Sous Vide Shrimp With Garlic, Sherry, and Smoked Paprika Recipe

Cooking shrimp sous vide allows you to infuse them with flavor. In this recipe, we use the flavor profile of the Spanish tapas standby, gambas al ajillo.

By
J. Kenji López-Alt
Kenji Lopez Alt
J. Kenji López-Alt
Culinary Consultant
Kenji is the former culinary director for Serious Eats and a current culinary consultant for the site. He is also a New York Times food columnist and the author of The Food Lab: Better Home Cooking Through Science.
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Updated December 02, 2023
Closeup of Sous Vide Shrimp With Garlic, Sherry, and Smoked Paprika, served on a white plate.

Serious Eats / J. Kenji López-Alt

Why It Works

  • Cooking shrimp sous vide ensures consistently plump, juicy, flavorful results.
  • Tossing the shrimp with baking soda firms up their texture.
  • Garlic, paprika, sherry, olive oil, and butter pack the shrimp with extra flavor.

We love using an immersion circulator to cook shrimp to the perfect temperature, no guesswork required. Not only does it guarantee a tender, snappy texture, but the method also allows you to infuse the shrimp with flavor while they cook. In this recipe, we give them a Spanish twist with extra-virgin olive oil, garlic, smoked paprika, and sherry.

I start by infusing plenty of extra-virgin olive oil with sliced garlic over low heat until the garlic is tender but not browned, then I add a couple of dried bay leaves and some smoked paprika.

Collage showing how to make seasoned liquid for shrimp cooked sous vide. Clockwise from top left: Sliced garlic frying in olive oil; slice garlic and bay leaves in a pool of oil tinged red with smoked paprika; pan full of oil, garlic, smoked paprika, and sherry with two melting pats of butter; pan with garlic, bay leaves, oil tinged red with smoked paprika with sherry being added from a bottle.

Serious Eats / J. Kenji López-Alt

As soon as the paprika smells nice and toasty, I add a splash of sherry and sherry vinegar, along with a couple pats of butter. I dump this flavorful liquid right in with the shrimp, which I then lower into the preheated water bath.

In just 15 minutes (or up to 30 minutes), you wind up with shrimp that are packed with incredible flavor and are perfectly plump and juicy.

Sous Vide Shrimp Cooking Temperatures

125°F (52°C) Translucent, semi-raw with a soft, buttery texture. 
130°F (54°C) Nearly opaque, very tender with a hint of firmness. 
135°F (57°C) Barely opaque, moist, juicy, and tender. 
140°F (60°C) Traditional poached texture with good bounce and a crisp, juicy bite. 

January 2017

Recipe Details

Sous Vide Shrimp With Garlic, Sherry, and Smoked Paprika Recipe

Prep 5 mins
Cook 25 mins
Active 20 mins
Cooling Time 5 mins
Total 35 mins
Serves 4 to 6 servings
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Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 pounds large peeled shrimp (about 700g) (see note)

  • Kosher salt

  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

  • 6 tablespoons (90ml) extra-virgin olive oil

  • 6 medium cloves garlic, thinly sliced

  • 1 tablespoon sweet smoked Spanish paprika (about 6g)

  • 2 bay leaves

  • 3 tablespoons (45ml) sherry

  • 1 1/2 teaspoons (6ml) sherry vinegar

  • 2 tablespoons (30g) butter

  • Crusty bread, for serving

Directions

  1. Set your sous vide water bath to desired temperature according to the chart above.

    A hand adjusts the temperature setting on an immersion circulator.

    Serious Eats / J. Kenji López-Alt

  2. In a large bowl, toss shrimp with 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt and the baking soda. Set aside.

    Raw peeped shrimp are tossed with baking soda and salt.

    Serious Eats / J. Kenji López-Alt

  3. Heat olive oil and garlic in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Cook, stirring, until garlic sizzles and softens but is not browned, about 3 minutes. Add paprika and bay leaves and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add sherry and sherry vinegar, increase heat to high, and cook until the liquid is reduced and sauce starts to emulsify, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in butter. Season to taste with salt. Let cool about 5 minutes.

    Sherry is added to the oil-garlic-pimentón mixture.

    Serious Eats / J. Kenji López-Alt

  4. Place shrimp in a heavy duty zipper-lock bag or a vacuum bag. Pour in oil/garlic mixture. Remove all air from bag using the water displacement method or a vacuum sealer. Press shrimp into a single layer.

    The oil-garlic-paprika-butter mixture is added to a bag with the shrimp.

    Serious Eats / J. Kenji López-Alt

  5. Add bagged shrimp to preheated water bath and cook for at least 15 minutes and up to 1 hour (the texture should show very little variation within this time frame).

    The sealed bag of shrimp and seasonings is lowered into a cambro container to cook sous vide.

    Serious Eats / J. Kenji López-Alt

  6. Pour cooked shrimp and sauce into a warm bowl and serve. Alternatively, preheat a cast iron skillet over high heat until a bead of water dropped in sizzles immediately. Place on a trivet and pour in the shrimp/oil mixture. Serve immediately, passing bread for sopping up the extra sauce.

Special Equipment

Immersion circulator

Notes

You can also cook shell-on shrimp. They will be more flavorful, but you'll either have to shell before serving, or have diners shell them on their own (or just eat the shells, they're delicious). For shell-on shrimp, add 5 minutes to the minimum cooking time.

Read More

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
263Calories
19gFat
5gCarbs
17gProtein
×
Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4 to 6
Amount per serving
Calories263
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 19g25%
Saturated Fat 5g24%
Cholesterol 158mg53%
Sodium 1006mg44%
Total Carbohydrate 5g2%
Dietary Fiber 1g2%
Total Sugars 1g
Protein 17g
Vitamin C 1mg5%
Calcium 80mg6%
Iron 1mg5%
Potassium 184mg4%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

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