These bang bang shrimp are tender shrimp deep fried to golden perfection, then tossed in a creamy sweet chili sauce. A totally delicious appetizer or main course that’s sure to earn you rave reviews!
At my house, seafood recipes are often on the dinner menu. My family loves garlic butter shrimp, shrimp fried rice and these irresistible bang bang shrimp.
Whenever I eat at Bonefish Grill, I have to order the bang bang shrimp. Those crispy shrimp tossed in sweet and savory sauce just cannot be beat! We don’t have a Bonefish restaurant locally, so I’ve learned to make my own shrimp at home with fabulous results.
Table of Contents
Bang Bang Shrimp Ingredients
To make this recipe, you will need medium shrimp, buttermilk, cornstarch, garlic powder, salt, black pepper, vegetable oil, mayonnaise, sweet chili sauce and green onions.
How Do You Make Bang Bang Shrimp?
To make bang bang shrimp, coat your shrimp in buttermilk. Then, dredge the shrimp in a mixture of cornstarch, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Fry up the shrimp until they are golden brown. After the shrimp cook, toss them in a sauce made of mayonnaise and sweet chili sauce. The shrimp are ready to serve with some sliced green onions on top. Feel free to make a little extra of the mayo and sweet chili sauce mixture as a dipping sauce to serve on the side. I like to serve my shrimp on a bed of lettuce, but that’s optional!
Tips For The Perfect Shrimp
- Use a medium size shrimp (31-40 count size) for a bite-sized appetizer.
- Keep the cornstarch mixture near the oil so that the shrimp go from the cornstarch to the oil without any mess.
- Use a frying or candy thermometer to watch the temperature of the oil. Keep the oil as close to 375 degrees F as possible. If the oil is too hot, the shrimp can burn. If the oil is too cold, the shrimp will absorb excess grease and have a heavy texture.
- Fry only 6-8 shrimp at a time in batches to make sure that each of the shrimp cook evenly and don’t stick together.
- Stir the shrimp occasionally as they fry to keep them from sticking together. If you have trouble with shrimp sticking together, try placing them in the oil one at a time.
- Thai sweet chili sauce is a condiment that is available in the ethnic foods aisle in most grocery stores. It has a mild heat level.
Quick Tip
Serve your shrimp immediately, as the coating can soften as the shrimp sit in the sauce.
Recipe FAQs
This version of bang bang sauce contains mayonnaise and sweet chili sauce. The sweet chili sauce provides heat and sweetness. The mayonnaise provides creaminess. This sauce is designed to compliment the shrimp which have a cornstarch coating.
While I haven’t seen an official explanation for the term “bang bang” from Bonefish Grill, in Thailand, “bang” is a modern term for famous or popular. I would guess that the “bang bang” is a creative name for a famous shrimp dish.
People love serving this dish as an appetizer. You can go all Thai with your menu and serve your shrimp with chicken Pad Thai and Thai cucumber salad. Another option is to serve the shrimp over sushi rice.
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Flavor Variations
This recipe is great as-is, but you can easily customize some of the ingredients to your tastes.
- Seafood: Try using calamari rings instead of shrimp for a different flavor.
- Add-Ins: Feel free to add some other ingredients to the bang bang sauce such as toasted sesame oil, red chili flakes or hot sauce like sriracha.
- Toppings: Finish the dish with a sprinkle of sesame seeds, furikake seasoning or swap out the green onions for fresh cilantro.
There is a reason that this shrimp dish is so popular. The crispy shrimp coated in a creamy, sweet and spicy sauce are dynamite and really earn the name bang bang. Give this recipe a try and see how easy it is to make these shrimp at home.
More Shrimp Recipes To Try
Shrimp Kabobs
20 mins
Honey Garlic Shrimp Stir Fry
20 mins
Shrimp Salad Recipe
13 mins
Shrimp Fajitas
25 mins
Love This Recipe?
Please leave a 5-star 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 rating in the recipe card below & a review in the comments section further down the page.
Bang Bang Shrimp
Ingredients
- 2 pounds shrimp medium (31-40 count); deveined and peeled
- 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
- 2 cups cornstarch
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 6 cups vegetable oil
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 1/4 cup sweet chili sauce
- 2 tablespoons green onion sliced
Instructions
- Place shrimp in a bowl.
- Add buttermilk to the bowl and toss the shrimp to coat them in buttermilk.
- In a separate bowl, mix together the cornstarch, garlic powder, salt and pepper.
- Heat vegetable oil to 375 degrees F.
- Remove each shrimp from the buttermilk bowl and dredge them in the cornstarch mixture making sure the shrimp are completely coated in the mixture.
- Fry the coated shrimp in the oil until golden brown (3-4 minutes).
- Place the fried shrimp on paper towels to drain.
- Make the sauce by mixing the mayonnaise with the hot chili sauce.
- Place the fried shrimp in a bowl and pour the sauce over the shrimp. Toss the shrimp gently until they are coated in the sauce.
- Serve the shrimp with sliced green onions on top.
Notes
- Keep the cornstarch mixture near the oil so that the shrimp go from the cornstarch to the oil without any mess.
- Use a frying or candy thermometer to watch the temperature of the oil. Keep the oil as close to 375 degrees F as possible. If the oil is too hot, the shrimp can burn. If the oil is too cold, the shrimp will absorb excess grease and have a heavy texture.
- Fry only 6-8 shrimp at a time to make sure that each of the shrimp cook evenly and don’t stick together.
My shrimp were really clumpy and never got golden brown. I ended up over cooking them trying to get them brown. Any suggestions?
By clumpy do you mean they stuck together?
Could these be made in an air fryer?
I haven’t tested this recipe in an air fryer so I can’t say for sure!
This was really good! Loved the flavor! We served it over white rice with broccoli. Husband and son really enjoyed it.
My husband made this and it turned out really good.
These were better than take out! I was pleased at the ease of preparation. Very flavorful!
Delicious! Can this be frozen and if so how would you reheat it?
Thanks
I’d fry the shrimp, then freeze them without the sauce. Reheat in the oven until crispy, then coat with sauce!
This came out great! So much better than any restaurant!
best way to have shrimp
I LOVE shrimp and this shrimp is on point!! Thank you so much for sharing! 🙂
You were so right, the flavor was amazing! Excellent recipe!
These shrimps are so good! We really love the mayo and sweet chili sauce. I think it will work with fried chicken fingers too. 🙂
I regularly check your site for new recipes, and each time I visit, I get my mouth water. This time, with this shrimp recipe, is not an exception:)
Shrimp with sweet chili sauce! Can you say amazing. Have this on my 2020 must make list.
Skip the takeout! This bang bang shrimp recipe looks so good. Easy and delicious.
I love this preparation of shrimp! Perfectly crispy and super satisfying!
Trying this for dinner tonight looks easy and it will be very tasty.
These bang bang shrimp would disappear in our house!
This is honestly the best way to enjoy shrimp! These were perfectly sweet with a little kick and the right amount of crunch! Delicious!
This looks so good! I’ll have to try preparing my shrimp this way. Yum!!!