Which Spices Go Well With Shrimp? Old Bay, Garlic, Chiles, Paprika, Dill and Lemon

Shrimp cooks in minutes, which tells you most of what you need to know about seasoning it. It’s sweet and briny on its own and likes seasonings that work fast: garlic and chiles sizzled in hot oil, a spice blend shaken over the pot, or fresh herbs and citrus at the end. That same pattern runs through very different kitchens, from a Chesapeake shrimp boil with Old Bay to gambas al ajillo in Madrid, jambalaya in Louisiana, tom yum in Thailand and curry shrimp in Jamaica. Below, five named recipes side by side and how to tell when shrimp is done.

At a glance

The core seasonings and what each does

Old Bay: the Chesapeake blend

Old Bay started out as a crab seasoning, and McCormick now sells it as a seafood seasoning.

McCormick’s label lists celery salt (salt, celery seed), spices including red pepper and black pepper, and paprika. The rest of the spice list isn’t disclosed.¹ You’ll often see mace named as an Old Bay ingredient, but the label doesn’t confirm it. Try it in a shrimp boil, in the coating for fried shrimp or in cocktail sauce. See Old Bay vs. Creole seasoning.

Garlic: the base

Garlic leads in gambas al ajillo, a classic dish from Madrid: shrimp simmered in olive oil laced with garlic and chile. In José Andrés’ version, he slices 4 cloves thinly and fries them gently in ¼ cup of olive oil before the shrimp go in.³ The Cook’s Illustrated chicken and shrimp jambalaya uses 5 cloves among its aromatics.⁴ With shrimp, garlic is best cooked just until fragrant. Don’t let it brown hard. See garlic vs. garlic powder.

Chiles: heat

Andrés adds 5 dried árbol chiles to the garlic oil and 2 more to his brava sauce.³ The jambalaya uses ¼ teaspoon of cayenne.⁴ Red pepper adds heat and bite to seafood. Fresh chiles like jalapeño work too. See red pepper flakes and jalapeño powder.

Paprika: color and sweetness

Andrés finishes his brava sauce, which goes into the shrimp, with 1 tablespoon of sweet Spanish pimentón.³ See paprika and smoked paprika.

Lemon: brightness

Andrés adds 5 tablespoons of lemon juice along with brandy once the shrimp start to change color.³ McCormick suggests its lemon pepper for seafood, stirred into melted butter or olive oil and brushed on while grilling or broiling.⁵ Lemon zest gives you the aroma without the acidity of juice. See lemon pepper.

Dill: the Scandinavian route

In Scandinavia, fish and shellfish dishes are usually flavored with dill. Its flavor is warm and slightly sharp, a bit like caraway. Dill is a delicate herb to add at the last minute,⁹ which fits shrimp’s short cooking time. See cooking with dill.

Blackening seasoning

Blackening goes back to Paul Prudhomme’s blackened redfish. His company, Magic Seasoning Blends, describes fillets dipped in melted butter, coated with his spice blend and cooked in a cast-iron skillet heated to about 600°F. The company doesn’t list the blend’s ingredients,¹⁰ so whatever you read about what “blackening seasoning” contains describes other cooks’ blends, not his. The same method works on shrimp, though neither source covers shrimp. It makes a lot of smoke, so ventilate well. See Cajun seasoning and Cajun vs. Creole seasoning.

Five shrimp dishes side by side

Hank Shaw notes that Jamaican curry powder uses more allspice and turmeric than Indian curry powders.⁸ These are the named cooks’ own recipes, not a house standard. See jambalaya spices, cooking with lemongrass and Jamaican curry powder.

Doneness and safety

FoodSafety.gov’s guidance for shrimp is visual: cook until the flesh is pearly or white, and opaque.¹² The FDA describes the same sign, flesh that turns firm, pearly and opaque, and says most seafood should be cooked to an internal temperature of 145°F.¹³

Related

• Best spices for salmon
• Best spices for tilapia
• Old Bay seasoning
• Thai spices