This recipe for Easy Homemade Shrimp Salad is a summertime favorite with light and fresh flavors. Great for parties and gatherings.
This delicious, simple recipe has a creamy dressing with crunchy bits of celery and plump shrimp. Serve alongside Pesto Pasta Salad and Homemade Potato Salad for the perfect summer spread.
This is my favorite Easy Homemade Shrimp Salad recipe! It’s a classic shrimp salad with nothing terribly fancy – Just simple, delicious, summertime comfort food.
This shrimp salad recipe is a wonderful, zingy dish, perfect for a lunch out in the yard or to make a picnic extra special.
Why This Recipe Works
- The addition of Greek yogurt adds a lightness you don’t get with mayonnaise alone.
- The lemon juice adds a punch of acidity to the creaminess of the mayonnaise and Greek yogurt.
- The creamy dressing also combines fresh dill that has a mild flavor that goes well with the warmth of the mustard and sweetness of the shrimp.
- It’s a recipe that comes together quickly with little effort.
Ingredient Notes
- Shrimp: I use fresh cooked, cooled shrimp for this recipe rather than frozen cooked shrimp that’s been thawed. Frozen cooked shrimp tend to be limp, waterlogged and lack crunch. It’s an added step, but well worth it as shrimp cooks so fast and can easily be cooled in an ice water bath (see tips at the end of this post for cooking ideas). If you do use frozen shrimp see my post on How To Thaw Frozen Shrimp & Prawns for the best results.
- Mayonnaise: Full fat mayonnaise and greek yogurt are called for in this recipe but you can use half fat mayonnaise and replace the greek yogurt for sour cream if you have those on hand.
- Dill: Dill goes perfectly with shrimp but you can experiment with other herbs and make it to your own personal taste.
- Green Onions: Green onions are mild and add a wonderful taste, but red onion can be used as a substitute.
Shrimp Buying Guide
There are so many choices when buying shrimp. Here’s some guidance for making the best possible purchase.
- Fresh isn’t as fresh as you think. Just because shrimp is displayed raw doesn’t mean it’s freshly caught. Only a small percentage (about 10%) sold in the US comes from the US. The rest is imported so chances are it’s has been previously frozen. Be sure to ask at the counter and don’t buy defrosted.
- When buying frozen, choose individually quick-frozen shrimp, as you can thaw exactly what you need. For detailed information on this topic, see my post on how to thaw frozen shrimp
- Buy untreated shrimp. Some manufacturers chemically treat frozen shrimp so check the ingredients on the bag and make sure “Shrimp” is the only ingredient listed.
How To Make Easy Homemade Shrimp Salad
- Prepare the salad vegetables and chop the herbs.
- Mix the mayonnaise and greek yogurt together.
- Add the dill.
- Coat the shrimp in the mayonnaise mixture.
- Serve and enjoy!
Step By Step Instructions
Remove any shell or tail from the shrimp and add it to a large bowl.
Chop the green onions and celery and add them to a bowl with the shrimp.
Finely chop the dill. In a separate bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, greek yogurt, mustard powder, lemon juice, and dill.
Mix in with the shrimp and celery and season with salt & pepper to taste. Serve and enjoy!
Note: I served mine in a tortilla bowl. See this great post on Two Peas And Their Pod on how to make them.
Tips & Serving Suggestions
Steaming shrimp: In a covered steamer over a pot of boiling water, large shrimp will need to steam for 5-6 minutes to be cooked through and pink.
Boiling Shrimp: Bring about 8 cups of water to boil over medium-high heat. Once the water boils, add the peeled and cleaned shrimp. Simmer until pink, about 2-3 minutes depending on the size of the shrimp.
After steaming or boiling shrimp -Drain and transfer the cooked shrimp to a bowl of cold water to stop the cooking process and let cool before using.
- Shrimp Salad is a nice change from tuna and chicken salad. It can be served up in the same ways: on crackers, in a croissant, rolled in lettuce or tortilla bowls.
- Serve it on a seafood platter at a dinner party and let everyone build their own little shrimp salad bites for a lovely, social appetizer, but with the warmer weather on its way, it’s perfect for a quick lunch or light supper.
