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Keto Southern Fried Shrimp

4.6 stars, average of 73 ratings

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Shrimp fans, have I got a treat for you today? Everyone has been going mad for my KFC Fried Chicken that I just had to bring you the next in the series… Keto Southern Fried Shrimp!

Think of your favourite fried shrimp but with an epic low-carb batter that doesn’t clump and fall off in the pan! Served today with a classic mayonnaise slaw, four to five shrimps will make a great appetiser, or double that will be enough for a satisfying keto meal.

I served these with low-carb and gluten-free beer — you can find some recommendations for low-carb beverages in this post.

Let me know what you’d like to see next in the comments below. Crispy Fried Mozzarella Sticks, Onion Rings, Breaded Mushrooms or Calamari? If you have an idea of your own, let me know below. I love a challenge!

Hands-on Overall

Serving size 8-10 shrimps + 1 cup slaw

Allergy information for Keto Southern Fried Shrimp

✔  Gluten free
✔  Dairy free
✔  Nut free
✔  Pork free
✔  Avocado free
✔  Coconut free
✔  Beef free
Pescatarian

Notes

  • Recipe can be made dairy-free or egg-free.
  • Recipe can be made dairy-free or coconut-free.

Nutritional values (per serving, 8-10 shrimps + 1 cup slaw)

Net carbs4.8 grams
Protein30.5 grams
Fat37 grams
Calories475 kcal
Calories from carbs 4%, protein 26%, fat 70%
Total carbs7.1 gramsFiber2.3 gramsSugars2.6 gramsSaturated fat6 gramsSodium1,311 mg(57% RDA)Magnesium36 mg(9% RDA)Potassium538 mg(27% EMR)

Ingredients (makes 4 servings)

Shrimp:
  • 1 1/2 tsp paprika
  • 1/2 tsp thyme
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • 1 tsp flaked sea salt
  • 1/4 tsp cracked black pepper
  • 3/4 cup whey protein powder or egg white protein powder (75 g/ 2.7 oz)
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 tbsp heavy whipping cream or coconut milk (15 ml)
  • 1/2 tsp hot sauce, or to taste
  • 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
  • 350 g peeled raw shrimp (12.4 oz) - or you can use whole raw shrimp and peel (approx. 600 g/ 1.3 lb)
  • about 2 cups oil for deep frying (avocado, ghee or coconut oil) for frying
Slaw:
  • 2 cups shredded white cabbage (140 g/ 5 oz)
  • 1 cup shredded red cabbage (70 g/ 2.5 oz)
  • 1 medium celery, sliced (40 g/ 1.4 oz)
  • 1 medium spring onion, sliced (15 g/ 0.5 oz)
  • 2 tbsp chopped parsley
  • 1/3 cup paleo mayonnaise (74 g/ 2.6 oz) - you can make your own mayo
  • 1 tsp lemon juice
  • pinch of sea salt

Instructions

  1. Begin by peeling (if not pre-peeled), deveining and butterflying the prawns. For a video on how to do this, click here. Keto Southern Fried Shrimp
  2. Mix the dry ingredients together in a bowl: paprika, thyme, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, oregano, a pinch of salt, pepper and protein isolate powder (whey or egg white). Keto Southern Fried Shrimp
  3. In a separate bowl, mix the wet ingredients: egg, cream (or coconut cream), hot sauce, Dijon mustard and a pinch of salt. Keto Southern Fried Shrimp
  4. Coat the prawns by first dipping the shrimp in the wet ingredients then into the dry, shaking off the excess egg and whey mix in-between. Do this in small batches of 5 prawns at a time. To avoid clumping, you can split the whey mix into two and keep replenishing the bowl. Keto Southern Fried Shrimp
  5. To deep fry, add your chosen oil (avocado, ghee or coconut) to a deep pan (I used 19 cm/ 7.5"), enough for the shrimp to be fully submerged. (I used about 2 cups of oil but note only about 1/3 cup of oil will contribute to the nutrition facts, the remaining oil is discarded.)
  6. Heat the oil until hot. Once hot, fry the shrimp on a medium-low heat (careful of the oil splashing) until golden and cooked through, 1 to 2 minutes. It’s best to do this in small batches of about 5 shrimp at a time to allow even cooking and no clumping.
  7. Drain the shrimp from the oil with a slotted spoon. Place on kitchen paper to absorb any excess oil whist you repeat the frying for all the shrimp.
  8. To make the slaw, simply mix all the ingredients together in a bowl.
    Keto Southern Fried Shrimp
  9. Serve the fried shrimp with the prepared slaw. Optionally, serve with more mayonnaise. Keto Southern Fried Shrimp
  10. These shrimps taste the best when served fresh. The batter will go soft if stored in the fridge but can be reheated in the oven to restore some of the crispness. The slaw will keep in the fridge in a sealed container for up to 4 days. Keto Southern Fried Shrimp

Ingredient nutritional breakdown (per serving, 8-10 shrimps + 1 cup slaw)

