Your Healthy Beginning

Your Healthy Beginning

Love How You Live

Your Healthy Beginning

Love How You Live

Recipe for Air Fryer Coconut Shrimp

2.8K

The ocean did call, and I did inform them we’re making air fryer coconut shrimp!

This recipe for air fryer coconut shrimp is SO easy and can be ready in as little as 20 minutes. If you’re looking for a healthier option to traditional deep-fried coconut shrimp, make sure to check out the recipe below for full details!

 

air fryer coconut shrimp sitting on a plate with limes and a bowl of thai chilli sauce 

What is an Air Fryer

Let’s get down to the basics first. What is an air fryer? I know many of you have them sitting on your kitchen counters right now; however, for those who don’t, let’s get into what it actually is. An air fryer is really just magic. It uses hot air in a contained space to make your food crispy, similar to if you were to deep fry them. The best part? You get almost identical results of deep frying without all the calories used for frying. 

Traditional deep frying uses oil to fry (and usually not the uses we’re very fond of). With air frying, you’re using little to no oil each time! For this recipe, you will be using less than 2 TBSP of extra virgin olive oil for the whole batch. Deep frying could NEVER. 

How Long To Cook Coconut Shrimp in the Air Fryer

 Honestly, I feel like at least half of you are here just for this answer. I find the hardest part of the air fryer is figuring out how long and at what temperature to cook your food. For Coconut Shrimp, I recommend cooking them at 400 degrees for 4 minutes on each side. In between cooking times, make sure to oil your coconut shrimp using a brush in order to get that delicious golden brown crust. 

My other pro tip is to avoid overlapping your coconut shrimp. This rule applies to anything you cook in the air fryer, really. Overlapping causes your food to cook unevenly. You may get half a shrimp that is cooked while the other half isn’t (not ideal). 

How to Enjoy Air Fryer Coconut Shrimp

So you made the thing, and now you need to figure out what to do with it. First and foremost, you can enjoy your air fryer coconut shrimp with your favourite dipping sauce. This could be anything from a Thai chilli sauce or pina colada sauce. Another delicious option is to enjoy them with a little bit of lime juice; this is honestly a safe bet I know you’ll love!

Then, there are the more labour-intensive options that are still so worth it. My favourite way to enjoy this recipe is by adding them to tacos! I prefer a soft-shell taco with your fave veggies, cheese, and coleslaw. Believe me, you won’t be disappointed. Alternatively, you can add your shrimp to a beautiful salad if you’re looking for something lighter. 

Is there another way you like to enjoy air fryer coconut shrimp?? Let me know below in the comments!

How to Make Air Fryer Coconut Shrimp 

Okay, so how do you actually make these things? Let’s get into it. 

Step 1: I always recommend getting all your ingredients out and ready before you really start to get into it. This makes sure you are ready to move into the next step without having to stiff through the cupboard for 5 minutes. 

ingredients to make air fryer coconut shrimp on the counter

Step 2: So you have all your ingredients, next you need to mix your three bowls for dredging it. Your first bowl will have your flour & spices, the second will have milk and eggs, and your third will have panko bread crumbs and coconut flakes.

three bowls set up to dredge the shrimp before frying

Step 3: Next, it’s time to bread those shrimp! I suggest doing this with tongs and having a plate ready for your breaded shrimp. Alternatively, pick one hand to bread your dry ingredients and the other for wet. This prevents your hands from being 100% covered in breading (no thanks).

Please note this is probably going to be a bit messy. Just commit to the mess!

uncooked coconut shrimp on a plate, next to a bowl wit uncooked shrimp and flour

Step 4: It’s time to get air fryer ready! Begin by adding your shrimp to your air fryer, making sure they don’t overlap. Once they’re in lightly brush them with extra virgin olive oil using a brush. 

Depending on the size of your air fryer you may need to do this in two separate batches. 

Set your air fryer to 400 degrees and cook for 4 minutes. Take your basket out, flip your shrimp, re-oil them and pop them back in for another 4 minutes. 

uncooked shrimp in an air fryer basket

Step 5: Remove and enjoy! Get a plate out, grab your sauce & whatever else and get ready to enjoy those coconut shrimp!

cooked coconut shrimp in an air fryer basket

You did it!! For garnishes, I added limes and parsley. These are not necessary, but if you want your plate to look pretty, they don’t hurt. 😉

air fryer coconut shrimp on a plate with limes & thai chilli sauce

Let's Get Cooking

air fryer coconut shrimp sitting on a plate

Air Fryer Coconut Shrimp

The perfect altnerative to classic deep fried shrimp! This recipe only takes 20 minutes to make and can be enjoyed in so many ways.
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
Course Appetizer, Side Dish
Cuisine Caribbean
Servings 4
Calories 344 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 15-20 Shrimp
  • ¾ Cup Flour
  • 1/2 Cup Unsweetened Coconut Flakes
  • 1 1/2 Cup Panko Breadcrumbs
  • 2 TBSP Milk
  • 3 Eggs
  • 1/2 TSP Salt
  • 1 TSP Garlic Powder
  • 1 TSP Paprika
  • 2 TBSP Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Instructions
 

  • Begin by setting up your three bowls.
  • In your first bowl, add your flour, paprika, garlic powder & salt, and stir until combined.
  • In the second bowl, beat your eggs and add your milk
  • In the third bowl, add your panko bread crumbs & coconut flakes
  • If your shrimp have the shell still on them, make sure to remove it.
  • Bread your shrimp one by one starting with the flour, then the egg, and finishing them in the egg mixture.
  • Set your air fryer to 400 degrees, and place your shrimp in your basket without overlapping them.
  • Lightly drizzle with your olive oil and cook for 5-6 minutes on each side.
  • Enjoy!

Nutrition

Calories: 344kcalCarbohydrates: 39gProtein: 12gFat: 16gSaturated Fat: 8gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0.003gCholesterol: 61mgSodium: 509mgPotassium: 237mgFiber: 3gSugar: 4gVitamin A: 260IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 114mgIron: 3mg
Keyword air fryer, coconut shrimp, fried shrimp, shrimp appetizer
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
air fryer coconut shrimp on a plate with thai chilli sauce.

Join the Conversation

Leave a Reply

Sharing is Caring

Help spread the word. You're awesome for doing it!

%d bloggers like this: