Keto Southern Fried Shrimp
Jo Harding- Ready in 30m
- 4.8 g net carbs
- 475 kcal
- Serves 4
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Shrimp fans, have I got a treat for you today? Everyone has been going mad for my KFC Fried Chicken that I just had to bring you the next in the series… Keto Southern Fried Shrimp!
Think of your favourite fried shrimp but with an epic low-carb batter that doesn’t clump and fall off in the pan! Served today with a classic mayonnaise slaw, four to five shrimps will make a great appetiser, or double that will be enough for a satisfying keto meal.
I served these with low-carb and gluten-free beer — you can find some recommendations for low-carb beverages in this post.
Let me know what you’d like to see next in the comments below. Crispy Fried Mozzarella Sticks, Onion Rings, Breaded Mushrooms or Calamari? If you have an idea of your own, let me know below. I love a challenge!
Step-by-step
Begin by peeling (if not pre-peeled), deveining and butterflying the prawns. For a video on how to do this, click here.
Mix the dry ingredients together in a bowl: paprika, thyme, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, oregano, a pinch of salt, pepper and protein isolate powder (whey or egg white).
In a separate bowl, mix the wet ingredients: egg, cream (or coconut cream), hot sauce, Dijon mustard and a pinch of salt.
Coat the prawns by first dipping the shrimp in the wet ingredients then into the dry, shaking off the excess egg and whey mix in-between. Do this in small batches of 5 prawns at a time. To avoid clumping, you can split the whey mix into two and keep replenishing the bowl.
To deep fry, add your chosen oil (avocado, ghee or coconut) to a deep pan (I used 19 cm/ 7.5"), enough for the shrimp to be fully submerged. (I used about 2 cups of oil but note only about 1/3 cup of oil will contribute to the nutrition facts, the remaining oil is discarded.)
Heat the oil until hot. Once hot, fry the shrimp on a medium-low heat (careful of the oil splashing) until golden and cooked through, 1 to 2 minutes. It’s best to do this in small batches of about 5 shrimp at a time to allow even cooking and no clumping.
Drain the shrimp from the oil with a slotted spoon. Place on kitchen paper to absorb any excess oil whist you repeat the frying for all the shrimp.
To make the slaw, simply mix all the ingredients together in a bowl.
Serve the fried shrimp with the prepared slaw. Optionally, serve with more mayonnaise.
These shrimps taste the best when served fresh. The batter will go soft if stored in the fridge but can be reheated in the oven to restore some of the crispness. The slaw will keep in the fridge in a sealed container for up to 4 days.
Recipe
Keto Southern Fried Shrimp
★★★★★4.7How to make crispy Southern Fried Shrimp without flour. Served with a classic slaw, this low-carb recipe will ...
- Hands on
- 30m
- Overall
- 30m
- Servings
- 4
- 4.8 g
- Net carbs
- 30.5 g
- Protein
- 37 g
- Fat
- 475
- kcal
Ingredients makes 4 servings
- Shrimp:
- Slaw:
Instructions
Begin by peeling (if not pre-peeled), deveining and butterflying the prawns. For a video on how to do this, click here.
Mix the dry ingredients together in a bowl: paprika, thyme, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, oregano, a pinch of salt, pepper and protein isolate powder (whey or egg white).
In a separate bowl, mix the wet ingredients: egg, cream (or coconut cream), hot sauce, Dijon mustard and a pinch of salt.
Coat the prawns by first dipping the shrimp in the wet ingredients then into the dry, shaking off the excess egg and whey mix in-between. Do this in small batches of 5 prawns at a time. To avoid clumping, you can split the whey mix into two and keep replenishing the bowl.
To deep fry, add your chosen oil (avocado, ghee or coconut) to a deep pan (I used 19 cm/ 7.5"), enough for the shrimp to be fully submerged. (I used about 2 cups of oil but note only about 1/3 cup of oil will contribute to the nutrition facts, the remaining oil is discarded.)
