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This perfectly sautéed shrimp needs just a handful of seasonings and a few minutes of cooking time to yield juicy and tender shrimp. It’s ready in six minutes and perfect in shrimp bowls, salads, and more.
★★★★★ REVIEW
“I love how simple this sautéed shrimp recipe is. It’s made dinnertime a breeze, and the spice mixture is sensational. We like to add them into wraps, use them in fajitas, or over a salad.” – Claudinne P
Table of Contents
Sauteed shrimp is one of my family’s favorite weeknight proteins. We always have a bag or two of frozen shrimp on hand, and when they’re on special at the grocery stores, we pick some fresh ones up.
In this recipe, I season the shrimp with a simple spice mixture, then sauté them in olive oil for about six minutes. Then, they are ready to toss onto a salad, serve with some starches (we love coconut milk rice), or over a rice bowl. Shrimp are also one of my favorite proteins for meal prep because they are versatile and taste great hot or cold.
If you love cooking with shrimp like we do, try my shrimp curry, blackened shrimp, and air fryer coconut shrimp next.
Key Ingredients
- Shrimp. I prefer using large or jumbo shrimp since they’re juicier and are less likely to overcook. Make sure they’re peeled and deveined (you can keep the tails on if you wish). The same can be said for frozen shrimp, too.
- Seasonings. I used salt, black pepper, Italian seasonings, and garlic powder.
- Olive oil. For sautéeing the shrimp.
How to sauté shrimp
This is an overview with step-by-step photos. Full ingredients & instructions are in the recipe card below.
Step 1- Pat the shrimp dry with a paper towel and place them in a large bowl.
Step 2- Add the seasonings. Toss to coat the shrimp.
Step 3- Heat olive oil in a skillet. Cook shrimp in a single layer for 2–3 minutes per side until opaque and curled. Remove and serve.
Arman’s recipe tips
- Pat the shrimp dry. My #1 tip for sautéeing delicate proteins like shrimp. If there’s any excess moisture, the shrimp will steam instead of frying and dilute the seasonings.
- Saute in an even layer. Crowding the pan will lower the oil temperature and make it difficult to get both sides of the shrimp nice and crispy.
- Use a nonstick skillet. I’ve found that nonstick skillets are the best for evenly distributing heat. If you don’t have a nonstick skillet, a cast iron skillet can work just as well.
- Avoid overcooking. Shrimp are tricky devils that are easy to overcook, so stick to the 2-minute rule and remove them from the heat as soon as they turn pink and curl up.
Storage instructions
To store: Leftover sautéed shrimp can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3-4 days.
To freeze: Allow the leftover shrimp to cool completely, then store it in a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 3 months. Let the shrimp thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating.
If you tried this Sauteed Shrimp recipe or any other recipe on The Big Man’s World, please rate the recipe and let me know how it went in the comments below. It really helps others thinking of making the recipe.
Sautéed Shrimp
Video
Ingredients
- 1 pound large shrimp peeled and deveined, or frozen shrimp
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
Instructions
- Pat dry the shrimp with a paper towel and place them in a large bowl.
- Add the salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, and garlic powder. Give everything a good mix until the shrimp is fully coated.
- Add the olive oil to a large skillet and place over medium heat. Once hot, add the shrimp in a single layer and cook for 2-3 minutes on each side until they turn pink and start to curl.
- Remove the shrimp from the skillet and serve immediately.
Notes
- Use different spices. I gave you a basic seasoning blend, but you could make this recipe with all sorts of spices, like curry powder, cumin, paprika, old bay seasoning, or lemon pepper.
- Make garlic butter shrimp. Inspired by garlic butter steak bites, swap the olive oil for unsalted butter and add a few minced garlic cloves before cooking the shrimp.
Nutrition
Originally published March 2024, updated and republished May 2025
It sounds delicious how is it buttery shrimp when you use olive oil? 🙂 I love your vegan coffee cake recipe ! I had to make it GF and it was amazing. No one knows! Thank you!
It’s the natural texture of the shrimp- it tastes that way while using olive oil. You can use butter though if you like!