks to the shrimp and gives it a crusty outside that is loaded with flavor. This shrimp recipe can be grilled, baked or cooked right on your stove-top. My favorite is the stove-top method because it’s no mess or fuss, quick, and just one pan to clean!
The trick to cooking perfect shrimp is to heat the pan until it’s hot and steamy. Another important step is not to over-crowd the pan. You want the shrimp to cook quickly and char on the outside without turning them into rubber. A good minute or two on each side in a hot pan is more than enough time. Also, don’t forget the shrimp will continue to cook after you remove it from the heat.
Ingredients
- 1 pound shrimp shelled and deveined
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 1 clove garlic crushed (or 1 teaspoon garlic powder)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ground dried thyme
- 1/4 teaspoon dried basil or oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, combine the shrimp, oil, and spices. Use right away or cover with plastic wrap and marinate in the fridge for up to 24 hours.
- Heat a large heavy-duty non-stick pan to medium-high heat for 2 minutes. Once the pan is hot, coat the pan with a light drizzle of oil (if using a non-stick pan) and cook the shrimp in batches for 2 minutes per side or until charred and cooked through. Do not over-crowd the pan. Serve on tacos, salads, burritos, or rice. Enjoy!
Super easy recipe. Absolutely Delicious! Thank you!!
Can i grill the shrimp? If so, is there anything I need to change recipe wise?
I have done it with a perforated nonstick plate spray liberally with nonstick oil. Always used jumbo/colossal shrimp to buy time for turning. Medium heat fire on one side of the grill, plate in middle of grill, slightly off the fire. Rotate plate and flip shrimp once. Cooking times for the big guys are about 5-7 minutes. But that is all subjective and based on each fire and layout. You really need to know by sight what a perfectly cooked shrimp looks like.
I am a food blog junkie. I love seeing and trying new recipes but I have never left a comment, until now. My husband is an amazing chef. We live in Louisiana and he is well know for his gumbo, crawfish pie, jambalaya, steaks, shrimp, etc… We were planning to make blackened shrimp wraps using his usual blackened shrimp recipe. I found this and asked him to try it. He did and when he took his first bite, he groaned and then said, “Oh my gosh. This is award winning!” He was still talking about how delicious the shrimp and the wrap was this morning. It was excellent. Perfect taste immediately, then a perfect amount of heat afterwards. Nice!
How would I do these in the oven ??
I have used this for a long time a few tweaks to my blackened seasoning but amazing every time, even my picky kids devour it.
Soooo good! We are from Texas and are blackened snobs and we loved this. I used smoked paprika because it was all I had. Still came out wonderful!
I NEVER comment on a recipe I use, I just never think about it really lol! But…..OMG….I HAD to comment on this! A-FREAKING-MAZING! My fiance puts ranch on EVERYTHING he eats, whether it be home cooked or restaurant food, it doesn’t matter. Ranch goes on EV-ER-Y-THING. NOT TONIGHT! He pushed the ranch away! This recipe is mouthwatering DELICIOUS!
Made this tonight and my husband declared they were better than any restaurant. Seasoning was perfect. I also used fresh shrimp from the Alabama Gulf Coast.
Perfect!!
Why can’t I put this on my Pinterest, it wants to put the website but I just want the recipe.
We had an issue with Pinterest earlier this week but it should be working now 🙂
I’m having the same issue.
I don’t really like shrimp but this one was amazing! Definitely will be making this again!😋
I made this today. Best shrimp ever. Of course I made a few adjustments. I added Anaheim peppers and creole spices then let it marinate overnight. Cooked it in a hot pan for 5 minutes total and served it with cauliflower rice that I steamed in the microwave for 4 minutes. So fast so good!
Omg. Finally a spice blend that makes shrimp i make at home taste Great! This was perfect. Thank you.
This is the perfect blackening spice for shrimp. I made exactly as directed and served in flour tortillas with charred peppers and onions, shredded lettuce, cheddar and hot sauce in a flour tortilla. These are good enough to replace hard shell beef taco night for a fraction of the calories!
Excellent! I made it For Dinner. It was gone in a flash.
This recipe is great, everyone in my house loved it. To spice it up a little bit i used Hot hungarian paprika instead of regular. definitely a repeat dish for me!
I cut calories and used broth instead of oil and it was delicious!
WOW! Super simple, spices you have on hand, and SUPER DELICIOUS! THANK YOU FOR THIS!!! My only recommendation is to dry your peeled and deveined shrimp very well. then add the oil and spices. Mine sat for about 2 hours in the fridge before i seared them in a black, cast-iron pan on the bbq burner outside. 1.5 minutes each side…knowing they would continue to cook a bit off the burner! they were succulent and i could’ve eaten the whole pound! rave reviews from the hubs!
YUMMO! I had it in a wrap, my family had it on sanwiches. Super.
Can I do this with frozen pre cooked shrimp Too?
Yes, you can but you won’t need to cook the shrimp much since they are already cooked.
how long do you cook it if its the frozen pre-cooked shrimp?
Just a few minutes or until the shrimp is hot and steaming.
DELICIOUS, will make again, this time will shrimp and scallops and serve over cauliflower rice.
Three words: A. Maz. Ing! So delicious and so easy. Just have your exhaust fan on high!
Great recipe. Is great on blackened grouper too
This cajun shrimp was perfect. I tried it yesterday and all of my friends love it. Thanks !
how can I print this to keep??
There is a “print” button on the upper right corner of the recipe box.
lol
ı MADE IT YESTERDAY AND IT WAS SO DELİCİOUS. I ADDED ALSO SOME FRESH THYME TO IT. NEXT TIME IM GONNA TRY TO POPCORN SHRIMP .