Shrimp Cocktail Recipe with the Best Sauce (VIDEO)
Impress everyone with a homemade Shrimp Cocktail. Learn how to make the best oven-baked shrimp and zesty shrimp cocktail sauce. This is so much better than a store-bought shrimp ring.
Just like our Shrimp Ceviche appetizer or Pico De Gallo, this roasted shrimp and cocktail sauce tastes even better the next day after the flavors meld so this is an excellent make-ahead recipe. Watch the video tutorial below and see how easy this is.
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.
This recipe was adapted from Ina Garten’s Roasted Shrimp Cocktail from one of my favorite cookbooks, Back to Basics.
Shrimp Cocktail Video Tutorial
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What is Shrimp Cocktail?
A Shrimp Cocktail is an appetizer with large cooked shrimp or prawns served with a tomato-based zesty cocktail dipping sauce. It is often packaged in supermarkets as a “shrimp ring” and typically sold refrigerated or frozen.
This homemade shrimp cocktail takes minutes to prepare and the flavor is so much better and is comparable to a shrimp cocktail you’d order in a fancy restaurant. Also, roasted shrimp are more flavorful than the boiled shrimp sold in supermarkets and you can’t beat a homemade cocktail sauce.
What is the Best Shrimp for Shrimp Cocktail?
The extra-large shrimp (16-20 count per pound) look best in a shrimp cocktail ring. This recipe also works great with the large shrimp (18-25 counts per pound). We recommend 2 lbs of shrimp to feed a crowd. Look for fresh or frozen shrimp that is:
- Raw (uncooked)
- Fresh, or frozen (most shrimp are sold frozen)
- Headless (head-on shrimp can get mushy and take more time to prepare)
- Wild-caught (if available)
- Tail-on – creates a handle for easier serving
- “EZ peel” or Already peeled and deveined – saves time
How to Cook Shrimp
Baked shrimp is so fast, easy, and hands-off like our Baked Honey Cajun Shrimp or our popular Cheesy Stuffed Shrimp. You don’t have to flip the shrimp and they turn out perfect every time. There’s something about roasting shrimp that amplifies their sweetness. If you prefer boiled, check out our boiled shrimp tutorial.
- Prep Shrimp – Peel and devein shrimp if needed then rinse and thoroughly pat dry shrimp paper towels and place them on a large rimmed baking sheet.
- Oil and Season – Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp black pepper.
- Bake – Toss together, arrange in a single layer and bake at 450˚F.
Shrimp Baking Chart
Shrimp cooks quickly and it’s important not to overbake or they will rubbery. Take them out when they turn pink and are just cooked through. For even baking, ensure that your shrimp are fully thawed and patted dry. Also, bake in a fully pre-heated oven at 450˚F so they bake up quickly and seal in their juices.
- Large 21 to 25 ct shrimp, bake 6-7 min
- Extra-large 16-20 ct shrimp, bake or 8-10 min
- Jumbo 11-15 ct shrimp (or U-15), bake 10-11 min
How to Make the Best Shrimp Cocktail Sauce
Shrimp cocktail sauce is easier than you think. Once you try homemade, you won’t want the store-bought sauce again! It’s really just a matter of combining ingredients: ketchup, a mild chili sauce, prepared horseradish (sold in the refrigerator section of the grocery store), fresh lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, and a dash of your favorite hot sauce.
Is it Spicy? Add the horseradish sauce and hot sauce to taste depending on how much of a spicy kick you like. Just keep in mind the sauce does mellow out after refrigeration so I always make it slightly spicier than I think I need.
Our Best Shrimp Appetizers
These shrimp appetizers are always the first to disappear at parties and always get rave reviews. For more appetizer inspiration, explore all of our Appetizer Recipes Here.
- Coconut Shrimp – with 2-ingredient sauce
- Shrimp Fajitas – restaurant quality
- Shrimp Tacos – with shrimp taco sauce
- Hot Shrimp Dip – creamy and cheesy
- Bang Bang Shrimp – famous copycat
- Cucumber Shrimp bites – with guacamole
Shrimp Cocktail is impressive enough to serve at your New Years Party, for game-day, or when you need to satisfy that fierce craving for shrimp (remember you can make it ahead and it keeps well in the fridge).
