- Air Fryer
I don't often deep-fry at home for so many reasons, so I wasn't about to make bang bang shrimp in my kitchen. Now that air-frying has come into our lives... there is an answer!
Jump to Recipe (or scroll for photos and riveting information...)
What is Bang Bang Shrimp?
If you’ve ever been to a Bonefish Grill you will have undoubtedly tried their Bang Bang Shrimp. It’s their famous deep-fried shrimp appetizer that has a creamy spicy mayonnaise-based sauce on top and it has grown to have a bit of a cult following. Before I ever went to a Bonefish Grill I had a friend ask me if I knew how to make Bang Bang Shrimp. That, in fact, was the reason I went to Bonefish for the first time. I didn’t have an answer for my friend, but once I discovered it was a deep-fried dish I didn’t really think about it again.
Bang Bang Sauce
The bang bang sauce is very simple. It’s simply mayonnaise, sweet Thai chili sauce and sriracha hot sauce – all whisked together. Couldn’t really be any easier. If you wanted to make the sauce lighter, you could substitute Greek yogurt for the mayonnaise, but it won’t be quite as authentic at the original version. As for the shrimp, you need to dredge it properly (that means flour first, then egg, then crumbs) and adding a little cornstarch to the breadcrumbs helps give the shrimp extra coating and crunch. Then, it’s a straight road to the finish line with a spritz of oil and your air fryer doing the rest.
Air Frying Shrimp
Air-frying shrimp is easy and quick. How long it takes really depends on how big the shrimp are, but the nice thing about shrimp is that they come with their own “I’m done” indicator – they turn pink. That’s a little more difficult to see when you bread the shrimp, but give them a little squeeze and if they feel firm, they are cooked through. If you liked this recipe for air-frying shrimp, you will probably also like the air-fried coconut shrimp recipe which uses a similar easy method.
How to Serve Bang Bang Shrimp
Serve these with little forks for people to spike their shrimp off a family-style serving platter or plate them on individual appetizer plates lined with lettuce leaves, serving 4 to 5 shrimp per person.
Featured Recipe Techniques
More about the skills used in this recipe.
Dredging and breading are two important steps in many of our favorite recipes and there are a few key points...View Technique
An introduction into Air Frying so that you can feel comfortable and confident making the recipes you find on my...View Technique
Many recipes that use traditional methods can be converted to delicious air frying creations!View Technique
Complete list of air frying cooking times and temperatures are listed in this chart. All times and temperatures assume that...View Technique
Air-Fried Bang Bang Shrimp
Nutrition InfoPrint Recipe
- Prep Time: 20 m
- Cook Time: 8 m
- Total Time: 28 m
- Servings:
4
Ingredients
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- 2 eggs beaten
- ½ cup cornstarch
- ½ cup breadcrumbs
- 1 pound extra-large shrimp peeled and deveined
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- ¼ cup sweet Thai chili sauce
- 2 to 3 teaspoons sriracha hot sauce
- 2 scallions finely chopped
- green leaf lettuce leaves for serving
Instructions
- Set up a dredging station for the shrimp. Combine the flour, salt and freshly ground black pepper in a zipper sealable plastic bag; beat the eggs together in a medium bowl; and combine the breadcrumbs and cornstarch in a shallow dish or cake pan. Add the shrimp to the bag of flour, seal the bag and toss the shrimp around to coat them evenly with the flour. Remove the shrimp from the bag, shake off any excess flour and gently toss them with the egg to coat on all sides. Finally, add the shrimp to the breadcrumbs in small batches and gently press the crumbs onto all sides of the shrimp.
- Pre-heat the air fryer to 400°F.
- Spritz the shrimp with canola oil and air-fry in batches at 400ºF for 6 minutes. Turn them over, spritz with oil again and air-fry an additional 2 minutes.
While the shrimp is air-frying, combine the mayonnaise, sweet Thai chili sauce and 2 teaspoons sriracha sauce in a large bowl, whisking until smooth. Season to taste, adding more sriracha sauce to suit your spice level.
