Best Shrimp Marinade

This shrimp marinade recipe is easy to make and full of bold, savory flavor! It works with any cooking method: sautéed, grilled and more.

Looking for a way to add big flavor to shrimp? Try this go-to Shrimp Marinade recipe! The flavors are bold, savory, and penetrate the tender, juicy flesh in a way that a simple seasoning can’t. Throw together a few pantry ingredients, no chopping required. Even better, this marinade is versatile and works with any cooking method: grilled, sautéed, baked and more. Or, make these easy shrimp skewers in the broiler to cook them in just 5 minutes! We whipped the skewers up for our family and couldn’t stop sneaking bites.

Ingredients in this shrimp marinade recipe

This shrimp marinade recipe is designed to be simple, using pantry and fridge ingredients you might already have on hand. Even better, it requires no chopping at all! You’ll need to grate a clove of garlic, but other than that it’s simply dump and stir. Here are the ingredients for this flavorful recipe:

• Shrimp: Thawed and tail on; we like using medium size here. Avoid using shell on shrimp, since the marinade can’t penetrate through the shell. 
• Olive oil
• Soy sauce or tamari
• Rice vinegar
• Honey
• Worcestershire sauce
• Dijon mustard
• Garlic
• Salt and pepper

Throw these ingredients together into a bowl, stir it up, and add the shrimp. Throw it in the refrigerator and it’s marinating time!

How long to marinate shrimp?

How long does it take for shrimp marinade to permeate the shellfish? Marinate raw shrimp for at least 1 hour, and no more than 2 hours. Some sources indicate you can marinate shrimp overnight, but we advise against it because the flesh of this fish is so delicate it could become tough. In a rush? You can get by with 30 minutes or marinating time, though the flavor is best with 1 hour.

Shrimp cooking methods: broiled, grilled and more more

The great thing about this shrimp marinade recipe? It’s so versatile and can be used with any method for cooking shrimp! Whether you plan to make grilled shrimp, baked, sautéed or broiled, this marinade works beautifully. Here are a few notes:

• Broiled on skewers: It’s so simple and quick! Thread the shrimp on skewers, then broil about 2 minutes per side.
• Grilled shrimp: Throw them on the grill if it’s the season: it adds just the right smoky undertone. Go to Grilled Shrimp or Grilled Shrimp Skewers.
• Sautéed: Use the marinade for this Perfect Sauteed Shrimp.
• Baked: Or, make simple Baked Shrimp.

Using the extra shrimp marinade

There’s a lot of extra shrimp marinade once you remove the shrimp from the bowl: and guess what? You can use that too! However, don’t use it straight up because the raw fish has been soaking in this liquid. Instead, place it in a small saucepan and simmer for 2 to 3 minutes to neutralize the contact with the raw fish (the temperature it should reach is 165 degrees Fahrenheit).

Once you’ve simmered the marinade, you can use it to brush onto the shrimp as a final flavoring. Keep in mind that the texture is liquid, not thick like a sauce. (You could add a cornstarch slurry to thicken it if you’d like.)

More shrimp recipes

And that’s it! We hope you love this shrimp marinade recipe as much as our family does. Here are a few more go-to shrimp recipes:

• Browse our 30 Shrimp Recipes Perfect for Dinner
• Try elegant Shrimp Scampi, Jumbo Shrimp, Creamy Shrimp Risotto or Shrimp Fra Diavolo
• Go for simple Perfect Sauteed Shrimp
• Make Honey Garlic Shrimp or Old Bay Steamed Shrimp

01

40 Shrimp Recipes Perfect for Dinner

02

Shrimp Scampi

03

Shrimp Fra Diavolo

04

Perfect Sauteed Shrimp

This shrimp marinade recipe is…

Gluten free and pescatarian.

Print