Shrimp Salad
119 Comments
Updated Jun 04, 2023
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No doubt about it, this is a shrimp salad you’ll want to eat all summer long. Chilled shrimp are tossed with crisp celery and red onion, then coated in a creamy, bright, and herb-y dressing that’ll keep the requests for seconds coming.
A Soon-To-Be Favorite Summer Shrimp Salad
In short, this is one of those summer salads where you feel 100% at peace, eating a giant bowl of it outside with warm sunny rays on your skin. It’s ultra-refreshing, deliciously creamy, and almost gives my tuna salad recipe a run for its money (don’t worry tuna salad – we still love you).
Also, I’d say that this shrimp salad is great for summer get-togethers (aka July 4th or Memorial Day). Kind of like my ultimate chicken salad. There’s plenty to go around, and it looks stunning served with butter leaf lettuces. Everyone will have their eyes on this – so good thing it’s super easy to make!
It’s All in The Shrimp Salad Dressing
Since this salad puts shrimp front and center, it’s all about the dressing to accompany it. The key here is not to mask the shrimp too much though. So I’m keeping it light and fresh with mayo, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, and lots of herbs.
- Shrimp: You’ll need about 2 pounds of jumbo shrimp for this recipe. But for the specifics, I’ll talk more about what type of shrimp to buy below.
- Red Onion and Celery: This is a non-negotiable crisp combo for a creamy salad.
- Mayonnaise: Use your favorite mayonnaise – or try making this homemade mayonnaise for a change! It’s super easy to make with a stick blender.
- Lemon: As always – fresh lemon juice is best!
- Dijon Mustard: Just one tablespoon is needed for a tangy touch.
- Herbs: I love dill in this recipe, but you can also use parsley.
- Garlic, Salt, and Pepper: The essentials to tie all the flavors together.
Find the printable recipe with measurements below
What Type Of Shrimp To Buy
Honestly, both fresh or frozen jumbo shrimp will work for this recipe. But since this salad is heavy on shrimp, the quality will make a difference. Here’s a few things to note between both kinds.
- Fresh shrimp: If you’re buying fresh shrimp in a coastal area, make sure that it’s actually “fresh.” Meaning, it hasn’t been sitting on the ice in the store for a long time, or it’s just thawed from being previously frozen. Always ask specific details from your fish monger!
- Frozen shrimp: If you’re unsure about the fresh shrimp at the market, packaged frozen shrimp is always a great choice! They’re typically flash frozen once they’re caught, which helps to preserve freshness. Just make sure to buy deveined frozen shrimp, with tails removed (for convenience).
How To Make This Creamy Shrimp Salad
Fresh and easy meals are just what we need for the summer months. And good news – this shrimp salad recipe comes together in under 30 minutes. Yep, it’s that fast. Who doesn’t love that?
Make the dressing. Stir together the mayonnaise, lemon juice and zest, dill, mustard, garlic, salt and pepper. Then set aside.
Boil the shrimp. Bring a pot of water to a boil, add the shrimp, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes. The shrimp should be pink and opaque!
Prep the ice water bath. While the shrimp are cooking, prep an ice water bath. Use a skimmer to remove the shrimp and transfer them to the ice water bath. Let the shrimp cool for 3 minutes or so, then drain them in a colander.
Mix up the salad. In a large mixing bowl, stir together the cooled shrimp, red onion, celery, and dressing.
Ways To Serve Cold Shrimp Salad
This cold shrimp salad is crazy good on its own. But make each bite even more exciting with the serving ideas below. Wrap it up, layer it into a sandwich, or top it on a flatbread. Honestly, just enjoy it however you like!
- Lettuce wraps: I love to use butter leaf lettuce for lettuce cups. Romaine lettuce works too!
- Tortilla wrap: Layer baby spinach on top of a tortilla. Then add spoonfuls of this shrimp salad before rolling it up into a wrap.
- Sandwich: You could spoon this onto a flatbread and top with microgreens.
Storage Options
I will say this shrimp salad tastes the best when it’s freshly made. But it will also keep in the fridge for 3 to 4 days. Just make sure to store it in an airtight container.
Pro tip: Don’t leave this salad sitting on the countertop for too long at room temperature. The mayonnaise could spoil more quickly!
More Easy Shrimp Recipes
Not quite sure what to do with that extra bag of shrimp? You’ll love these easy shrimp recipes that’ll bring some spark back into your weeknight cooking.
