Southern-Fried Shrimp with Homemade Cocktail Sauce

A plastic basket lined with a red and white checkered wax paper and filled with Southern-fried shrimp, a couple of lemon wedges, and a small vessel of homemade cocktail sauce.

Southern-Fried Shrimp with Homemade Cocktail Sauce

Course: Seafood

Cuisine: Seafood

Prep Time: 15

Cook Time: 8

Marinating time: 15

Total Time: 38

Servings: people

Calories: 458kcal

Author: Kris Longwell

Southern-Fried Shrimp with Homemade Cocktail Sauce is about as delicious as they come. We love using large (or even extra-large) shrimp here. The buttermilk and whole-grain mustard batter make them extra crunchy and SO amazingly delicious!

Print Recipe

Equipment

Sturdy skillet for frying
Metal spider or slotted spoon

Ingredients

1 lb shrimp large, or extra-large, peeled and deveined
Salt and pepper
1½ cup buttermilk well-shaken
2 tablespoon whole-grain mustard
1½ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Oil (for frying) I typically use vegetable, for frying
Homemade cocktail sauce for serving
Lemon wedges for serving

Instructions

Place the shrimp in a medium bowl and season with salt and pepper (about ½ teaspoon each). Toss to coat.
1 lb shrimp, Salt and pepper
Mix the buttermilk and mustard in a bowl (or large measuring cup), and then pour over the seasoned shrimp and stir to combine.
1½ cup buttermilk, 2 tablespoon whole-grain mustard
In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour with 1½ teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon pepper, and the cayenne.
1½ cups all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Heat the oil in a heavy-duty skillet (about 3 - 4 inches deep, or your deep-fryer to 350°F) - if you don't have a thermometer, test by tossing a pinch of flour into the hot oil...if it sinks and doesn't sizzle, it's not ready. If it browns too quickly, it's too hot. You can also try a small piece of bread, using the same guide).
Oil (for frying)
Working in batches, use a slotted spoon (or your fingers) to remove the shrimp from the buttermilk and transfer them to the seasoned flour. Toss to evenly coat.
Carefully slip the battered shrimp into the hot oil and fry until golden brown and crisp, about 4 minutes; drain on paper towels. Do this in batches. Don't overcrowd the pan and let the oil get back to 350°F before frying the next batch.
Serve at once with cocktail sauce and lemon wedeges.
Homemade cocktail sauce, Lemon wedges

Video

Notes

NOTE: Watch the video near the top of the recipe for visual guidance.

Don't let the shrimp marinate in the buttermilk mustard for more than 1 hour.

These are best served piping hot, but are still delicious after they've cooled down. They can be reheated in a low-temp oven (275°F) until heated through and somewhat crispy (they will lose the crispiness after a few hours).

Leftovers can be kept in an air-tight container in the fridge for a couple of days.

Nutrition

Thank You! https://gethealth.info/southern-fried-shrimp-homemade-cocktail-sauce/%3C/p%3E%3C/div%3E%3C/div%3E%3Cscript%3Ewindow.wprm_recipes = {"recipe-11861":{"type":"food","name":"Southern-Fried Shrimp with Homemade Cocktail Sauce","slug":"wprm-southern-fried-shrimp-with-homemade-cocktail-sauce","image_url":"https:\/\/howtofeedaloon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Southern-Fried-Shrimp-IG.jpg","rating":{"count":13,"total":64,"average":4.93,"type":{"comment":13,"no_comment":0,"user":0},"user":0},"ingredients":[{"uid":0,"amount":"1","unit":"lb","name":"shrimp","notes":"large, or extra-large, peeled and deveined","unit_id":23277,"id":14825,"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-1":{"amount":"1","unit":"lb","unitParsed":"lb"}}},{"uid":10,"amount":"","unit":"","name":"Salt and pepper","notes":"","id":5518,"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-1":{"amount":"","unit":"","unitParsed":""}}},{"uid":6,"amount":"1\u00bd","unit":"cup","name":"buttermilk","notes":"well-shaken","unit_id":23259,"id":5488,"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-1":{"amount":"1\u00bd","unit":"cup","unitParsed":"cup"}}},{"uid":7,"amount":"2","unit":"tbsp","name":"whole-grain mustard","notes":"","unit_id":23263,"id":5604,"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-1":{"amount":"2","unit":"tbsp","unitParsed":"tbsp"}}},{"uid":3,"amount":"1\u00bd","unit":"cups","name":"all-purpose flour","notes":"","unit_id":23258,"id":4286,"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-1":{"amount":"1\u00bd","unit":"cups","unitParsed":"cups"}}},{"uid":4,"amount":"1","unit":"tsp","name":"cayenne pepper","notes":"","unit_id":23264,"id":4463,"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-1":{"amount":"1","unit":"tsp","unitParsed":"tsp"}}},{"uid":5,"amount":"","unit":"","name":"Oil (for frying)","notes":"I typically use vegetable, for frying","id":9563,"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-1":{"amount":"","unit":"","unitParsed":""}}},{"uid":8,"amount":"","unit":"","name":"Homemade cocktail sauce<\/a>","notes":"for serving","id":5490,"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-1":{"amount":"","unit":"","unitParsed":""}}},{"uid":9,"amount":"","unit":"","name":"Lemon wedges","notes":"for serving","id":5526,"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-1":{"amount":"","unit":"","unitParsed":""}}}],"originalServings":"6","originalServingsParsed":6,"currentServings":"6","currentServingsParsed":6,"currentServingsFormatted":"6","currentServingsMultiplier":1,"originalSystem":1,"currentSystem":1,"unitSystems":[1],"originalAdvancedServings":{"shape":"round","unit":"inch","diameter":0,"width":0,"length":0,"height":0},"currentAdvancedServings":{"shape":"round","unit":"inch","diameter":0,"width":0,"length":0,"height":0},"collection":{"type":"recipe","recipeId":11861,"name":"Southern-Fried Shrimp with Homemade Cocktail Sauce","image":"https:\/\/howtofeedaloon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Southern-Fried-Shrimp-IG-360x360.jpg","servings":6,"servingsUnit":"people","parent_id":"3603","parent_url":"https:\/\/howtofeedaloon.com\/southern-fried-shrimp-homemade-cocktail-sauce\/"}}}