Bacon Wrapped Shrimp with Brown Sugar

Bacon-wrapped shrimp is the perfect finger food. It’s a great combo of a delicious smoky brown sugar rub, crispy bacon, and juicy shrimp. Serve them with your favorite dipping sauce, and watch everyone devour them.

They are so easy to make that you can make a whole bag to serve an entire crowd for a party or family gathering. Each batch makes 20, so you can have 200 shrimp ready for game day or your company picnic if you make 10 batches. What’s more, you only need just a few ingredients! Just shrimp, bacon, and some brown sugar with seasonings. How easy is that?

We eat a lot of shrimp in our family, my husband is an expert at cooking shrimp, he usually makes it in the most amazing garlic sauce, which is so tasty when you dip in some crusty, warm bread. If you are looking for the perfect finger food and you love seafood and bacon, look no further, this recipe for bacon wrapped shrimp is the bomb.

The shrimp is wrapped in thick bacon slices, coated in the most amazing brown sugar glaze and broiled to crispy perfection. Serve these with your favorite dipping sauce, like my buttery, rich, and mildly hot buffalo sauce. These crunchy little bundles of bacon and shrimp are very popular, though, so it really is a good idea to make extras. If you have any leftovers, they will stay fresh for up to three days in the fridge or several months in the freezer.

Another reason to try this recipe is because the kids will love it. If you have a picky eater, this is one of those finger foods they love picking up and eating. Just make sure you take the toothpicks out. With just a few ingredients, you cannot mess these up either. It is a foolproof recipe that anyone can make, I promise you. If you do not want to make the brown sugar rub, rub brown sugar into them!

You can see why this is going to be your new favorite appetizer for New Year’s Eve, birthdays, the Superbowl, and even just for snacks to feed the kids. You can even make a meal out of them with a couple of side dishes and dessert. Now, get some shrimp and bacon ready so you can make them! I love easy and delicious appetizers that can feed a crowd. My other favorites are easy crab cakes, spinach artichoke dip, and cheesy turkey sliders.

Why you will love this recipe

• Fast to make: A basket of shrimp in 20 minutes!
• Feed a crowd: You can make enough to feed the whole neighborhood.
• Finger food: Kids love to pick them up and eat them.
• Foolproof recipe: Easy for anyone.

What you’ll need to make bacon wrapped shrimp

Special items

• Baking sheet – Lined with foil for easy cleanup.
• Baking rack – To hold the shrimp.
• Bowls
• Utensils

Ingredients:

Main ingredients:

• Shrimp – I used 20 large shrimp, peeled, washed, and deveined.
• Bacon – You will need 10 slices of thin-cut bacon, cut in half.

For the rub:

• Light brown sugar – For a deeper, richer flavor, you can use dark brown sugar.
• Onion powder – Gives your rub a taste between raw and cooked onions.
• Cajun seasoning – You can make my easy Cajun seasoning with just a handful of common ingredients.
• Smoked paprika – For a smoky sweet taste you cannot get from anything else.
• Minced garlic – Better to mince it yourself instead of using powder so you do not get that bitter aftertaste.
• Canola oil
• Salt

How to make bacon wrapped shrimp?

1. Preheat the oven: Before you begin, preheat the oven to 450 degrees F, line a baking sheet with foil, and place a baking rack on it.
2. Wrap the shrimp: Now, wrap each piece of shrimp with half a piece of shrimp and secure it with a toothpick, placing it onto the rack until you finish with all the shrimp.
3. Make the rub: Next, mix all the rub ingredients in a bowl and spoon about one teaspoon on each piece of shrimp, rubbing it into the entire thing.
4. Bake the shrimp: Then, bake until the shrimp are tender, and the bacon is crisp, about 10 to 15 minutes.
5. Serve with sauce: Finally, serve with your favorite dipping sauce.