Food Storage In Warmer Weather and Storage ❄
- To prevent rapidly growing bacteria from forming, Food shouldn’t be unrefrigerated for more than 2 hours or limit the time to one hour if the outdoor temperature is higher than 90° F.
- In the Fridge:
- Freezing: Shrimp salad should not be frozen.
Other Great Seafood Recipes
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Let’s Make Easy Homemade Shrimp Salad
Ingredients
- 2 pounds large cooked shrimp cleaned
- 1 cups mayonnaise
- ½ cup plain Greek yogurt
- 1 teaspoon mustard powder
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- 3 tablespoons fresh dill chopped
- 2 celery stalks chopped small
- 2 green onions sliced
- Salt and Pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, Greek yogurt, mustard powder, lemon juice, and dill.
- Mix in shrimp, celery, and seasoning with salt & pepper to taste.
- Cover and refrigerate for a few hours, or you can serve the shrimp immediately if need be.
Tips + Notes
- Shrimp Salad is a nice change from tuna and chicken salad. It can be served up in the same ways: on crackers, in a croissant, rolled in lettuce or tortilla bowls.
- Serve it on a seafood platter at a dinner party and let everyone build their own little shrimp salad bites for a lovely, social appetizer, but with the warmer weather on its way, it’s perfect for a quick lunch or light supper.
Nutrition Information:
Update Notes: This post was originally published in July of 2014, republished with step by step instructions and recipe changes in 2018. Then in July 2021 with ingredients notes and extra information.
jackie coon says
We loved this recipe! I did add the chopped white onion as JR suggested. I also added a bit of cayenne and it did the trick. It has been in the 90’s here so it was a very nice cool meal on a hot night.
Erren's Kitchen says
Sounds lovely, I’m glad you enjoyed it, perfect for the weather! 🙂
JR says
As a divorced male, with no culinary capability whatsoever, I find your quick and easy recipes refreshing, particularly in the hot climate I live in. I made one change to your recipe and that was to add 1 cup of pre-chopped white onion to one cup of celery for a little more spice. For dummies who cannot chop, dice, peel, blanche, boil or cube, most large scale grocery stores sell pre-chopped celery and onion (chopped fresh daily), so grabbing a couple of small half quarter pints of these equals chopping a celery stalk. (WHAT AM I GOING TO DO WITH THE LEFTOVER CELERY, IF I BOUGHT A STALK er BUNCH??)
Erren Hart says
Hey JR, I’m so glad you find my recipes so useful! It’s comments like these that make my day! As far as the leftover celery – I know it’s summertime, but you can always scale down the recipe for creamy celery soup. It gets rave reviews!
Kathryn says
My very picky family asked if I could make a double batch next time. I used mixed greens as a base and put the shrimp salad on top of it to make sure I filled their hollow legs up. No leftovers in the salad bowls or the serving bowl. Thanks for the hit!
Erren's Kitchen says
That is awesome to hear Kathryn, thank you!
KathrynC says
My very picky family asked if I could make a double batch next time. I used mixed greens as a base and put the shrimp salad on top of it to make sure I filled their hollow legs up. No leftovers in the salad bowls or the serving bowl. Thanks for the hit!
Erren's Kitchen says
Kathryn, I’m so glad you all enjoyed it!
Rachel says
Can you omit the mayo altogether and just make it up with the Greek yogurt or would it taste weird? Also could you blacken the shrimp rather than boil?
Thanks!
Erren Hart says
Hi Rachel, you can. You may just have to spice it up a little for extra flavor.
Angie says
I love shrimp salad! This would be great for my Mother’s Day brunch too!
Jenny says
This is so great at parties – there are never any leftovers!
Erren's Kitchen says
there really isn’t!
Taylor says
Love the fresh dill added in! Looks delicious!
Erin | Dinners,Dishes and Dessert says
This looks incredibly delicious! This couldn’t look any more perfect!
Catalina says
I am drooling over this salad! Would be great to have it for dinner tonight!
Erren's Kitchen says
It is so quick and easy too, you wouldn’t regret it!