Net carbsProteinFatCalories
Paprika, spices
0.2 g0.1 g0.1 g2 kcal
Thyme, dried
0 g0 g0 g0 kcal
Garlic powder, spices
0.5 g0.1 g0 g3 kcal
Pepper, cayenne, spices
0 g0 g0 g0 kcal
Oregano, dried
0.1 g0 g0 g1 kcal
Salt, sea salt
0 g0 g0 g0 kcal
Pepper, black, spices
0.1 g0 g0 g0 kcal
Whey protein powder (protein isolate, Jay Robb)
0.6 g14.8 g0 g62 kcal
Egg, whole, fresh, raw (free-range or organic eggs)
0.1 g1.6 g1.2 g18 kcal
Cream, heavy whipping, pouring, full-fat (30-40% fat)
0.1 g0.1 g1.4 g14 kcal
Sauce, hot chile, sriracha
0.1 g0 g0 g1 kcal
Dijon mustard
0 g0 g0 g0 kcal
Prawns, shrimp (raw, peeled)
0.4 g12.6 g0.7 g58 kcal
Avocado oil, extra virgin
0 g0 g18.2 g161 kcal
Cabbage, white, raw
1.2 g0.4 g0 g9 kcal
Cabbage, red, fresh
0.9 g0.3 g0 g5 kcal
Celery stalk, fresh
0.1 g0.1 g0 g2 kcal
Onions, spring or scallions (includes tops and bulb), raw
0.2 g0.1 g0 g1 kcal
Parsley, fresh (spices)
0.1 g0.1 g0 g1 kcal
Mayonnaise
0.1 g0.2 g15.2 g136 kcal
Lemon juice, fresh
0.1 g0 g0 g0 kcal
Salt, sea salt
0 g0 g0 g0 kcal
Total per serving, 8-10 shrimps + 1 cup slaw
4.8 g30.5 g37 g475 kcal

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Jo Harding
Creator of ModernFoodStories.com

Jo Harding

Food is one of life’s most powerful medicines. I’m a true testament that once you find the right approach for you, you can overcome poor health through the healing power of food.

I believe the secret to radiant health starts and ends with a healthy gut so my recipes are all grain, gluten and refined sugar free. Most are also dairy-free.

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Comments (12)

I just made this but replaced the shrimp with mushrooms and double dipped them in the wet and dry mixture. OH MY!!! These were delicious. With recipes like this, I don’t feel like I am eating low carb at all.   Thanks for sharing such a delicious recipe, it’s a keeper for sure.

Thank you so much for the lovely feedback, that is such a great alternative! I love deep fried mushrooms, I'll need to try that.

So. Dang. Good.  YUM!!! I have been off and on keto for the past 4 years, initially losing 90+ pounds (after my son was diagnosed type one diabetic at age 17 he begged me to lose weight so I wouldn't end up type 2 diabetic, which I was already pre diabetic at that point) Well fast forward to the start of the whole world going nuts at the beginning of 2020 and over a year 25 pounds found it's way back on me. I'm now back on strict keto for one week today, feeling so much better but I still love battered and fried food now and then.  I fried this in organic Safflower oil, man are they delicious, what a treat!  Thank you so much!

Thank you Liz, I'm glad you enjoyed! That is an amazing accomplishment, you should be proud of yourself! It's been a tough year, don't be too hard on yourself, I'm sure you'll get there soon

Thank you so much for such a fantastic, easy and delicious recipe! As a born and raised Southerner, I truly miss my fried seafood, especially the fried shrimp sandwiches I grew up eating. This taste so wonderful and brings back nostalgia. As for recipe request, all the mentioned ideas sound so delicious! I love anything fried. But, if I can make a request since we're talking fried foods, I would love a good egg roll/fried spring roll recipe with a proper dumpling wrapper. I've literally been searching for that recipe for years and have encountered many failures in the kitchen but I trust you're capable hands. It would make my Asian fiance so happy to have a fried egg roll again after I coerced/tricked him into going keto 😂. He loves all styles of fried dumplings and I would love to give him a little treat every now and then. Also, I'd like to thank you for your work. You take your time, money and expensive ingredients and spend so much energy testing out and creating recipes for the benefit of others. You make our lives immeasurably more easier and make it so that we have a satisfying and delicious journey to wellness. Even though it can sometimes be a thankless job with a lot of harsh and unnecessary criticism when you're all just doing the best you can and you're figuring things out as you go, you still help us. So, I sincerely thank you and hope for all of you recipe developers here at this amazing site continued success.

Thank you so much Anna, what a lovely feedback, you made my day (and Jo's)!   I'm sorry for the delayed response, I don't know how I missed your comment!
Egg Roll & similar recipe request noted, I have a few ideas to try! For now I have this recipe here but it's not the same (only the filling): Keto Crack Slaw - Egg Roll in a Bowl

All the comforts but without the carbs. Love this one!

Exactly! I need to try this in my air fryer. I don't know if it's going to work but I need to give it a go 😊

This was so good! I can't believe there's no flour in the batter. My non keto family didn't even notice, it really tastes amazing. I'm making it again for new year's. Thank you!

I'm glad you enjoyed!

I constantly am eating fast food, like today I had eaten some McDonalds. When I am done though I always feel like sh** because first off McDonalds is bad for you and does that but I keep telling myself that I am going to stop eating so unhealthily and start working out. I decided that I would give keto a shot and found a few promising cookbooks like this one  (link removed) but I do not know if these are the right foods for me. I am a bigger girl, (I don't want to put my weight on the internet) and I am looking to lose weight. Is this book good for me or would you recommend something else?

Hi Sarah, it's great that you decided to give keto a go! No cookbook is comparable to a personalised diet plan so I can't really recommend the book you linked to. I also removed the link as this book is part of a huge scam that has been flooding our inbox, social media and blog comments with spammy links with "miraculous" weight loss tips, diet plans etc. We even sometimes receive complaints about bank charges as some users/readers believe it's us. I would not recommend anything created by this company simply because of their aggressive, desperate advertising practices and false claims. The best thing you can do is to follow the keto diet by tracking and focusing on eating real food. There's a ton of free information and recipes on my blog and in our app which is free to download: ketodietapp.com/ Good luck!