- Before serving, load all the air-fried shrimp into the air fryer and air-fry at 370°F for 1 to 2 minutes just to heat everything.
- Transfer the hot air-fried shrimp to the bowl with the bang bang sauce. Gently toss with a rubber spatula to evenly coat the shrimp and then transfer to a serving platter lined with lettuce leaves. Top with chopped scallions and serve immediately.
Enjoy,
If you made this recipe, please add your comments and ratings below.
Hello! All photos and content are copyright protected. Please do not use our photos without prior written permission. If you’ve made this recipe and would like to share it with your friends, please link back to Air-Fried Bang Bang Shrimp on Blue Jean Chef. Thank you!
Nutrition Facts
Air-Fried Bang Bang Shrimp
Amount Per Serving
Calories 418Calories from Fat 135
% Daily Value*
Fat 15g23%
Saturated Fat 3g15%
Cholesterol 373mg124%
Sodium 1896mg79%
Potassium 164mg5%
Carbohydrates 39g13%
Fiber 1g4%
Sugar 9g10%
Protein 29g58%
Vitamin A 180IU4%
Vitamin C 7.3mg9%
Calcium 206mg21%
Iron 4mg22%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Products Featured In This Recipe
AppliancesAvance XL Digital Airfryer
Shop Now
Gadgets3 Piece Stainless-Steel Breading Trays
Shop Now
Recipes You Might Enjoy
Browse Recipes
Shrimp co*cktail
Air FryerShrimp Egg Rolls
Air FryerCoconut Shrimp
Edamame Avocado Toast with Grilled Shrimp
Comments (30)Post a Reply
While I haven’t used the air fryer for this (I will now), I have made this with a few changes – we prefer the spicy Thai Chili sauce. Add hot sauce to the mayomix, put teh cornstarch in with the flour, not the breadcrumbs and also add some cayenne to the flour. Okay, we like it kicky.
Reply
You are the best..Thank you so much for coming into my world! Had trouble trying to copy the air fryer chart….could not download it with out adding another program to do it. Anyway of printing it without having to download yet another program?
Hugs, Miami Marilyn
Reply
Hi Marilyn. You should be able to simply download the chart without another program, but I expect it depends on what operating system you are using, what version of operating system, etc… I’m no computer tech guru, I’m afraid. Usually, it simply downloads to a download folder and then you can open it and print it using the default software set up in your computer. Wish I could be more helpful. 😬 ML
Reply
My husband and I thoroughly enjoyed this, and are excited to have access to bang bang shrimp now that we live so far from Bonefish Grill. The outside texture was perfect, and the sauce was amazing. I am new to air frying, and wonder how I might modify the recipe so the shrimp might be less firm? I would hate to sacrifice the crispness but wonder if anyone has tried less time or perhaps a lower temperature? Thanks for sharing this great recipe!Reply
Could coconut or almond flour be substituted for the regular to make it lower in carbs? Thanks.
Reply
Sure. I’d go for the coconut flour.
Reply
The batter was too thick. Flavor was just not similar to what Bonefish restaurant serves. My kids did not like it either. 🙁Reply
Hi LG. This recipe doesn’t actually have a batter – the shrimp are breaded instead by dredging in flour, then coating with egg and then coated with breadcrumbs and cornstarch – so it’s not exactly like the deep-fried version at Bonefish. I’m sorry you and your kids didn’t like it. Maybe trying it again with the dredging instructions would be more successful for you.
MLReply
We tried this tonight with a few changes. We used chili sauce instead of Thai sauce. We also used avocado mayo and Panko breadcrumbs. We used medium size shrimp instead of extra large. The recipe called for 400 degrees but our air fryer maxed out at 390 degrees. So we set the time just as the recipe called for. The batter turned out crispy and the shrimp were firm. The sauce was good but we would really like to use Thai sauce and Italian breadcrumbs next time for the right recipe flavor. This recipe is well worth another remake.Reply
I followed the plans as described. The batter was too thick and the shrimp were rubbery. However, the sauce was delish. I did the second batch with just cornstarch, salt n pepper, and reduced the cooking time to 5 mins. The second batch turned out spectacular. I didn’t make any changes to the sauce because it is very tasty. Tossed them on a bed o lettuce, I raised my whisky glass, give them a toast!WAKÍČIYATKANJ!
