Bacon wrapped shrimp make the perfect party appetizer! Juicy shrimp, crispy, salty bacon with a sweet and spicy glaze. They’re also easy to make ahead of time, and then broil just before guests arrive. If you’d like, triple the jalapeño-honey mixture, and serve it alongside the shrimp for dipping, it’s delicious! Looking for more fun appetizer recipes? Check out my Buffalo Chicken Dip or Deviled Eggs.
What you need to make this recipe
Bacon – You want to use bacon with enough fat running through it that it’ll be easy to wrap. I like to use center-cut bacon or American bacon but you could also use strips of pancetta which will be slightly thinner cut. Once it’s partially cooked it’ll be really easy to wrap around the shrimp, unlike thick-cut regular bacon which will be too tough.
Shrimp – Make sure to use good quality shrimp for best results, peeled and deveined. Also, choose large shrimp as they will shrink a lot when cooked, smaller shrimp have a higher chance of turning tough.
Jalapeño – The jalapeño can be replaced with any fresh chili just make sure you choose something with a heat you can handle.
How to Make Bacon Wrapped Shrimp
1. Lay the bacon evenly on a plate lined with a paper towel.
2. Par-cook the bacon in the microwave make sure it doesn’t go crispy.
3. Cut the bacon in half lengthwise.
4. Season the shrimp with salt and pepper then wrap each one with a slice of cut bacon securing it with a toothpick.
5. Mix the honey-jalapeno dressing in a bowl and brush over the shrimp.
6. Bake for 10 minutes until the shrimp are cooked through, for extra crispy bacon broil them for an additional 2 minutes, serve with freshly chopped cilantro.
Tips and ideas for making this recipe
- The wooden skewers (toothpicks) are wooden so should always be soaked for around 15-30 minutes in water before cooking.
- Leftover shrimp can be stored in the fridge for 2-3 days and can be reheated in an oven or broiler.
- You can also freeze these shrimp in ziploc bags and defrost as needed.
- To cook from frozen: defrost completely then add to a foil-lined baking tray and place under the broiler, broil on each side for around 2 minutes.
Frequently Asked Questions
How to serve
The delicious honey jalapeno glaze that’s brushed on the shrimp to give them a delicious flavor and sticky glazed outside can also be served as a dipping sauce. Simply triple the glaze mixture and reserve some in separate dishes for dipping later. You can also serve these with lemon wedges to give a little zip of freshness.
How do I stop the shrimp from overcooking?
Shrimp don’t take long to cook so there’s no need to pre-cook them before wrapping in bacon. You do need to par-cook the bacon though, this ensures that everything is cooked perfectly at the same time. If you use raw bacon the shrimp would be overcooked by the time the bacon is cooked.
Another tip is to choose large shrimp as small shrimp cook much faster.
How and why you should microwave bacon for this recipe
The reason for cooking the bacon in the microwave is so that it doesn’t crisp up straight away (that part happens in the oven). You want to just cook the bacon so it’s more flexible and easy to wrap.
Alternative? You can lay the bacon on a foil-lined baking tray and place it under the broiler. Keep an eye on it because just as the bacon turns a cooked pink color you’ll want to turn it around for a few seconds then it’s done. To cook the bacon in the microwave lay the bacon a plate lined with kitchen paper and microwave on high for 1 minute and 30 seconds until partially cooked
Can I prepare these in advance?
Absolutely, prepare everything in advance, wrap the shrimp and keep them in the fridge then when your guests arrive simply place them under the broiler.
If you love this recipe try these out!
If you’ve tried this bacon-wrapped shrimp recipe then don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know how you got on in the comments below, I love hearing from you!
Bacon Wrapped Shrimp
Ingredients
- 1 lb center cut bacon
- 1 lb large peeled and deveined fresh shrimp
- 1 tsp kosher salt 6g
- ½ tsp ground black pepper 3g
- 20 wooden picks soaked in water for 30 minutes
- 3 tbsp honey 44mL
- 2 tbsp minced fresh jalapeño 1 pepper
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar 5mL
- ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro 4g
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425F. Place a paper towel on a microwave-safe plate; top with 6 slices bacon, then top with another paper towel.
- Microwave in high for 1 minute and 30 seconds to partially cook bacon. Set partially-cooked bacon aside; repeat with remaining bacon.
- Once bacon has cooled enough to handle, half slices lengthwise.
- Sprinkle shrimp with salt and pepper. Wrap each shrimp with a halved bacon slice, securing bacon with a wooden pick.
- Place wrapped shrimp on a rimmed sheet pan lined with aluminum foil.
- In a small bowl, stir together honey, jalapeño, and vinegar. Brush honey mixture over shrimp.
- Bake shrimp for 10 minutes; remove from oven.
- Set oven to high broil; Return shrimp to oven; broil, watching carefully, until bacon is crisp, about 2 minutes.
- Let cool slightly, then place on a serving platter. Garnish with cilantro, if desired.
Notes
- The wooden skewers (toothpicks) are wooden so should always be soaked for around 15-30 minutes in water before cooking.
- Make sure to use good quality shrimp for best results, peeled and deveined.
- Choose large shrimp as they will shrink a lot when cooked, smaller shrimp have a higher chance of turning tough.
- The jalapeno can be replaced with any fresh chili just make sure you choose something with a heat you can handle.
- Leftover shrimp can be stored in the fridge for 2-3 days an can be reheated in an oven or broiler.
- You can also freeze these shrimp in ziploc bags and defrost as needed.
- To cook from frozen: defrost completely then add to a foil-lined baking tray and place under the broiler, broil on each side for around 2 minutes.
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