A 30-minute, creamy, and comforting One Pot Shrimp in Coconut Sauce with blended vegetables to serve over rice or noodles. It is dinner made easy!
What has the power to transport you back home when you are far, far away and missing it terribly?
For me, it is food! I confess the rich and diverse cuisine of my home country makes hard to choose only one dish.
When I think about home, several dishes spring right to mind.
This creamy one pot shrimp in coconut sauce (camarão no leite de coco) had the power to transport my sweet Brazil onto my plate this time — and all the memories of those good old days.
It is easy, summery, comforting — and SUPER delish… just like home!
This shrimp in coconut sauce is a trip to Ceará, a state in my Northeastern region where the recipe originally comes from.
It is even a trip to Bahia, an Afro-Brazilian state in that same region…
…since the dish is somewhat similar to its famous Bahian-style seafood stew known as Moqueca de Camarão.
What it makes the dish a bit different from moqueca is the absence of palm oil and chunky vegetables.
Note this coconut shrimp recipe adds cream cheese, basil, and red jalapenos — as they reflect our own touch to the traditional recipe.
But the thing is, its aroma still announces all of its bold flavors and contrasting textures…
… something very Northeastern, very home-sweet-home.
It is Latin food at its best — as you can see in these easy Brazilian recipes to must try.
Moreover, it is a trip to the amazing flavors of tropical Brazil…
As they say in Bahia, AXÉ!!! (a Yoruba language term meaning ‘power’ or ‘energy’)… and in Ceará, OXE! (Oh, wow!)
HOW TO MAKE SHRIMP IN COCONUT SAUCE
Time is not a problem in this case.
This shrimp in coconut sauce takes about 30 minutes… and uses simple ingredients such as jumbo shrimp, veggies, coconut milk, fresh herbs, and spices.
Serve it over white rice — or noodles if you desire.
To make this, place the peeled shrimp in a bowl with oil, minced garlic clove, salt, and pepper.
Toss to coat and let marinade while cooking the veggies. Heat a large skillet over medium heat with 2 Tbsp of oil.
Add the onion and bell pepper and let cook for about minutes.
Then, add coarsely chopped garlic cloves and cook for about 1 minute. Add the canned diced tomatoes, basil, and cilantro/parsley.
Let cook for about 2 minutes. Transfer the cooked vegetables to a blender and set aside.
Add the remaining oil to the skillet and cook the shrimp for 2 minutes.
Then flip and cook for another 1-2 minutes or it until starts getting pink.
Transfer the shrimp to a plate or bowl.
Next, prepare the coconut shrimp sauce.
Add coconut milk, chicken broth, lime juice, ground ginger, paprika (optional), and the remaining salt and pepper to the cooked, reserved vegetables.
Blend all until veggies are ground and mixture is smooth.
Transfer blended mixture to the skillet and bring to a boil; then reduce to simmer and cook for about 5 minutes.
Add the cream cheese and stir until melted and the sauce is creamy and smooth.
Last, add the cooked shrimp to the skillet and toss to coat.
Garnish with basil leaves, chopped cilantro/parsley, and slices of red jalapeno pepper if desired.
Serve over white rice (preferably) or noodles. Enjoy!
PIN & ENJOY!
One Pot Easy Shrimp in Coconut Sauce
Ingredients
- 1½ pounds jumbo raw shrimp (deveined, both shell and tail removed)
- 5 tablespoons vegetable oil divided
- 3 gloves garlic 1 minced and 2 coarsely chopped
- 1 teaspoon salt divided
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper divided
- ½ large white or yellow onion peeled and coarsely chopped
- 1 large orange or red bell pepper de-seeded and sliced
- 1/2 cup canned diced tomatoes
- 2 leaves large basil plus more to garnish
- 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro or parsley plus more to garnish
- 1 cup canned coconut milk
- 1/3 cup chicken or vegetable broth
- 2 tablespoons lime juice (about 1 large lime, juiced)
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon sweet paprika optional
- 4-6 oz cream cheese softened (the amount depends on how creamy you want)
- 1 red jalapeno pepper thinly sliced (optional)
Instructions
- Place the peeled shrimp in a bowl with 1 Tablespoon of oil, one minced garlic clove, ½ teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon black pepper. Toss to coat and let marinade while cooking the vegetables.
- Heat a large skillet over medium heat with 2 Tablespoons of vegetable oil. Add the onion and bell pepper and let cook for approximately 3 minutes.
- Add the 2 coarsely chopped garlic cloves and cook for about 1 minute. Add the canned diced tomatoes, basil, and cilantro/parsley. Let cook for about 2 minutes. Transfer the cooked vegetables to a blender and set aside.
- Add the 2 remaining Tablespoons of oil to the skillet and cook the shrimp for 2 minutes, then flip and cook for another 1-2 minutes or it until starts getting pink. Transfer the shrimp to a plate or bowl.
- Add the coconut milk, chicken/vegetable broth, lime juice, ground ginger, paprika (optional), and the remaining salt and pepper to the cooked, reserved vegetables and blend everything until vegetables are completely ground and mixture is homogeneous.
- Transfer blended mixture to the skillet and bring to a boil; then reduce to simmer and cook for about 5 minutes. Add the cream cheese and stir until melted and the sauce is creamy and homogeneous.