- Shrimp Scampi
- Garlic Grilled Shrimp Skewers
- Shrimp Tacos
- Shrimp Fried Rice
- Garlic Butter Shrimp
- Cucumber Shrimp Salad
Looking for your next summer staple? This shrimp salad is it! If you make it, let me know how it turned out in a comment below!
Classic Shrimp Salad
Description
Video
Ingredients
- 2 pounds shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped red onion
- 1 rib celery, finely chopped
Shrimp Salad Dressing
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 1 lemon, zested and juiced (about 1 tablespoon zest and 3 tablespoons juice)
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- pinch freshly ground black pepper
- Optional: butter lettuce leaves for serving
Instructions
- Make the dressing. To make the dressing, stir together the mayonnaise, lemon juice and zest, dill, mustard, garlic, salt and pepper. Set aside.
- Boil the shrimp. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add the shrimp and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until cooked through and pink.
- Prep and ice water bath. While the shrimp are cooking, prepare an ice water bath. Use a skimmer to remove the shrimp to the ice water bath. Let them cool for 3 minutes, then drain them in a colander.
- Stir it all together. In a mixing bowl, stir together the cooled shrimp, red onion, celery, and dressing, until creamy. Serve plain or with butter lettuce leaves.
Nutrition
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I am definitely NOT a fan of dill. So, I made two batches of your shrimp salad but in one batch, I included 2.5 tablespoons of chopped fresh Cilantro and with the other I used the dill you listed in your recipe. The difference? HUG DIFFERENCE. The salad with the Cilantro was the first to go AWOL. It went the fastest. Must faster than with the dill.
Oh, interesting! Thanks for sharing and glad the other alternative worked out great.
my husband brought home 2 bags of salad shrimp. i found this recipe and it was amazing
So happy you both loved it, Amanda! Enjoy!
I made this and it was fabulous and easy to make. Well worth the try!
Glad to hear you love this shrimp salad, Peggy!
Love the recipes. They’re simple and easy to make.
Thanks Kathy!
Just made this it is outstanding!
Thanks so much, Andrew!
Love it….thank you!
Happy to hear it!
The components and proportions are very good. However, one should NEVER peel shrimp before cooking them. You lose flavor.
You can certainly keep them in shell if you so choose. :)
Incredibly good ! Family loved it , want to know when I’m going to make it again. I used cooked shrimp from the grocery store. Made my own mayonnaise, only had a small amount of fresh dill used some dried . Look forward to making it with all fresh dill next time. Definitely a keeper!
I’m happy you and your family loved the recipe, Jane! Yay!
I made this recipe because I had some shrimp I needed to use. I did choose to make the homemade mayo and it was just as easy as delicious. When you use the homemade mayonnaise, it makes the salad so much lighter. 💕 will definitely make this again
I’m happy to hear you loved the shrimp salad, Crystal! And kudos to you for making my homemade mayo as well – well done!
Absolutely loved this shrimp salad, the dressing was so delish!! I served it over a bed of lettuce, arugula, & spinach. Fantastic!
Happy to hear you enjoyed this shrimp salad!
did I miss the cucumber?
There is no cucumber in this version, but I do have another cucumber shrimp salad on the website!
Have you considered yogurt instead of mayo?
Yes, you can use yogurt instead of mayo!
A fantastic, refreshing recipe! Thanks so much for taking the time to teach us all how to cook better and live healthier! My wife is not a mayo fan but the lemon juice, lemon zest, and hint of Dijon make it so much more like a light dressing. So, so good!
Glad you both enjoyed this shrimp salad, David!
A big no for me! The dressing is super runny which makes this kind of gross. The celery and onion kind of sinks to the bottom. Cold shrimp soup!
The flavor is okay. But it’s a little strong and too runny to stick to the shrimp!
If you try this do not add the lemon juice. Keep the zest.
I make a lot of your recipes, but this one I had to write about! I don’t like mayonnaise but thought I’d give it a try because I love shrimp and dill, and I’m so glad that I did! This recipe is simple and delicious! The lemon and dill take it to new heights and you hardly taste the mayonnaise, though I did only use a 3/4 cup instead of 1 cup. I didn’t change anything else. Yummy, easy to prepare recipe!
I’m glad you took a chance on this and ended up loving it, Violet!