Expert tip

Different shrimp sizes

I use large shrimp in this recipe, which consists of about 31 to 40 per pound. However, different companies and seafood shops have various ideas. The most common way to rate them according to the number of shrimp in one pound is as I do. They start out as small, with 71 to 90 per pound and 16 to 18 shrimp per serving. Then, the medium has 41 to 60 shrimp per bag and offers 10 to 15 shrimp per serving.

Large shrimp are 31 to 40 per pound, with eight or nine shrimp per serving. Jumbo shrimp typically have about 21 to 30 per bag, and you get five to seven per serving. Colossal shrimp have 16 to 20 per bag, with four to five per serving, and super colossal shrimp have eight to 15 per bag, with just two to three per serving.

They do have ultra-colossal shrimp up to eight inches long and extra-small shrimp smaller than your pinkie, but those are special order items that you do not usually get at a grocery store or even a seafood shop. Shrimp also come in different varieties, including pink, rock, white, tiger, brown, and Atlantic. I like to use wild-caught shrimp.

Recipe variations and add-ins:

• Sweeter: Make it even sweeter, brush on some maple syrup or honey.
• Bourbon: Instead of syrup or honey, make these boozy. Brush them with some bourbon.
• Extra hot: If the Cajun seasoning isn’t hot enough for you, sprinkle in some cayenne pepper for extra hot shrimp.
• No heat: Alternatively, if you do not like any heat, leave out the Cajun seasoning.
• Crack shrimp: Add some ranch seasoning and dip them in cheddar cheese sauce for crack bacon wrapped shrimp.

Serving suggestions:

Here are some fun ideas on how to serve bacon wrapped shrimp.

• Serve with a variety of sauces like barbecue, honey mustard, and my tangy sweet teriyaki.
• Thread these shrimp onto skewers with pineapples, veggies, and other ingredients and serve them as kebabs.
• You could also serve these shrimp on a bed of rice or pasta as a meal. My instant pot coconut rice would be perfect.
• Instead of rice or pasta, try serving them on a bowl of lettuce for a bacon shrimp salad.
• Lay a couple of these on top of my air fried ribeye steak with a baked potato for a fancy surf and turf dinner.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to precook bacon for wrapping?

I do not, but I have heard that if you cook your shrimp for a few minutes in the oven before you wrap it, it is easier to wrap and gets crispier. It is also supposed to keep the shrimp more tender. You can also cook it in the frying pan, the air fryer, or the microwave. It does not matter. Just do not cook it all the way—only for one or two minutes.

Can I make bacon the night before?

Actually, you can par-cook the bacon the night before, as mentioned above, wrap the shrimp, dip it in the brown sugar mixture, and chill it overnight. Just take it out 30 minutes before you are ready to cook it so it has time to come to room temperature. Then, continue cooking as the instructions say.

Why do you soak shrimp before cooking it?

Soaking shrimp in saltwater keeps them moist, adds flavor, and improves their texture. One common brine is one tablespoon of kosher salt and one quart of water. Sometimes, I also add a teaspoon of baking soda to plump them up and help them resist overcooking. It would be best to soak unpeeled shrimp for an hour and peel it for 40 minutes. After you brine them, rinse them well and pat them dry.

How do I make sure my bacon is crispy?

To ensure crispy and even bacon, take it out of the refrigerator at least 15 minutes before cooking. Do not cook cold bacon, as the fat holds cold longer than the meat. The meat will burn before the fat is cooked away. You can also flip the shrimp halfway through the cooking process so they cook evenly.   

How to store leftovers:

• Refrigerate: Refrigerate leftovers for three days in an airtight container.   
• Freezing: Freeze in a freezer-safe container for up to three months.   
• Defrost: Thaw in the fridge overnight for the best texture and taste.
• Reheating: For the best results, reheat in the microwave for 45 to 60 seconds.   

Recipe with shrimp:

Recipe tips:

• Be sure to peel, devein, and rinse your shrimp.
• Thin-cut bacon works best for wrapping the shrimp.
• Let your bacon come to room temperature before using it.
• Precooking your bacon can help with wrapping your shrimp as well.
• Soak your shrimp in saltwater to improve flavor and texture.

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