Whether you are looking for a 30-minute recipe or a tasty meal for the little ones, shrimp pancakes won’t disappoint. Using fresh shrimp and your choice of vegetables, it is the perfect combination for a complete nutritious meal. Serve this dish as a finger food, side dish, or main meal with rice.
A Quick & Easy Meal: Shrimp Pancakes
If you loved my shrimp wontons, you will definitely love shrimp pancakes as well since they use similar ingredients. But instead of wrapping the mixture in wonton wrappers, you shape it into pancakes and fry them straight away. That is why this recipe is super quick and easy—ready in 30 minutes!
All you need is fresh shrimp finely chopped into a shrimp paste. In this recipe, I combined the shrimp paste with green peas, finely diced carrots, and corn kernels, but you can use your favorite vegetables if you prefer. You will also need cornstarch, oil, and egg white to adjust the texture, as well as a bit of salt to enhance the flavor.
Shape the mixture into a pancake and fry until cooked and crisp. These shrimp pancakes are juicy, moist, and flavorful. You can eat it on its own, with rice, or with your favorite dipping sauce.
Got some extra fresh shrimp? Here are more shrimp recipes to get creative with:
- Shrimp Shumai
- Shrimp Congee With Leftover Rice
- Shrimp Chow Mein
- Stir-Fried Shrimp Mei Fun
- Shrimp Chow Fun
- Pork And Shrimp Wonton Soup
- Salt And Pepper Shrimp
- Thai Shrimp Cakes
- Shrimp Fried Rice (Din Tai Fung Style)
Top Tips & Recommendations
You can alter the taste in countless ways to suit your taste. Add more ingredients for a different flavor or substitute better alternatives. Here are my top tips and recommendations:
- Fresh shrimp: You will need 500g of fresh shrimp to make about 300g of shrimp paste after cleaning and chopping the remaining shrimp. Prepare the shrimp by peeling the shell, removing the tail, and deveining it. Finely chop the shrimp to create the paste. I don’t waste the shrimp heads; instead, I utilize them to prepare the Shrimp Congee. A technique I like to use to chop the shrimp faster is using two knives and pounding them at the same time to make the shrimp paste. Aside from fresh shrimp, you can use pre-cut or pre-peeled frozen shrimp. You can also try replacing shrimp with other seafood options, such as prawns, lobster, white fish, or crab meat.
- Vegetables: I mixed green peas, finely diced chopped carrots, and corn kernels. You can get these individually or buy the pre-packed mixed vegetables. Aside from these, you can incorporate other non-meat ingredients, such as chopped regular onions, cabbage strips, napa cabbage, chopped green onions, fresh or dried shiitake mushrooms, and green beans. Make sure these are cut into small pieces to make it easier to shape into a pancake without the vegetables sticking out.
- Cornstarch: Cornstarch is essential to bind the ingredients together and lessen moisture for easy shaping. Moreover, it also gives the pancakes a crispy, golden exterior. If you don’t have cornstarch, use tapioca flour or potato starch and substitute the same amount. You can also use all-purpose flour, wheat flour, or rice flour.
- Egg white: Adding egg white is for structure and stability since it acts as a binder. With enough binding ingredients, you don’t have to squish the pancake just to make it stick better. Not only is it for binding but it also adds a hint of eggy taste. To separate the egg white from the yolk, crack the egg in half and use the shells to pass the egg yolk back and forth, leaving you with the egg white alone. You can also crack the egg in a bowl and scoop out the egg yolk with a spoon or suction it out with a plastic bottle. If you are looking for other alternatives for binding, here are some suggestions:
- Aquafaba
- Unsweetened applesauce
- Yogurt
- Ground flaxseed mixed with water
- Add more cornstarch
- Salt: Adding salt to enhance the flavor is a no-brainer. Use any type of salt and adjust to taste, such as sea salt, kosher salt, or table salt.
- Walnut oil: Adding a bit of oil helps tenderize the meat and add moisture. Other healthy options are olive, avocado, sesame, or safflower oil. If you like a neutral taste, go for peanut, soybean, or vegetable oil. If you like to add a distinct nutty and earthy taste, use sesame oil.
- Oil for frying: I used avocado oil since it is one of the best oils for frying. Ideally, oil with a high smoke point is best for frying since it reduces the amount of oil oxidized and can maintain high temperatures. Other oils with a high smoke point are peanut, canola, or corn oil.
