Oven Roasted Garlic Cilantro Lime Shrimp

Name: Oven Roasted Garlic Cilantro Lime Shrimp
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 8 min
Total time: 18 min
Ingredients: 1 pound 21-25 count shrimp (shelled and deveined); 2 Tbsp oil; 2 Tbsp garlic (minced); 2 Tbsp chopped cilantro; 1 lime (juiced); 1 Tbsp crushed red pepper flakes; 1/2 tsp salt

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Oven roasted garlic cilantro lime shrimp is a really simple recipe that takes less than 20 minutes from start to finish. Not only is it easy, it delivers on flavor!

Choosing the Shrimp

When it comes to shrimp, there are several choices you will need to make

wild caught or farm raised
fresh or frozen
shells on or shells removed
deveined or not deveined
size also known as count

Wild or Farm Raised

The consensus is that wild caught shrimp is the better choice. Depending on the farmer, there could be antibiotics, contaminants, and even pesticides in farm raised shrimp.

Fresh or Frozen

Most shrimp is frozen prior to arriving at your supermarket meaning that the “fresh” shrimp in the cooler has most likely been frozen and thawed. Generally speaking, frozen shrimp will be just as fresh once you thaw it.

Shelled and Deveined or not

You can buy shrimp with the shells removed that are already deveined or you can buy them with the shells on and devein them yourself.

It’s not too difficult to remove the feet and shells and devein the shrimp. Just pull the little feet off with your fingers, using some kitchen shears cut down the back and remove the shell, then using a small knife cut down the back and remove the vein.

I recently stumbled across a shrimp deveining tool for less than $10. In just one quick movement, it removes the the feet, the shell, and the vein. A short video demonstration can be found here.

There is also a “vein” on the under side of the shrimp. That is a nerve that carries blood and does not have to be removed.

I bought shrimp with the feet, shells, and vein already removed, however, the nerve on the underside was still there. I chose to spend a few extra minutes and remove it.

The photo on the upper left shows the nerve on the underside of the shrimp, and the photo on the upper right shows it removed.

The bottom left shows where the vein was removed prior to me buying the shrimp. The bottom right photo shows the shrimp prepared for the oven.

Shrimp Count

Lastly, there are different sizes of shrimp or different shrimp counts. The count simply refers to the number of shrimp it takes to make a pound.

A fairly standard shrimp count is 21-25, which is what I used for this recipe. The smaller the count, the larger the shrimp and the larger the count, the smaller the shrimp.

How to make the shrimp

Once the shrimp are prepared, toss them in a mixture of oil, chopped garlic, chopped cilantro, lime juice, crushed red pepper flakes, and salt.

For 21-25 count shrimp, bake them on a sheet pan in the oven at 350 degrees for 8 minutes, flipping them half way through. If your shrimp are larger, add a few minutes and if they are smaller, reduce the cooking time a bit.

You can tell when the shrimp are fully cooked by their color. When they are done, the tail will be pink and the flesh will be white. Be careful not to overcook the shrimp or they will be tough.

Artzy Foodie Tip: To make the shrimp easier to flip, put them on skewers.

They come out nice and pink, and if not over cooked they are super tender. There’s some spice from the garlic and the crushed red pepper, a little tartness from the lime juice, and the cilantro brings some freshness to the party!

If you’re looking for a really quick and easy dish that packs a huge punch of flavor, this one’s for you!

You might also like:

Firecracker Shrimp

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2.88 from 8 votes