American · Snack · All year
Shrimp Cocktail
4.6 · community
15m
Prep
5m
Cook
Easy
Level
180
Energy
The retro icon done right: shrimp poached gently off the heat so they land plump, with a horseradish-forward cocktail sauce that bites back.
What you need
Ingredients
Servings
6
Before you start
Mise en place
Equipment
Mixing bowl
Prep checklist
Shrimp — large, peeled, tails on
Lemon — halved, plus wedges
Horseradish — or more — it should sting
3 steps
Method
1
Boil 2 liters of water with lemon halves, bay, peppercorns, and a fistful of salt; kill the heat, add the shrimp, and poach OFF the flame 3–4 minutes until just pink and curled loose.
4 min — timer available in cooking mode
Why this works
Off-heat poaching cannot rubberize shrimp. It is the gentlest cooking there is.
2
Straight into ice water 5 minutes; drain and chill.
5 min — timer available in cooking mode
3
Stir the sauce; taste for menace. Serve shrimp over ice around the bowl, lemon wedges everywhere.
From the pass
Chef's notes
Taste before serving and adjust salt and acid — the last 30 seconds of seasoning matter more than any single ingredient.
Afterwards
Keep, reheat & pair
Storage
Airtight container, 3 days.
Freezing
Usually better fresh.
Reheating
A hot dry pan or 180°C oven re-crisps almost anything in 3–5 minutes.
Make ahead
Portion into grab-and-go containers; most keep 3 days.
Wine pairing
Whatever's open.
Beer pairing
Whatever's cold.
On the plate
Serve it with
Sides
A dipping sauce
Crunchy vegetables
Garnish
A pinch of flaky salt
Chili flakes
Taste map
Flavour profile
Sweet
2
Salty
3
Sour
1
Bitter
0
Umami
2
Heat
1
Per serving
Nutrition
180
kcal
24g
protein
12g
carbs
3g
fat
3g
fiber
520mg
sodium
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Your notes
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