Sous Vide Shrimp Cocktail
By America's Test KitchenPublished on June 25, 2018
Time
Sous vide: 45 minutes; active cooking time: 1 hour
Yield
Serves 6 to 8
Sous Vide Temperature
140°F/60°C
Ingredients
Shrimp
2 pounds shell-on jumbo shrimp (16 to 20 per pound)½ teaspoon saltCocktail Sauce
1 cup ketchup ¼ cup prepared horseradish 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce 1 teaspoon lemon juice ½ teaspoon Old Bay seasoning ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepperBefore You Begin
For this recipe, we prefer to use jumbo shrimp (16 to 20 per pound), but extra-large shrimp (21 to 25 per pound) will work as well. Buy refrigerated prepared horseradish, not the shelf-stable kind, which contains preservatives and additives. Shell-on shrimp have a tendency to float when placed in a sous vide water bath, which can lead to uneven cooking. Use weights to make sure the shrimp are fully immersed during cooking. For more about sous vide cooking, refer to our sous vide guide.
Instructions
- Using sous vide circulator, bring water to 140°F/60°C in 7-quart container.
- Using kitchen shears or sharp paring knife, cut through shell and meat of shrimp and devein but do not remove shell. Sprinkle shrimp with salt, and divide between two 1-gallon zipper-lock freezer bags. Arrange shrimp in single layer and seal bags, pressing out as much air as possible. Gently lower bags into prepared water bath, weight bags until shrimp are fully submerged, then clip top corner of each bag to side of water bath container, allowing remaining air bubbles to rise to top of bag. Reopen 1 corner of zipper, release remaining air bubbles, and reseal bag. Cover and cook for at least 45 minutes or up to 1 hour.
- Meanwhile, fill large bowl halfway with ice and water. Transfer zipper-lock bags to prepared ice bath and let sit until chilled, about 15 minutes. Transfer shrimp to colander and peel, leaving tails intact; discard shrimp shells.
- Whisk all ingredients in bowl until combined. Serve shrimp with sauce.
- Cooked and chilled shrimp and cocktail sauce can be refrigerated for up to 24 hours.
for the shrimp
for the cocktail sauce
to make ahead
Time
Sous vide: 45 minutes; active cooking time: 1 hourYield
Serves 6 to 8Sous Vide Temperature
140°F/60°CIngredients
Shrimp
Cocktail Sauce
Ingredients
Shrimp
Cocktail Sauce
Ingredients
Shrimp
Cocktail Sauce
Why This Recipe Works
No need for flavored poaching liquids or time-sensitive, off-heat cooking tricks here. We simply deveined jumbo shrimp, keeping them in their shells to impart extra shrimp flavor—shells contain lots of umami-boosting glutamates and nucleotides, which are absorbed by the shrimp meat during cooking. We lightly seasoned our deveined, shell-on shrimp with salt, bagged them up, and cooked them at our preferred temperature for shrimp, 140°F/60°C. After cooking, we quickly chilled and peeled the shrimp—and with that, we were ready to go. Paired with our punchy cocktail sauce, this is an easy improvement on a party-food mainstay.
Before You Begin
For this recipe, we prefer to use jumbo shrimp (16 to 20 per pound), but extra-large shrimp (21 to 25 per pound) will work as well. Buy refrigerated prepared horseradish, not the shelf-stable kind, which contains preservatives and additives. Shell-on shrimp have a tendency to float when placed in a sous vide water bath, which can lead to uneven cooking. Use weights to make sure the shrimp are fully immersed during cooking. For more about sous vide cooking, refer to our sous vide guide.
Instructions
- Using sous vide circulator, bring water to 140°F/60°C in 7-quart container.
- Using kitchen shears or sharp paring knife, cut through shell and meat of shrimp and devein but do not remove shell. Sprinkle shrimp with salt, and divide between two 1-gallon zipper-lock freezer bags. Arrange shrimp in single layer and seal bags, pressing out as much air as possible. Gently lower bags into prepared water bath, weight bags until shrimp are fully submerged, then clip top corner of each bag to side of water bath container, allowing remaining air bubbles to rise to top of bag. Reopen 1 corner of zipper, release remaining air bubbles, and reseal bag. Cover and cook for at least 45 minutes or up to 1 hour.
- Meanwhile, fill large bowl halfway with ice and water. Transfer zipper-lock bags to prepared ice bath and let sit until chilled, about 15 minutes. Transfer shrimp to colander and peel, leaving tails intact; discard shrimp shells.
- Whisk all ingredients in bowl until combined. Serve shrimp with sauce.
- Cooked and chilled shrimp and cocktail sauce can be refrigerated for up to 24 hours.
for the shrimp
for the cocktail sauce
to make ahead
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