Air Fryer Ritz Cracker Shrimp
Big shrimp coated in seasoned mayo and crushed Ritz crackers, air fried golden in 12 minutes, glazed with Bachan's Sweet Pineapple and served over pepper rice.
Ingredients
Ingredients for servings
Enter a number of at least ½, in steps of ½.
Original recipe serves 2. Ingredient amounts adjust automatically. Cooking times and pan size may need adjusting separately.
Shrimp
- 12 large shrimp, 10 to 12, peeled and deveined, tails on
- 2 big squirts mayonnaise, about 3 tablespoons
- 1 pinch onion powder
- 1 pinch garlic powder
- 1 pinch kosher salt
- 1 pinch crushed red pepper flakes, optional
- 1 sleeve Ritz crackers, crushed
- Signature Select No Stick EVOO spray, for the basket
- 1/4 cup Bachan's Sweet Pineapple Japanese barbecue sauce, any Bachan's flavor works
Pepper rice
- 1 cup long-grain white rice, uncooked
- 2 cups water
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 1 green bell pepper, diced
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
Gear
- PowerXL air fryer
- Instant-read thermometer
- Medium saucepan with lid
- Skillet
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Steps
Step 1: RICE: Cook the rice in the water according to the package (about 18 minutes covered, then 5 minutes resting off the heat).
Step 2: While the rice cooks, heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium-high. Sauté the red and green peppers with the salt 5 to 6 minutes until soft with a few browned edges. Fluff the cooked rice and mix the peppers in. Keep covered.
Step 3: SHRIMP: Pat the shrimp dry with paper towels. Put them in a bowl with the two big squirts of mayo and a pinch each of onion powder, garlic powder and salt (plus crushed red pepper if you want some heat). Toss until every shrimp is coated.
Step 4: Crush the sleeve of Ritz into fine crumbs in a zip-top bag or shallow dish. Press each shrimp into the crumbs so it's fully coated.
Step 5: Spray the PowerXL air fryer basket with Signature Select No Stick EVOO spray. Lay the shrimp in a single layer without touching.
Step 6: Air fry at 320°F for 6 minutes. Flip each shrimp.
Step 7: Turn the air fryer up to 400°F and cook 6 more minutes, until golden brown and crispy.
Step 8: Check with an instant-read thermometer. The FDA's guidance is 145°F as the minimum for seafood; I cook mine to 185°F because that's how I like it.
Step 9: Drizzle or brush the shrimp with Bachan's Sweet Pineapple sauce, or serve it on the side for dipping. Serve over the pepper rice.
Swaps
- Coating: Breadcrumbs (panko is crunchiest), any cracker you have (saltines, butter crackers, Club), or crushed potato chips.
- Sauce: Any Bachan’s flavor works. Sweet chili or cocktail sauce are good too.
- Rice: Use microwave rice pouches and stir in the sautéed peppers.
Tips
- Pat the shrimp dry first. Wet shrimp make the mayo slide off and the crumbs get gummy.
- The low-then-high temperature lets the shrimp cook through before the cracker crust gets too dark.
- Different air fryer models run hotter or cooler, so check the first batch a minute early.
The story
HAM Cooking. Let’s fire it up.
Ritz crackers were already the best thing about every party snack tray. Turns out they make one of the best shrimp coatings ever, too. Buttery, salty and crunchy, and they come pre-seasoned in a sleeve. Thank you, cracker people.
Mayo is the secret glue. It’s mostly oil and egg, so it grabs the crumbs and holds them on without a messy three-bowl breading setup. The oil in the mayo also helps the crust brown and crisp up in the air fryer, almost like it was fried. A pinch of onion powder, garlic powder and salt seasons the shrimp right under the crust.
The two-temperature cook is the real trick. Starting at 320°F lets the shrimp heat through gently before the outside gets too dark. Then 400°F finishes the crust golden and crunchy. A drizzle of Bachan’s Sweet Pineapple adds sweet, tangy, savory flavor, and pepper rice underneath catches every drop. Dinner for two in about half an hour.
HAM out.
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