Shrimp Cocktail Recipe with the Best Sauce
Ingredients
Baked Shrimp Ingredients:
- 2 lbs raw shrimp, 16-20 ct, peeled and deveined with tail-on
- 1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1 lemon, cut into 4 wedges to serve (optional)
Shrimp Cocktail Sauce Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup ketchup
- 1/2 cup mild chili sauce, we like Heinz
- 3-4 Tbsp prepared horseradish, or add to taste
- 1 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice, freshly squeezed, or to taste
- 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 tsp hot sauce, such as Tabasco, or to taste
Instructions
- Thaw shrimp according to package instructions, then rinse under cold water and thoroughly pat dry with paper towels. Place shrimp on a large rimmed baking sheet, drizzle with 1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil and sprinkle on 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp black pepper. Stir to combine then arrange shrimp in a single layer.
- Bake at 450˚F for 8-10 min or until shrimp turn pink and are just cooked through.* As soon as they come out of the oven, test a shrimp for doneness then transfer all shrimp to a serving platter. If they stay on the hot baking sheet, they can get overcooked.
- Combine all of the Cocktail Sauce ingredients, adding horseradish and hot sauce to taste (Add more if you love cocktail sauce with a spicy kick and less if you prefer a mild sauce). Cover and refrigerate sauce and shrimp for at least an hour or overnight. Serve chilled.
Notes
Nutrition Per Serving
Natasha Kravchuk
Hi! I'm Natasha Kravchuk. Here you'll find delicious, trusted recipes with easy step-by-step photos and videos. 
I’ve come to rely on this cocktail sauce whenever I’m preparing a shrimp dish. Without a doubt the BEST of the best! Flavors are perfectly balanced.
Can’t improve on perfection.
Thanks Natasha!
Hi Deb! That’s awesome. I’m so glad you love this recipe!
This THE best shrimp cocktail recipe! I made it once for company and it’s become my standard for every get-together. You can adjust the horseradish to be stronger (the way my husband and daughter like it) or make it not so hot. (the way I like it) You will not enjoy regular shrimp cocktail at a restaurant again after making this. Key is to not overcook the shrimp, and the quick broil is wayyyyy better than boiled you get everywhere else. Thank you Natasha!
It sounds like you found a new favorite, Angel! I’m so happy it was a hit all around!
I made it’s absolutely amazing! I was blown away I’m so glad I didn’t buy store-bought. Anyway how long does it last in the fridge if I have it covered with ceranwrap
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Hands down the best way to make shrimp cocktail. After a dozen or more times making it, I decided to use the zesty cocktail sauce from the dominant grocery chain in CNY – big mistake. The baking of the shrimp and the cocktail sauce recipe here can’t be beat.
Hi Botto! Thank you so much. I’m glad you love the recipe!
Excellent but I always add finely chopped COLD celery. Gives it great crunch.
I made your shrimp cocktail sauce. While the flavor was good, I thought it was too runny. I don’t like throwing food out. Is there anything I can do to thicken it up? Thank you.
Hi Kathy, I haven’t had it come out runny before – did you change anything or make any substitutions? It should be a thick sauce as you would expect with a cocktail sauce (see photo above for consistency). Also, adding too much lemon juice could be a culprit since that is the only watery ingredient here.
This recipe is so good! I added a drop of sesame oil for a subtle layer of flavor. It’s my go to cocktail sauce! About to try your beef stew slow cooker recipe. Awfully glad I found your blog! Keep those recipes coming! Also, great story about your family’s dedication to finding a better way of life for their children! It’s how America becomes a better place!
Hi Bev! Thank you for sharing. I’m glad you love the recipe. 🙂
Next time I’ll try your roasting method. Also, my husband made awesome shrimp cocktail sauce, similar to yours but with the addition of minced celery. Amazing with the addition of the minced celery.
Sounds great, Kathy!
I make this every year! I love it! My husband loves this! So fresh and delicious
Glad to hear that, Nora! Happy New Year!
Hey Natasha,
Would love to purchase some of the kitchen items that I see you using. Is there a link?
Hi Connie! I often link my tools in the blog notes or recipe (anywhere you see the red font, you can click on it for a link). Here is the link for my amazon shop where you can view my favorite tools and items.
How long should baking time be for 8-12 per pound extra large shrimp?
Hi Anastasiya, I recommend referencing the “Shrimp Baking Chart” on the recipe post! I hope that helps!
I know we are going to love this shrimp.? Can I use raw shell off and deveined. I will thaw first then proceed with the recipe.
Natasha, I have some large Argentina Red Shrimp. How do I tell when they are finished baking, they are naturally pink/red before cooking.
