This pan fried garlic butter shrimp comes together in less than 30 minutes. It contains, fresh shrimp, minced garlic, parsley and thyme all cooked up in some dairy free butter.
Whether you are a huge fan of shrimp or simply drawn to just how quick and easy this comes together than you definitely need to stick around for the full recipe.
I'm sure you know by now that I LOVE shrimp and they are my absolute weakness. Although they are very costly here in the UK if you hunt around you can get a good deal or two on these little beauties.
Even though this recipe isn't Caribbean, it does have a slight Jamaican/island element to it.
I love serving my pan fried garlic butter shrimp with some garlic mashed yam. I have a separate post on how to make this exact recipe if you care to pair it with yam too.
This isn't mandatory especially if you live in a country that doesn't grow yam. I'm not referring to yam as in the American terminology for the orange flesh coloured sweet potatoes but actually a long tuber vegetable, that's very starch enriched with a dark bark.
It comes in two variations (yellow and white).
It's eaten throughout Africa, the Caribbean and Latin America (they call it ñame, pronounced nyah-may)
The yellow is my favourite but as you can see from the pictures, I ended up buying white yam because that's all the vendor had at the time.
What does pan seared mean?
Searing is a technique that typically sees meat, fish or vegetables cooked at a very high temperature to lock in the juice thus forming a delicious crust.
The key to searing is to ensure your pan is hot, add your oil or liquid and then the butter should be heated through but not burnt.
The emphasis is on the butter here so I used a bit more than I normally would about ⅓ cup which balances itself out nicely when you use roughly 1 lb of raw shrimp
Ingredients you will need
Reasons to make this recipe
- It's so quick and easy
- Super tasty
- Yields a Caribbean element (if paired with the mashed yam)
- Great for garlic lovers
- It's made in one pan (less washing to do)
- Perfect for fellow shrimp lovers
The steps
- Heat up a large skillet/pan over medium/high heat.
- Add the butter and heat until it is hot but not smoking
- Proceed to saute the minced garlic until translucent
- Season the pan with parsley and thyme.
- Arrange a single layer of shrimp in the pan and try not to overcrowd.
- Cook until each side of the shrimp while stirring occasionally is pink in colour
- Season and adjust salt levels to your taste.
Serving suggestions
I'm going to offer a mixture of Caribbean and other side dishes you can pair this with
Caribbean Sweet Potato Mash: Not quite the same as yam but they have the mashed element to them.
Jamaican Mashed Yam: This is the exact recipe that you see pictured that the shrimp was paired with.
Plantain: Plantain although akin to the Caribbean/Africa is widely available in most countries now
Green Banana Mash: Another great option that's a great Caribbean alternative to yam and sweet potatoes
Tostones: Who knew the air fryer could create crispy tostones
Brown Rice: Another great nutritional dense option if you can't get hold of any of the above
Notes and tips
- Use raw shrimp not cooked because raw shrimp is a lot easier to cook and lessens the risk of overcooking.
- It's best to serve the shrimp immediately and not cook it and set to the side.
- I used about 5 garlic cloves which is quite potent, use more or less depending on your tastebuds.
- Pair the shrimp with potatoes or another root vegetable (see the serving option)
- I melted the butter in advance because it is so easy to work with but feel free to use whole butter and allow it to melt if you want.
Other shrimp recipes to try
- Cajun Shrimp with Zucchini Noodles
- Creole Shrimp Jambalaya
- Jamaican Curry Shrimp
- Shrimp Rundown
- Oven Baked Prawn Fritters
- Jamaican Shrimp and Cabbage
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Pan Fried Garlic Butter Shrimp
Ingredients
- 1 lb raw shrimp de-veined
- ⅓ cup dairy free butter preferably melted
- 5 garlic cloves minced
- 6 sprigs thyme leaves removed from the stem or 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 teaspoon parsley
- pink salt to taste
Instructions
- Heat up a large skillet/pan over medium/high heat.
- Add the butter and heat until it is hot but not smoking.
- Proceed to saute the minced garlic until translucent.
- Season the pan with parsley and thyme.
- Arrange a single layer of shrimp in the pan and try not to overcrowd.
- Cook until each side of the shrimp, while stirring occasionally is pink in colour.
- Season and adjust salt levels to your taste.
Notes
- Use raw shrimp not cooked because raw shrimp is a lot easier to cook and lessens the risk of overcooking.
- It's best to serve the shrimp immediately and not cook it and set to the side.
- I used about 5 garlic cloves which is quite potent, use more or less depending on your tastebuds.
- Pair the shrimp with potatoes or another root vegetable (see the serving option)
- I melted the butter in advance because it is so easy to work with but feel free to use whole butter and allow it to melt if you want.
- Jamaican Mashed Yam: This is the exact recipe that you see picture that the shrimp was paired with.
Jack says
This recipes so easy to make and so delicious! Thanks 🙂
Charla says
No problem
Pavani says
That is such a flavorful and easy to make dish with shrimp. Love that whole bowl - looks very inviting.
Charla says
Thank you so much Pavani.
Kathryn says
Yess! This is the dish I have been waiting for! I love shrimp anything!
Charla says
Yay! I'm so glad to hear that Kathryn.
Jacqueline Meldrum says
I love that you served it on mash. I am away to look at your Caribbean mash. It caught my attention when I was reading your post.
Charla says
No problem Jacqueline. I wanted to do a fusion dish hence the yam mash.
Biana says
Yum! I love shrimp and garlic, and this variation looks delicious.
Charla says
Thanks Biana