Heat the oil until hot. Once hot, fry the shrimp on a medium-low heat (careful of the oil splashing) until golden and cooked through, 1 to 2 minutes. It’s best to do this in small batches of about 5 shrimp at a time to allow even cooking and no clumping.
Drain the shrimp from the oil with a slotted spoon. Place on kitchen paper to absorb any excess oil whist you repeat the frying for all the shrimp.
To make the slaw, simply mix all the ingredients together in a bowl.
Serve the fried shrimp with the prepared slaw. Optionally, serve with more mayonnaise.
These shrimps taste the best when served fresh. The batter will go soft if stored in the fridge but can be reheated in the oven to restore some of the crispness. The slaw will keep in the fridge in a sealed container for up to 4 days.
Nutrition per serving, 8-10 shrimps + 1 cup slaw
Carbs 4%Protein 26%Fat 70% of calories
- Net carbs
- 4.8 g
- Total carbs
- 7.1 g
- Fiber
- 2.3 g
- Sugars
- 2.6 g
- Protein
- 30.5 g
- Fat
- 37 g
- Saturated fat
- 6 g
- Calories
- 475 kcal
- Sodium
- 1,311 mg · 57% RDA
- Magnesium
- 36 mg · 8.95% RDA
- Potassium
- 538 mg · 26.9% EMR
Nutrition by ingredient
| Per 8-10 shrimps + 1 cup slaw | Net carbs | Protein | Fat | kcal |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paprika, spices | 0.2 g | 0.1 g | 0.1 g | 2 |
| Thyme, dried | 0 g | 0 g | 0 g | 0 |
| Garlic powder, spices | 0.5 g | 0.1 g | 0 g | 3 |
| Pepper, cayenne, spices | 0 g | 0 g | 0 g | 0 |
| Oregano, dried | 0.1 g | 0 g | 0 g | 1 |
| Salt, sea salt | 0 g | 0 g | 0 g | 0 |
| Pepper, black, spices | 0.1 g | 0 g | 0 g | 0 |
| Whey protein powder (protein isolate, Jay Robb) | 0.6 g | 14.8 g | 0 g | 62 |
| Egg, whole, fresh, raw (free-range or organic eggs) | 0.1 g | 1.6 g | 1.2 g | 18 |
| Cream, heavy whipping, pouring, full-fat (30-40% fat) | 0.1 g | 0.1 g | 1.4 g | 14 |
| Sauce, hot chile, sriracha | 0.1 g | 0 g | 0 g | 1 |
| Dijon mustard | 0 g | 0 g | 0 g | 0 |
| Prawns, shrimp (raw, peeled) | 0.4 g | 12.6 g | 0.7 g | 58 |
| Avocado oil, extra virgin | 0 g | 0 g | 18.2 g | 161 |
| Cabbage, white, raw | 1.2 g | 0.4 g | 0 g | 9 |
| Cabbage, red, fresh | 0.9 g | 0.3 g | 0 g | 5 |
| Celery stalk, fresh | 0.1 g | 0.1 g | 0 g | 2 |
| Onions, spring or scallions (includes tops and bulb), raw | 0.2 g | 0.1 g | 0 g | 1 |
| Parsley, fresh (spices) | 0.1 g | 0.1 g | 0 g | 1 |
| Mayonnaise | 0.1 g | 0.2 g | 15.2 g | 136 |
| Lemon juice, fresh | 0.1 g | 0 g | 0 g | 0 |
| Salt, sea salt | 0 g | 0 g | 0 g | 0 |
| Total | 4.8 g | 30.5 g | 37 g | 475 |
Serving size 8-10 shrimps + 1 cup slaw
- Gluten free
- Dairy free
- Nut free
- Pork free
- Avocado free
- Coconut free
- Beef free
- Pescatarian
- Recipe can be made dairy-free or egg-free.
- Recipe can be made dairy-free or coconut-free.
