These easy, crispy, and juicy air fryer shrimp are one of my favorite recipes and they're even paired with cocktail sauce! You're going to be surprised by how easy it is to get resturant quality fried shrimp from home!
Prepare shrimp: Make sure they are thawed, peeled, washed, and dried.
Preheat Air Fryer to 375 degrees.
Put the Panko Bread Crumbs in a small bowl. Set aside.
In a large bowl combine the flour, Old Bay, Garlic Powder, and Cornstarch.
Add the egg and water to the bowl. Whisk until it’s all thoroughly combined. You should have a thick and wet batter.
Holding the shrimp by the tail, dip the shrimp individually into the batter. Let any excess batter drip off into the bowl.
Then dip the shrimp into the Panko bread crumbs. Covering every spot except for the tail.
Place shrimp in the Air Fryer basket. Shrimp should not touch in the basket of your air fryer.
Place basket in Air Fryer. Close. Set time for about 6-8 minutes. Shrimp do not take long to cook.
When the coating is golden brown, that’s when they’re ready!
Repeat until you’ve cooked all shrimp.
Old Bay Cocktail Sauce
In a small bowl combine Ketchup, Horseradish, Old Bay Seasoning, Worcestershire, Lemon Juice, and Smoked Paprika.
Mix well until thoroughly combined.
Garnish with fresh Thyme if desired.
Store in the fridge covered and/or in an air-tight container.
Notes
Can I store air fryer fried shrimp? Yes, you can store air fryer shrimp in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for no more than one day. For best results, reheat them in the air fryer or the oven. I would highly recommend eating these shrimp fresh because the breading will not be as crispy when reheated.What spices go well with air fryer shrimp? The spices in this recipe are absolutely delicious but feel free to customize them in any way you'd like. Onion powder, smoked paprika, dried green onion, and cajun seasoning are all great options. Just add a ½ Tsp or so.Can I use different bread crumbs? I've found that seasoned Panko bread crumbs work best for this recipe but you can use plain or Italian seasoned Panko bread crumbs. For the perfect shrimp, I would suggest using Panko bread crumbs instead of regular bread crumbs.