Reply
Am anxious to try these, but wondered if the shrimp should be raw or cooked before breading?
Reply
Hi Pat. Bread the shrimp raw and then pop them into the air fryer.
Reply
I don’t have an air fryer or IP. How is the best way to cook this?
Reply
If you don’t have an air fryer, the best way to cook this would be to deep fry it, but you could try baking it in the oven at 425ºF for about 10 minutes.
Reply
Can you use frozen shrimp
Reply
Yes you can use frozen shrimp but you would need to defrost it first. If you are referring to frozen breaded shrimp, you can use that as well and cook it from frozen at 400°F for about 9 minutes. Then toss them in the sauce from the recipe.
Reply
Does the shrimp need to be raw or cooked?
Reply
Hi Sydney. This recipe is made with raw, peeled and deveined shrimp.
Reply
This is so delicious. I used panko bread crumbs and 1 Tbls of arrow root in place of cornstarch. I’ve over cooked shrimp before in my air fryer, so I did 5 min at 400 and 1 min to heat up and my large shrimp turned out perfectly. I was so pleased with how crunchy they turned out. I served it over Trader Joes stir fry cauliflower rice. Will definitely make this again.Reply
I don’t use 2 of the ingredients. The Thai sauce or sriracha sauce. I love Bang Bang shrimp but is there something a little less hot I could use so as not to have purchased 2 items I probably will never use again?
Reply
Hi Sandra. You might find that you’ll use the sweet Thai chili sauce on other things if you do get some – it is a great dipping sauce. If you don’t want to buy it or the sriracha sauce, try any hot sauce and honey mixed together. Combine the honey and hot sauce until you like the level of heat and flavor and add that to the mayonnaise.
Reply
Im looking for your recipe for country cook cherry bites that was on facebook recently
Reply
Hi Janet. I’m afraid I think you must be thinking of someone else. I don’t have recipe for country cook cherry bites. I do have a recipe for cherry cheese streusel tartlets that you can see here: https://bluejeanchef.com/recipes/cherry-cheese-streusel-tartlets/
Reply
hi i was just wondering if anyone else had the problem of there still being flour/cornstarch left on the shrimp after cooking? I followed the instructions and dusted them off so there wasn’t a lot but they came out of the fryer with some patches of white dust (flour or cornstarch). I oiled them also so i’m not sure why this happened. All in all this recipe was great although I did add some seasoning to the shrimp / the coating itself for a little more flavor without the sauce. Thanks again for a great recipe!
Reply
Hi Sarah, you do need to generously spritz the shrimp with oil to coat them before air frying. Any white coating left at the end is a spot that didn’t get coated in oil. You can also give them a spritz during the cooking process if you see some dry spots.
Reply
Phenomenal !!! Have made this 3 times now exactly as specified, but doubled the recipe, and it has been hit every time👍 Everyone that I have served it to has asked for the recipe. Thank you Meredith for your concise , easy to follow directions and for sharing your expertise! I am a seasoned cook and am no stranger to the kitchen or entertaining but was a little mystified by the air fryer. Also, purchased your book Air Fry Everything and am loving those recipes as well!Reply
Thanks, Nancy. I’m so happy you’re aboard the air-frying train!
Reply
While I am a seasoned cook I’ve been a little intimidated by the air fryer. I thought I would give this recipe a try since we alway enjoyed Bang Bang Shrimp at Bonefish. I didn’t have spray canola oil, only regular canola oil so I just lightly spooned a little on each shrimp. I thought of using olive oil but was afraid it might burn so I didn’t. It turned out wonderful! My husband went back for seconds. Definitely will be making it again. Look forward to your recipes. Thanks for introducing me to air fryer recipes!Reply
Very good recipe. Loved the sauce for the shrimp! Will definitely make this again!Reply
Made this tonight. It was fantastic! So easy and tasty!Reply
