Succulent prawns in a crispy coconut and panko coating, fried to golden perfection!
I’ve got a soft spot for this particular recipe, as it’s one that Chris made for our first New Years eve together many years ago.
Serve these Coconut Shrimp as an appetizer with sweet and sour sauce or sweet chilli sauce for dipping. Or serve them alongside some fried rice for a special treat.
🍤 Are they coconut prawns or coconut shrimp?
Usually in the UK, shrimp are known as the tiny little fingernail-sized brown shrimp.
Whereas the bigger sized crustaceans are known as prawns.
However for this particular recipe, UK folk (at least the ones I’ve asked, and after doing to online research) seem to refer to it as coconut shrimp.
Personally I can’t decide, so I’ll probably keep swapping between the two 😁
📋 What do we need?
For these coconut shrimp we’re going to need:
Note on the prawns
I’m using raw de shelled and deveined prawns for this recipe for the best freshest flavour. You can use fresh ready-cooked prawns, or frozen ready-cooked prawns that have been fully defrosted. They’re not quite as tender, but they still taste great.
For the coconut flavour
I’m using a combination of full fat coconut milk and desiccated coconut (shredded coconut) to get the coconutty flavour to the prawns.
Aslo using panko breadcrumbs for an extra crispy coating.
🔪 How to make Coconut shrimp
***Full recipe with detailed steps in the recipe card at the end of this post***
- Pat the prawns down with some kitchen roll to ensure they’re not too damp.
- Take three wide bowls. Add the flour and salt & pepper to the first bowl. Mix the egg and coconut milk in the second bowl. Mix the panko and coconut in the third bowl.
- Coat the prawns first in the flour, then dip into the egg mixture, and finally coat in the coconut mixture.
- Shallow fry in hot oil until golden brown.
- Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon or tongs, and place on a piece of kitchen paper to remove any excess oil.
📺 Watch how to make them
👩🍳PRO TIP
Prawns cook quickly (2-3 minutes) – so remove them from the oil as soon as they’re golden to stop them from overcooking and becoming rubbery.
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🍽️ What to serve it with
Serve on their own or with a lovely sauce for dipping. I like to serve mine with:
These coconut shrimp are crispy perfection!
🍤 Love Prawns? Try one of these recipes
? Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, you can use fresh ready-cooked prawns, or frozen ready-cooked prawns that have been fully defrosted. They’re not quite as tender, but they still taste great.
That’s my homemade sweet and sour sauce (<link here). It goes so well with the coconut prawns.
They’re best when freshly cooked, but you can make them ahead so long as you’re using raw prawns.
By using raw prawns, you’re cooking them once, then reheating them once.
If you were to be using ready cooked prawns, that means they’d be cooked before buying, cooked again with the recipe and then reheated again. That’s too many times to reheat from a food safety point of view. So I don’t recommend that.
If i’m cooking ahead, I like to cook and freeze them, rather than store in the refrigerator, as they are less likely to become soggy.
If you did want to cook ahead, use raw prawns, cook, cool quickly, then freeze in an air-tight container or bag. You may want to freeze for a couple of hours on a tray first, then transfer to a bag to be sure they don’t stick together, although I find they don’t tend to stick together even if I put them straight in a freezer bag.
Reheat the prawns in the oven from frozen, on a baking tray. Make sure the prawns are in a single layer. Heat at 200C/400F until piping hot throughout. I find this takes about 7-8 minutes.
They’ll go a little dark then they were when they were first fried. They should still have a lovely crispy coating.
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Heat the oil in a large frying pan.
oil for shallow frying
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Take three wide bowls. Add the flour, salt, and pepper to the first bowl. Mix the egg and coconut milk in the second bowl. Mix the panko and coconut in the third bowl.
3 tbsp plain (all-purpose) flour, pinch salt and pepper, 1 egg, 120 ml (1/2 cup) coconut milk, 5 tbsp panko breadcrumbs, 4 tbsp unsweetened desiccated coconut
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Pat the prawns down with some kitchen paper to ensure they’re not too damp.
250 g (0.5 lbs) peeled raw king prawns
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Coat the prawns first in the flour, then dip into the egg mixture, and finally coat in the coconut mixture.
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When the oil is hot (you can tell it’s hot enough by placing a couple of he panko breadcfumbs in. If they sizzle and start to brown very quickly, it’s ready) add in the prawns.
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Cook the prawns on one side until golden brown – about 1 – 1.5 minutes. Turn over and cook the other side until golden brown – about 1 minute.
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Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon or tongs, and place on a piece of kitchen paper to remove any excess oil.
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Transfer to a serving plate and top the prawns with a sprinkle of chopped parsley. Serve with sweet and sour or sweet chilli sauce if you like.
1 tsp flat leaf parsley, sweet and sour or sweet chilli sauce
Can I use cooked prawns?
Yes, you can use fresh ready-cooked prawns, or frozen ready-cooked prawns that have been fully defrosted. They’re not quite as tender, but they still taste great.
Can I make them ahead and reheat?
They’re best when freshly cooked, but you can make them ahead so long as you’re using raw prawns.
By using raw prawns, you’re cooking them once, then reheating them once.
If you were to be using ready cooked prawns, that means they’d be cooked before buying, cooked again with the recipe and then reheated again. That’s too many times to reheat from a food safety point of view. So I don’t recommend that.
If i’m cooking ahead, I like to cook and freeze them, rather than store in the refrigerator, as they are less likely to become soggy.
If you did want to cook ahead, use raw prawns, cook, cool quickly, then freeze in an air-tight container or bag. You may want to freeze for a couple of hours on a tray first, then transfer to a bag to be sure they don’t stick together, although I find they don’t tend to stick together even if I put them straight in a freezer bag.
Reheat the prawns in the oven from frozen, on a baking tray. Make sure the prawns are in a single layer. Heat at 200C/400F until piping hot throughout. I find this takes about 7-8 minutes.
They’ll go a little dark then they were when they were first fried. They should still have a lovely crispy coating.
Nutritional information is per serving.
This recipes serves 4 – which is about 5-6 prawns each. I’ve calculated approx 4tbsp of oil is absorbed during the cooking process. Your prawn coating may absorb a little more or a little less.
Calories: 364kcal | Carbohydrates: 15g | Protein: 17g | Fat: 26g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 198mg | Sodium: 599mg | Potassium: 189mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 62IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 127mg | Iron: 4mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This post was first published in Dec 2014. Updated in Feb 2021 with new Photos, Improvements to the recipe and with a video. Updated again in Feb 2024 for housekeeping reasons.
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