- Optional ingredients: Below are some suggestions on optional ingredients to incorporate if you want a little more variety with the flavor:
- Oyster sauce: Add this for a sweet and umami flavor, similar to barbecue sauce and soy sauce.
- Soy sauce: If you think it lacks flavors, soy sauce is definitely a quick fix as it will add a salty, umami taste. You can use tamari, liquid aminos, coconut aminos, or gluten-free soy sauce.
- Powdered seasoning: Another flavor enhancer is powdered seasoning like dashi powder, vegetable powder, or chicken bouillon powder.
- Sugar: If it is too salty, you can adjust it with a bit of sugar. You can use any type of sweetener, including white sugar, cane sugar, brown sugar, or coconut sugar.
- Black pepper: Use black pepper powder for additional heat, woody, and piney flavors. You can also use white pepper powder, Sichuan peppercorns, or pink peppercorns and adjust according to your desired heat.
- Sweet soybean paste: Make it more Asian-tasting with sweet soybean paste, broad bean paste, or doubanjiang. It is sweet and spicy with a nutty taste.
- Sriracha: You can make it spicy with sriracha or hot sauce.
- Herbs: Add a bit of oregano or parsley.
Ingredients And Kitchenware
The only kitchen tools you need are a mixing bowl, knife and chopping board, and a non-stick pan. I like to use a non-stick pan to ensure the pancakes won’t stick to the pan and burn. For the ingredients, here’s what you need:
- 500g of shrimp (to make about 300g of shrimp paste)
- 2 tbsp of green peas
- 2 tbsp of finely diced carrots
- 2 tbsp of corn kernels
- 1 tbsp of cornstarch
- 1 egg white
- 1 tsp of salt
- 1 tbsp of walnut oil
- 1 tbsp of avocado oil for frying
Instructions To Make Shrimp Pancake
Make the shrimp mixture, shape it into pancakes, and fry – and you’re finished! In 15 minutes, you have shrimp pancakes ready for eating. Watch each step with my quick tutorial video on Instagram or TikTok.
Done making this dish? Snap a photo and tag me @kitchenmisadventures to share your versions of the recipe. You can also leave a comment in the comments section to share your thoughts and recommendations for the recipe.
- Prepare the fresh shrimp. Remove the heads and shells, and devein the shrimp. You can place the shrimp in the freezer for half an hour to make peeling easier.
- Then, finely chop the shrimp until it becomes a fine paste. You can utilize a blender for this step, similar to what I do in my shrimp shumai recipe, but make sure not to over-process it.
- Next, mix the shrimp paste with your choice of vegetables, such as green peas, corn kernels, and finely diced carrots. Add cornstarch, egg white, salt, and walnut oil. Mix well.
- Shape the mixture into balls and flatten it into a pancake. Wear gloves and apply a little oil to prevent sticking. Then, take some mixture in your left hand and transfer it to your right hand, repeating this motion several times. Finally, compress the mixture between your palms to form pancakes.
- Heat oil in the pan and fry them until golden brown on both sides.
Serve shrimp pancakes as is or with a sauce such as sweet chili sauce, ketchup, or soy sauce mixed with sesame oil and lemon juice. Store the shrimp pancakes in an airtight container in the fridge and consume them within 3 days or in 3 months if stored in the freezer.
5-Step Shrimp Pancakes (Done In 15 Minutes!)
Ingredients
- 500 g of shrimp to make about 300g of shrimp paste
- 2 tbsp of green peas
- 2 tbsp of finely diced carrots
- 2 tbsp of corn kernels
- 1 tbsp of cornstarch
- 1 egg white
- 1 tsp of salt
- 1 tbsp of walnut oil
- 1 tbsp of avocado oil for frying
Instructions
- Prepare the fresh shrimp. Remove the heads and shells, and devein the shrimp. You can place the shrimp in the freezer for half an hour to make peeling easier.
- Then, finely chop the shrimp until it becomes a fine paste. You can use a blender for this, but be careful not to over-process it.
- Next, mix the shrimp paste with your choice of vegetables, such as green peas, corn kernels, and finely diced carrots. Add cornstarch, egg white, salt, and walnut oil. Mix well.
- Shape the mixture into balls and flatten it into a pancake. Wear gloves and apply a little oil to prevent sticking. Then, take some mixture in your left hand and transfer it to your right hand, repeating this motion several times. Finally, compress the mixture between your palms to form pancakes.
- Heat oil in the pan and fry them until golden brown on both sides.
Video
Nutrition
