I call this a shrimp dip recipe and I always serve it as an appetizer but it is also very much like a shrimp salad. If I ever wanted to serve it as a shrimp salad, I would leave the shrimp whole or just cut them in half.
I came up with this recipe many years ago on the day of one of the big annual birthday parties. I slightly overcooked some shrimp and didn’t want to serve them, but also didn’t want to waste two pounds of jumbo shrimp!
This turned out so well that I have been making it ever since with the exception of overcooking the shrimp! When I make a shrimp dish where the shrimp are served whole, I always buy 26-30 per pound or bigger. You can save some money on this dish and buy the shrimp a little smaller since they are cut up anyways. If you are having a big crowd, you may want to double the recipe because it goes fast.
Shrimp Dip
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup orange juice
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 5 cloves garlic minced
- juice of 1/2 lemon
- 4 sun dried tomatoes packed in oil minced
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh herbs I used dill and parsley
- 1 lb raw shrimp shelled and deveined
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
Instructions
- Combine the first six ingredients in a bowl. Marinate the shrimp in this mixture for no more than 1/2 hour.
- Add shrimp with marinade to a hot nonstick skillet and keep tossing until shrimp is just done. This won’t take long at all. Just when you see the shrimp turn pink on both sides they are done.
- Remove the shrimp to a plate to cool and continue to cook the marinade until it is reduced by about half.
- Empty into a bowl and let cool completely.
- When shrimp is cooled chop into small pieces.
- Combine the shrimp, mayonnaise, herbs and about half of the reduced marinade. (this reduction is strong in flavor so it’s best to add a little first and taste to see if it needs more)
- Serve with crackers or toasted baguette slices.
