20-Minute Bang Bang Shrimp Air Fryer – Air fried jumbo shrimp is tossed in a crispy breading to make this easy 20-minute recipe. Finished with a homemade bang bang sauce, this is a great appetizer or main protein that’s impossible to resist!
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I love using my air fryer for quick recipes like shrimp patties and chicken wings because it always saves me so much time. Quick, easy, and crunchy, this Bang Bang Shrimp is no different! Shrimp always cooks quickly no matter the method, so frying it in the air fryer means it’s going to be ready to eat in a flash!
This flavorful and spicy easy shrimp recipe is crisped up perfectly before being covered in a creamy homemade bang bang sauce. Each bite has plenty of crunch and just enough spice to give it a much-needed kick. Serve it as a fun appetizer on game day or as a main dish with an Avocado Side Salad or Easy Fried Rice.
What is Bang Bang Shrimp?
Bang bang shrimp was made popular at the Bonefish Grill restaurant in the US. It’s a crispy fried shrimp appetizer that’s coated in a creamy and spicy sauce made from Thai chilis. Since the Thai chilis give your whole mouth a “bang” from the heat, the sauce was aptly named bang bang sauce!
Traditionally served as an appetizer, bang bang shrimp can also be served over rice, pasta, or even a bed of greens. This recipe is even better made at home from scratch!
Bang Bang Shrimp Ingredients
The ingredients in bang bang shrimp are fairly simple. The shrimp is coated in a panko and cornstarch breading to give it a crunch and dipped in a homemade bang bang sauce. Everything you need to make air fryer shrimp at home can easily be found at any major grocery store:
- Jumbo shrimp
- Buttermilk
- Panko breadcrumbs
- Cornstarch
- Mayonnaise
- Sriracha sauce
- Sweet chili sauce
How to Make Bang Bang Shrimp in the Air Fryer?
Step 1: Preheat your air fryer and spray a bit of cooking oil on the bottom of the basket.
Step 2: Make the sauce by whisking the mayo, sriracha, and chili sauce together until fully combined. Set aside.
Step 3: Coat the shrimp by dredging it in cornstarch first, then buttermilk, and finish in the Panko breadcrumbs. This is easier when you work in batches.
Step 4: Place the breaded shrimp in a single layer in the air fryer basket. Cook for 5 minutes, flip, and cook for another 5 minutes.
How to Make Bang Bang Shrimp in a Skillet
Step 1: Make the bang bang sauce and coat the shrimp in breadcrumbs as instructed.
Step 2: Preheat a nonstick skillet with some oil on medium/high heat.
Step 3: When the oil is hot, cook the coated shrimp in the skillet for a few minutes on each side. Plate the cooked shrimp and add a drizzle of the bang bang sauce on top.
Serving Suggestions
My bang bang shrimp air fryer recipe is the perfect party or game day snack. Serve a batch next to more fun party snacks like Air Fryer French Fries and Spinach Artichoke Dip with veggies. You could even replace the shrimp and make this recipe with chicken for a more hearty appetizer.
Make it a main dish and use the bang bang shrimp in Homemade Sushi for a fun and crunchy twist or add it as a topping on Shrimp Avocado Salad with quinoa.
More Air Fryer Recipes to Try
If you love making this easy shrimp recipe in your air fryer, you’ll want to give these extra crunchy air fryer recipes a try as well:
Bang Bang Shrimp Air Fryer Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
Bang Bang Sauce
- 1/2 cup mayo
- 1/2 teaspoon sriracha sauce or less or more to taste
- 1/4 cup sweet chili sauce
Bang Bang Shrimp Batter
- 1-2 lb jumbo shrimp shell off and deveined
- 1/2 cup buttermilk
- 3/4 cup cornstarch *NOT FLOUR
- 1 cup Panko bread crumbs more if needed
- 1 teaspoon parsley or cilantro finely chopped, for garnish
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil for brushing air fryer pan and shrimp
Instructions
- In a mixing bowl, add sauce ingredietns and whisk until everything is combined. Set aside.Next, preheat AIR FRYER (this is the one I have and love using!) to 400F. Grease air fryer pan with a little bit of oil of your choice, I like to use avocado oil.
- Working in batches, coat shrimp in cornstarch, after dip it in buttermilk and finally toss shrimp in bread crumbs.
- Add shrimp to the air fryer pan (make sure shrimp is not touching each other), then cover and cook for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, flip shrimp on the other side and brush or spray a little bit of oil on the top, cover and cook for 3-5 minutes, or until shrimp is cooked thru and has crispy texture.
- Drizzle bang bang sauce over the shrimp and garnish it with greens of your choice like parsley or cilantro. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Q. Do YOU like this Air Fryer Recipe?
Let me know in the comments below, I would love to hear from you!
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This is a fantastic recipe! I did not have buttermilk handy (plus hubby is lactose intolerant) so I mixed up some lactose free sour cream, milk and fresh lime juice with a couple cranks of sea salt to get close to the texture/flavor. Worked great. I added a couple cranks of salt to the corn starch and panko as well. Seven min at 400 for 21-24 count shrimp was perfect for us. The shrimp was perfectly cooked inside, golden brown and crispy on the outside. My husband INHALED his shrimp which never happens and then was looking like he wanted to tussle for the last one! The only change I would make next time is to either leave the mayo out entirely for maximum heat or add it a tablespoon at a time until it hits the right spicy/creamy note. Thank you for the recipe!
Thank you, Heather for sharing this awesome recipe review!
The Bang Bang Shrimp recipe sounds delicious. I will be trying it soon.
Thank you Rita! SO happy to hear this!
Are the shrimp frozen or thawed?
Hi Jenny, the shrimp were thawed!
Do you use raw shrimp or shrimp that’s already precooked for this recipe?
Raw shrimp 🙂
What temperature do you set your air fryer on
Hi Kris, I set it to 400F.
Absolutely fabulous! This was the best shrimp I’ve ever tasted and so easy. Loved the sauce.
Thank you, Paulette! So happy to hear this!
Everything was delicious besides the sauce. Way too much mayo. We added soy sauce and put the shrimp over rice.
Thank you Camryn!
Looks great! Did you use precooked shrimp?
Thank you! I used RAW wild-caught shrimp 🦐
Can you use something other than buttermilk?
You can use milk and a splash of lemon juice.
The air fried shrimp turned out perfectly.
I didn’t love the sauce. It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t quite as flavorful as I’d like. Next time, I’ll add probably as some garlic and smoked paprika.
Thank you for sharing your recipe review!