Description

A rustic serving platter filled with a colorful shrimp boil featuring bright pink peel-and-eat shrimp, golden corn on the cob cut in half, tender baby potatoes, chunks of browned andouille sausage, and fresh lemon wedges scattered throughout, all glistening with melted butter and seasoning.

Ingredients

For the Boil:

5 quarts water
12 ounces beer (grab a pale ale or whatever’s in the fridge)
1/2 cup Old Bay seasoning (this is what makes it taste right)
4 lemons, divided (two cut in half; 2 quartered)
3 pounds baby potatoes (red, white, doesn’t matter)
28 ounces andouille sausage or kielbasa, cut into 2-inch chunks
8 ears sweet corn, husked and cut in half
2 pounds shrimp, shells on, rinsed

For Serving:

4 tablespoons salted butter, melted
Cocktail sauce
Hot sauce

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Instructions

Step 1: Bring Water and Aromatics to a Boil

Put the water, beer, Old Bay, and two lemon halves (the cut ones) into your biggest pot. Turn the heat up high and get it boiling hard.

Step 2: Cook Potatoes and Sausage

Once it’s boiling like crazy, turn it down to medium so it’s bubbling steady. Toss in the potatoes and sausage and let them go for 10 minutes.

Step 3: Add Corn

Drop in all the corn halves and cook for 5 minutes. They’ll turn bright yellow and smell so sweet you’ll want to fish one out early. Don’t do it—wait for the shrimp.

Step 4: Add Shrimp

Now add the shrimp. Cook them just until they’re pink, maybe 2 or 3 minutes tops. Watch them like a hawk because they go from perfect to overcooked fast.

Step 5: Drain and Serve

Before you dump everything out, scoop about a cup of that broth into a bowl and save it. Then drain the rest and pile everything onto a big platter or sheet pan.

Squeeze those cooked lemons over the top. Drizzle with butter and as much of the saved broth as you want. Toss it around so everything gets coated.

Hit it with more Old Bay, add the fresh lemon quarters on the side, and put out cocktail sauce and hot sauce.

Notes

Don’t mess with the seasoning. Old Bay does everything you need all by itself. If you start adding garlic powder and cayenne and whatever else, you’ll just muddy it up.

The shells stay on. I know it’s messier but they keep the shrimp from getting tough. Plus they make the broth taste better.

Save some of that broth before you drain the pot. It’s packed with flavor from the beer and Old Bay and everything that cooked in it. Drizzle it over the top at the end and everything tastes even better.

Your shrimp will look gray or dull when you buy them. That’s fine. They turn pink and pretty the second they hit boiling water. And remember—they keep cooking after you drain them, so pull them early.

Prep Time: 12 minutes
Cook Time: 18 minutes
Category: Main Dish
Method: Boiling
Cuisine: American