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Comments & ratings (12)
I just made this but replaced the shrimp with mushrooms and double dipped them in the wet and dry mixture. OH MY!!! These were delicious. With recipes like this, I don’t feel like I am eating low carb at all. Thanks for sharing such a delicious recipe, it’s a keeper for sure.
Thank you so much for the lovely feedback, that is such a great alternative! I love deep fried mushrooms, I'll need to try that.
So. Dang. Good. YUM!!! I have been off and on keto for the past 4 years, initially losing 90+ pounds (after my son was diagnosed type one diabetic at age 17 he begged me to lose weight so I wouldn't end up type 2 diabetic, which I was already pre diabetic at that point) Well fast forward to the start of the whole world going nuts at the beginning of 2020 and over a year 25 pounds found it's way back on me. I'm now back on strict keto for one week today, feeling so much better but I still love battered and fried food now and then. I fried this in organic Safflower oil, man are they delicious, what a treat! Thank you so much!
Thank you Liz, I'm glad you enjoyed! That is an amazing accomplishment, you should be proud of yourself! It's been a tough year, don't be too hard on yourself, I'm sure you'll get there soon ❤️
Thank you so much for such a fantastic, easy and delicious recipe! As a born and raised Southerner, I truly miss my fried seafood, especially the fried shrimp sandwiches I grew up eating. This taste so wonderful and brings back nostalgia. As for recipe request, all the mentioned ideas sound so delicious! I love anything fried. But, if I can make a request since we're talking fried foods, I would love a good egg roll/fried spring roll recipe with a proper dumpling wrapper. I've literally been searching for that recipe for years and have encountered many failures in the kitchen but I trust you're capable hands. It would make my Asian fiance so happy to have a fried egg roll again after I coerced/tricked him into going keto 😂. He loves all styles of fried dumplings and I would love to give him a little treat every now and then. Also, I'd like to thank you for your work. You take your time, money and expensive ingredients and spend so much energy testing out and creating recipes for the benefit of others. You make our lives immeasurably more easier and make it so that we have a satisfying and delicious journey to wellness. Even though it can sometimes be a thankless job with a lot of harsh and unnecessary criticism when you're all just doing the best you can and you're figuring things out as you go, you still help us. So, I sincerely thank you and hope for all of you recipe developers here at this amazing site continued success.
Thank you so much Anna, what a lovely feedback, you made my day (and Jo's)! ❤️ I'm sorry for the delayed response, I don't know how I missed your comment!
Egg Roll & similar recipe request noted, I have a few ideas to try! For now I have this recipe here but it's not the same (only the filling): Keto Crack Slaw - Egg Roll in a Bowl
All the comforts but without the carbs. Love this one!
Exactly! I need to try this in my air fryer. I don't know if it's going to work but I need to give it a go 😊
This was so good! I can't believe there's no flour in the batter. My non keto family didn't even notice, it really tastes amazing. I'm making it again for new year's. Thank you!
I'm glad you enjoyed! ❤️
I constantly am eating fast food, like today I had eaten some McDonalds. When I am done though I always feel like sh** because first off McDonalds is bad for you and does that but I keep telling myself that I am going to stop eating so unhealthily and start working out. I decided that I would give keto a shot and found a few promising cookbooks like this one (link removed) but I do not know if these are the right foods for me. I am a bigger girl, (I don't want to put my weight on the internet) and I am looking to lose weight. Is this book good for me or would you recommend something else?
Hi Sarah, it's great that you decided to give keto a go! No cookbook is comparable to a personalised diet plan so I can't really recommend the book you linked to. I also removed the link as this book is part of a huge scam that has been flooding our inbox, social media and blog comments with spammy links with "miraculous" weight loss tips, diet plans etc. We even sometimes receive complaints about bank charges as some users/readers believe it's us. I would not recommend anything created by this company simply because of their aggressive, desperate advertising practices and false claims. The best thing you can do is to follow the keto diet by tracking and focusing on eating real food. There's a ton of free information and recipes on my blog and in our app which is free to download: ketodietapp.com Good luck!