Hi Janet, the shrimp should be pink and opaque. You can also be sure by checking the temperature with a thermometer ensuring the internal temperature is 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
Ads cover up too much of your pages and cannot get rid of them—very annoying! Like your site but cannot print any recipes without get a bunch of ads printing on the page(s). Try x-ing the ads out but get sent to their sites instead.
Hi Marjorie, be sure you are clicking on the print button on the printable recipe card (Click Jump to Recipe to find the print button). That will only print the instructions and ingredient list. Thank you for sharing your concerns and feedback regarding the ads. The only way we can continue providing free recipes is by having ads on our site, so we are not able to remove those at this time. We find that most people would rather see the ads than pay to see the recipes. But we will definitely take note of your feedback and use it to improve our website.
I appreciate your feedback, and I hope you love every recipe you try.
I purchased cooked, tail on large shrimp – can I still roast them in the oven??
Hi Sandra, since they are already cooked, putting them into the oven will cause them to get rubbery and hard. I recommend only using raw shrimp for this recipe.
Awesome recipe. Adding 1 part chili sauce to 1 part ketchup makes a wonderful cocktail sauce.
Thank you for sharing that with us, Julie!
Hi, how many days in advance can I make these? Is two days in advance not good, only one day before?
Hi Yul, I think making it ahead a day or two should be okay as long as you refrigerate it.
Another great recipe! Thank you. Never stop doing what you are Doing! 🙂
You’re so nice! Thank you, Matt!
Great video (as always you’re fun to watch) and great looking recipe! Thanks for sharing!
You’re welcome and thanks a lot for watching!
Thank you for this quick and easy recipe. Absolutely delicious. The sauce is outstanding.
As suggested by one of the comments I used some of the sauce to put over cream cheese. It went great with crackers.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Thank you for the wonderful review, Sheila!
I’ve only ever seen prepared horseradish sauce in a bottle on the condiment aisle of my grocery store. What brand horseradish sauce do you use found in the refrigerator section?
Hi Mary, it’s usually near the seafood section or refrigerated condiments/ dressing. We found it is fresher with a better flavor.
Natasha, I really love all of your recipes and I trust that they will come out great. I made the shrimp and cocktail sauce exactly the way your recipe says for Christmas day appetizer for 20 people and it was a hit!! Thank you so much.
Yay, that’s fantastic feedback! Thank you so much for sharing, Cindy. I’m glad it was a huge hit.
Always boiled my shrimp for cocktail. After trying this…never again!! Shrimp retained their shrimp taste and were not gummy. Thank you for this delicious recipe. They were a hit last night on New Year’s Eve with the family.
You’re welcome! I’m so happy you enjoyed it, Amy!!
Hi Natasha, The shrimp was delicious…couldn’t stop eating them. Wasn’t a big fan of the cocktail sauce but I usually don’t like that kinda stuff anyway. I just made my go-to sauce with ketchup, mayo and tobasco. In hindsight I should have just added mayo to your sauce and made it creamier. Will try that next time. Thank you for all your recipes….luv them!
Sounds good and no worries, as long as you enjoyed it!
Hi Natasha, what olive oil you use for the recipe? Looks amazing I want to make it for New Year, I love shrimp
Hi Nada, I purchased my Olive oil at Costco, and it worked great for this!
This cocktail sauce is amazing! I used to just use just horseradish and catsup but no more!! It was a hit and my sister got to take what was left of the sauce (we ran out of shrimp) home and you’d think she just got the best gift of the evening by her reaction. I’m new to this site and so happy I found it. My twin sister lead me here and you are her go to for all things food!
Thank you
I’m so happy it was a hit! Thank you so much for sharing that with me.
I really do not like being taken to ‘PUBLIC’ when I click on a recipe in your emails, Natasha. I want to be taken to YOUR WEBSITE, where the recipe is. ‘PUBLIC’ is just another completely USELESS ‘social media’ website that I do NOT want to be directed to. Please STOP sending us to there! I, for one, want to go to YOUR WEBSITE, and that is it!
Hi Dawnie, it helps to support our site so we can keep providing recipes for free without charging a subscription (which no one is requesting right now). If you click on the recipe image in public, it will take you right to the recipe.
Holy cow! This is the easiest, tastiest shrimp cocktail I have ever made! I can’t wait to serve it as a Thanksgiving appetizer tomorrow…if we don’t devour it before then!
It really is the best! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
This sauce was amazing! I wish I would have made more shrimp since I had some sauce leftover and nothing left to dip! The roasted shrimp was also great, but that sauce oh I’m excited to make it again!
