Easy Oven Baked Shrimp

Name: Easy Oven Baked Shrimp Recipe
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 15 min
Ingredients: 10 oz large shrimp; 2 Tbsp olive oil; 1 Tbsp lemon juice; 1/2 tsp garlic powder (or 3 cloves garlic, minced); 1/2 tsp smoked paprika; 1 tsp dried oregano; 1/2 - 1 tsp sea salt ( to taste); 1/2 tsp black pepper; 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes (or pinch of cayenne, scale up or down depending on heat preference); 2 tbsp chopped parsley; lemon wedges

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Baking shrimp in the oven is quick and easy! My baked shrimp recipe is ready to eat in just 15 minutes. The shrimp turn out so juicy and they are roasted in a flavourful marinade. This is a high protein dinner that works with many sides.

Oven baked shrimp in a baking tray with a wooden spoon and lemon slices.

I can't get over how simple it is to make oven baked shrimp! For all of you who have been pan-frying them on the stove - it's time to step aside and let the oven do all the hard work.

Cooking shrimp in the oven does not only taste just as good as sautéed shrimp, it also means less time standing by stove. That's 2 hands free to put together the rest of the dinner.

Need more convincing? Shrimp or prawns are the most affordable and family-friendly shellfish. And once you roast them in my extra tasty Mediterranean-inspired marinade, you're going to have everyone coming back for seconds!

Also try my Keto salmon.

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What's To Love About This Recipe
Ingredients
Instructions
Variations
Serving Suggestion
Recipe FAQs
Storage
More Easy Low Carb Dinners
Recipe

What's To Love About This Recipe

Hands-off & One Pan! Baking shrimp is so easy. Everything goes into one pan, and there is no need to batch-cook like you have to with sautéed shrimp. Also, baked prawns require only a few minutes of prep. You do not even have to turn them in the oven!

Big on Flavour. With only a handful of healthy ingredients such as olive oil, lemon juice and a few spices we are creating a restaurant-quality taste experience. The shrimp flesh is soft and juicy and it releases its juices to create a rather irresistible sauce. Which you can pour over everything else that's on your plate!

Naturally gluten free, high protein and low in carbs. One serving of oven baked shrimp contains almost 22 grams of protein.

Ingredients

Let's talk ingredients. You'll find exact quantities in the recipe card at the bottom of the post, but I wanted to give you a bit of extra info right here:

SHRIMP

I used large, raw shrimp. Uncooked shrimp are blue-grey in colour and translucent. I bought a large bag of frozen shrimp without tails and defrosted them overnight in the fridge. Then, I used 24 shrimp - 12 per portion. They weighed 150g per serve.

Here are more details:

Shrimp or prawns? It does not matter whether you buy shrimp or prawns. Both types of shellfish taste essentially the same.
What size is best? Go for large or jumbo shrimp or king prawns. These are meatier and don't end up super-tiny after roasting.
Frozen or fresh? You can buy both frozen or fresh shrimp. From my experience, frozen shrimp are cheaper, especially if you buy a large bag. They need to be fully thawed before baking. To save time, rinse them under cold water. This thaws them quickly.

MARINADE

Olive oil and lemon juice: I always use extra virgin olive oil because it tastes more flavourful. Also, please use fresh lemon juice and not the bottled stuff.

Herbs and spices: Salt and pepper are essentials and don't need explaining. The recipe is quicker with garlic powder, but you can go for fresh garlic, which does elevate the flavour. The paprika adds a smokey note, the red pepper flakes add heat (dial it up or down depending on your preference) and the oregano adds fragrant freshness. I used dried, but if you have fresh oregano, even better!

Instructions

It is simple to make easy oven baked shrimp. Here are the basic steps.

Scroll down to the recipe card at the bottom of the post for the detailed method with ingredient amounts, timings and nutrition information.

Marinating the shrimp in the seasonings.

STEP 1

Toss the shrimp in a large mixing bowl with the olive oil, lemon juice and spices until they are well coated all over.

Raw marinated shrimp in a casserole dish.

STEP 2

Arrange them in a single layer in a baking dish.

STEP 3

Bake the shrimp in the oven on the middle shelf, without turning, until just cooked through. They should be opaque and pink in colour. As you can see, they shrink a little and release their juices to create a lovely sauce.

Scatter over fresh parsley (dill or basil also work) and serve with lemon wedges.

Katrin's Top Tips

#1 Cooking times vary depending on the size of the shrimp. Take care not to overcook or they will become rubbery.

#2 If using raw garlic, sauté the minced garlic in the olive oil for 1 minute until soft first.

#3 Don't discard the juices! The sauce is super tasty. Spoon it over any vegetables or rice you're serving with the shrimp.

Variations

Butter: Shrimp also taste wonderful roasted in melted butter instead of olive oil.

Tail on or shrimp in the shell: If you're after extra wow, go for shrimp with the tail on. This turns a bright pink during baking. Unshelled shrimp take roughly the same time to bake as shelled shrimp. And, you can use the discarded shells later to make incredible fish stock.

Serving Suggestion

My personal idea of a delicious and healthy shrimp dinner is to pair the baked shrimp with a serving of cauliflower rice and a crisp green salad. My keto focaccia would also be fabulous for mopping up the juices.

Crunchy green beans, sauteed spinach and steamed broccoli also go well with shrimp. Consider roasting any vegetables at the same time as the shrimp to make best use of the oven!

If carbs are not a concern, enjoy them with rice, pasta or a quality bread such as sourdough baguette or a chewy focaccia.

Baked shrimp in a bowl with lemon slices and chopped parsley.

Recipe FAQs

How long to cook shrimp in the oven?

Medium shrimp take 6-8 minutes in the oven. Cooking raw shrimp that are large takes 8-10 minutes.

Can you bake frozen shrimp?

Don't bake shrimp straight from frozen. Defrost them fully first.

Can I use cooked shrimp in this recipe?

It does not make sense to oven roast cooked shrimp. All they need is gentle reheating. The best way to prepare cooked shrimp is to warm them in a pan on the stovetop for a couple of minutes.

Storage

Baked shrimp taste best straight out of the oven. But, they will stay fresh in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. You can also freeze them for up to 2 months.