Isn’t it the best! I’m so glad you loved it!
I find things to dip like crackers and anything like cheese, summer sausage …
The sauce works with just ketchup, lemon juice, horseradish and Tabasco adjusted to taste or heat.
Where is the lemon squeezer that you mentioned would be in the notes?
Hi Lorenzo, you can find our favorite kitchen tools in our Amazon Affiliate Shop HERE.
I accidentally left my freezer door open a crack and the only casualties were the shrimp. Tried this and it is by far the best cocktail sauce I’ve ever tasted and I grew up on the Gulf Coast of Texas where cocktail sauce is plentiful. Thanks for this. Linda
I’m so glad you gave this a try, Linda! Thank you so much for sharing that wonderful review with me.
je t’aime beaucoup NATACHA tu mets du piquant dans mes jours j’aime beaucoup tes recettes
I’m so happy you’re enjoying my recipes, Diane!!
Love your Shrimp cocktail sauce I love all your recipes that I made so far, Thank you for sharing
You are very welcome, Theresa I hope you’ll love my other recipes too!
229 mg cholestorol 1143 mg sodium per serving? How many shrimp in a serving? This can’t be that healthy?
Hi Tim, that will depend on the size of the shrimp using. This recipe serves ten as an appetizer, and you’re using anywhere from 16-20 shrimp, depending on size. So about two pieces per serving. You can see our servings size on the printable recipe card. I hope that helps.
I got my info off of the nutrition disclosure. It doesn’t say what is an amount per serving. I would love to try this but the numbers aren’t adding up.
Hi Tim, the nutrition label is for each serving. The number of servings is listed in the serving size and for this recipe, it is 10 servings.
OK Got it. Thank you so much. I CAN have it. Keep them coming. Great job Thanks Again
One of the best shrimp cocktail we ever had, yum! Thank you, never going back to boiling.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Where did you buy the shrimp for this recipe?
Hi Sheri, we purchased it at our local grocery store.
I love your shrimp cocktail sauce! A quick tip for nubie shrimp eaters– the tail-on shrimp you have when you pick them up to eat, if you pinch the last segment that has the shell on when you eat it, the meat will squeeze out and you’ll have nothing but a tail with a shell left. No waste! 🙂
Thank you for sharing some tips with us. So helpful!
Best cocktail sauce ever! I’ve made this recipe twice, first with shrimp and again on top of
a cream cheese crab appetizer and both times it was excellent! Thank you!
Wow, sounds awesome! I’m so glad you tried both varieties and you loved both. Thank you for sharing that with us, Paula.
OMG! Natasha! This was amazingly delicious! Those shrimps were so juicy and the sauce was just PERFECT! Just out of curiosity, is there any other sauce to replace chili sauce or Worcestershire sauce?
That is awesome, Sue. I have not tried any other sauce but feel free to experiment and test which one you would like!
I have a similar recipe that calls for 1 C ketchup (no chili sauce) and 1 tsp garlic powder, with the rest of the recipe being the same. It is so good, won’t buy cocktail sauce again!
when I roast my shrimp, somehow the shape changes and becomes wider than what I see in your pictures….and these are shelled, deveined….any suggestion to keep them from not curling
Hi Priscilla, It could be due to the size of shrimp used. Smaller shrimp tend to curl up more. Also, make sure you use raw shrimp and cooking pre-cooked shrimp will cause them to shrink and become rubbery.
I add a small amount of hot Chinese mustard and it punches up the flavor.
Nice one, thanks for sharing that with us. I think I will try that next time too!
Have never roasted shrimp for cocktail! Never boiling again! Very yummy! My family will love this appetizer.. Thanks Natasha!
PS Note to self:
Never Ever buy shrimp with shells & not deveined 😳
Peeled and deveined are way easier to prepare. I’m so happy you loved the shrimp cocktail recipe.
Hi, after finishing in the oven should we just let get to room temp and then put in the fridge to cool it so we can have it served cold?
Hi Mike, yes that is correct. You can serve at room temperature or chill to serve cold.
The BEST shrimp cocktail I’ve ever tasted. I didn’t have a chance to make the cocktail sauce but I made the shrimp, very easy and delicious. I had friends over and they all had something to say about the shrimp…you were right it was a hit…Thanks for sharing!
Love it! You might want to try the cocktail sauce too next time, it makes the dish more special but I’m so glad you and your friends enjoyed this!
Made it for my husband and son, they loved it. Thank you.
Can you please share the link for the lemon squeezer?
Hi Dee, I’m so glad your family enjoyed this! We have our favorite citrus squeezer in our Amazon Shop HERE!
Love your recipes. The cocktail sauce and tater sauces are to die for. I would love to see a Remoulade Sauce.
Great idea! Thank you for that suggestion!
Hi Natasha: I made the shrimp cocktail sauce. It was delicious. I will never buy the store bought again. How long can it keep in the fridge? Everything I tried making is so quick and easy and delicious too.
I am so glad you tried this recipe, it’s one of the best! I haven’t tried storing it for more than 3 days.
The best cocktail sauce ever. Better than store bought.
i always boil my shrimp not anymore love the roast shrimp thank you
Thanks for sharing!
The whole shrimp dish is amazing. It didn’t last long during our Mother’s Day celebration, and it was the highlight of the appetizer table. Thank you for sharing your talent.
Hello Elisa, you are so welcome! Nice to know that everyone loved it, thanks for giving this recipe a try!
I Love Shrimp. I love all your recipes. I especially like the nutrition facts, but never a serving size. This information on all your recipes would be really helpful to everyone. Thanks 😊
Thanks for the great feedback, Karen. I hope you love all the recipes that you try.
Making this for Super Bowl Sunday-absolutely delicious!!!
I’m so glad you enjoyed that Anne! Thank you for that wonderful review!
I made this for New Years Eve and it was the biggest hit. I will never buy it from the store again. In fact going to make this for this Sunday’s Superbowl Thank you so much.
Isn’t the flavor amazing! Thank you for that wonderful review, Nicole!
just a small tip after sauce is to your taste and just before serving squeeze fresh lemon juice on top do not mix in so when shrimp is dipped the lemon juice on top adds a slice lemon bite before the sweeter sauce crosses palate
Thank you so much for sharing that with me!
The best shrimp cocktail I’ve ever tasted. Easy to make and sooooo delicious. Thanks.
Hi Rose!! Sounds like you found a new favorite! Thank you for that awesome review!
Delicious! Soooooo much better than the store bought pre-cooked shrimp and the cocktail sauce is amazing. Another winner Natasha!
So glad you loved it, Lori. Thank you for your excellent feedback!
Hello! I’ve trying your recipes and I love them all. Ty
That’s so great! Thank you for sharing that with me, Nana!
love food so i will surely try many of them i also love to cook different food.
I hope you enjoy our recipes, Yasmin!
Love your video recipes. The shrimp was great. HOWEVER your lemon tip not so great. I went to try it with my wife and company sitting there and it just exploded out the ending drenching them in lemon juice and lemon seeds. Needless to say they weren’t impressed with the trick. LOL
Oh no! I haven’t had that happen before, Steve!
perfect for new years eve!
It sure is! The flavor is amazing!
Yum! This shrimp is so good! I made it for our family gathering and they gobbled it up.
You were quick to make it! I’m so happy your family loved the shrimp cocktail recipe. Thanks for sharing that with me!
Made this today for my family and wow what a big difference! I even had a small shrimp ring (so we could compare) next to the platter of these shrimp. My husband said you could taste the ocean and the sweetness. It was so easy to prepare. Thank you, we’ll definitely forgo the shrimp ring instead for this!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Patricia! Thank you for the wonderful review!
Too bad we have to see toe nail fungus ads while reading your instructions! Lol. I will try the shrimp cocktail this week for sure. Where is link for the lemon squeezer? Thank you!
Hi Victoria, We haveour favorite lemon juicer here for you
Hi Natasha
Your recipes are awesome!!!
Thank you for sharing…
I love your bubbly
personality… as well.
You’re so nice! Thank you, Susan!
This is always a hit with my family around the holidays!
That’s just awesome!! Thank you for sharing your wonderful review, Katie!
Hi Natasha,
I find it hard to peel shrimp and leave the tail on. Any tips on how to do this? And/or is it ok to just take the tail off?
Thanks,
George
Hi George, it is easier to just remove the tail and you can absolutely do it. The tail is left on for presentation purposes and it serves as a nice handle if you want to serve the shrimp as a finger food/appetizer but you can take the tails off. I pinch the last little section before the tail as I’m removing the shells to keep the tails from coming off.
Thanks, Natasha, and excellent video and explanation about why roasting is better than boiling/poaching.
You are very welcome! It’s also really easy. I hope you love the shrimp cocktail recipe.