- Add the cooked shrimp to the skillet and toss to coat. Garnish with basil leaves, chopped cilantro/parsley, and slices of red jalapeno pepper if desired. Serve over white rice (preferably) or noodles. Enjoy!
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
- It must be stored covered in the refrigerator for up to 2-3 days. Heat well before eating! If desired, add a little bit more of coconut milk to dilute the sauce.
- Love One Pot Meals? Try also our One Pot Chicken in Lime Coconut Sauce.
Nutrition
Deb|EastofEdenCooking says
Oh my, the sauce sounds heavenly! I adore shrimp so this recipe will be made soon, serving with a big pot of rice to capture all that outstanding flavor. Bravo!
Anna @ shenANNAgans says
Yes, food is what connects me to home or memories of home too.
I absolutely need this shrimp recipe in my life, what an amazing combination of tastes and flavours, loving that cheeky hint of cream cheese so much. Hope you are well my friend. 🙂
John/Kitchen Riffs says
Food carries such memories, doesn’t it? And this dish could carry nothing but good memories! SO nice — I’ll bet the flavor of this is wonderful. Good stuff — thanks.
Chris Scheuer says
This sounds wonderful and such a fun new way to use coconut milk. I just happen to have a big bag of shrimp in the freezer…
Denise Browning says
I hope you can make this and enjoy, Chris!
Amira says
Food always bring people together and also bring memories back, with the delicious smell of mothers and grandmothers cooking, food can bring tears to my eyes- those kind that are not from smelling onions :). Love your recipe and it is indeed colored for summer.
Sugar et al. says
This is a life changing dish. So wonderful yet simple to make. I just love coconut flavoured sauces and gravies and this one is flavoured with spices as well. Ca’t wait to try it! It’s going to make a gorgeous Friday night dinner.
Mi Vida en un Dulce says
Bahia…I’m still dreaming with Bahia.
Raymund says
I will definitely need a lot of rice with that super delicious sauce!
Yum!
Anne@ASaladForAllSea says
Denise, this looks AMAZING! I want this for dinner tonight! Thank you for sharing this recipe. I love how food can hold such strong memories for us. Pinned! Can’t wait to taste a bit of your home. 🙂
Fran @ G'day Souffle' says
I could use some of that ‘Axé’ now to lift me out of the chilly winter here in Adelaide. This looks like a lovely dish. It reminds me of a dish I did called ‘Coconut Curried Shrimp’, but without the curry spice. Thanks so much!
Arriana says
I made this! it’s so delicious! I didn’t have to alter the recipe at all. Perfect… I am going to add this to my recipe box! Thank you thank you!
Tara Nair says
Loved the recipe, Denise! I will definitely try it out. Thank you so much for sharing this easy and yummy recipe 😀
Cydney McClain says
My husband absolutely loves shrimp. This gives me a new way to please his pallegivesSo easy. So delicious.
Denise Browning says
Hi Cydney! It’s so good to have you vising us here. I hope you get the chance to make my family new fave seafood dish and enjoy. Sending our love. xx
carrie says
Do you have the nutritional info, calorie,,,carb count?
Denise Browning says
Carrie, unfortunately not yet. We have been working on this. It will be our next feature here. Thank you for reaching out!
Jasmine says
What do I do I did everything and realize I needed a blender but I have no blender what do I do
Denise Browning says
Hi, Jasmine! Do you have a food processor or a small smoothie blender instead? They can grind or blend the veggies well. If not, you can try to use a hand or stand mixer to try to grind the veggies as much as you can although it will contain pieces of veggies.
Monique says
Oh My Word!!!! I just made this for Sunday dinner…..didn’t alter the recipe AT ALL…..and it ís absolutely delicious!!!!! So simple to make. And you wanna talk about flavorful?! This is a definite add to my recipe book. I pinned it to my food board on Pinterest forever ago. Last week I told my daughter to scroll through and pick something for Sunday dinner. I’m soooooo glad she picked this one ❤️❤️❤️❤️
Denise Browning says
Hi, Monique! I am so glad you enjoyed this stew, a real family favorite! I hope you come back for more delicious recipes. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask them. Have a marvelous week!
Ester says
I am so exited to make this! I bet it tastes so good. Thank you for sharing this recipe!
Ester xoxo
Denise Browning says
Thank you for stopping by Ester! I hope you make this dish and enjoy!
Lindsey Frankson says
Do you think you could do this without the cream cheese?
Denise Browning says
Hi Lindsey! If desired you can skip the cream cheese but it won’t be creamy as if had cream cheese. Since you intend to make without it, please add less coconut milk than stated in the recipe or use a bit of cornstarch to thicken the stew like you would to a gravy. Enjoy!
Pat Fletcher says
WOW ! This is fantastic You can taste everything. Nothing is overpowering. I will always have this when my husband says someone is coming home with him and I have an hour. Won’t they be surprised ? Thank you.
Denise Browning says
Thank you, Pat!
I am so glad you enjoyed this family favorite. Have a delicious week!
Enriqueta Lemoine says
Denisse this is my first time here and trust me: I’ll be back frequently! I’m in love with this recipe! Best, Enri
Tiffany says
Love this recipe!! I will add some pepper flakes to give it some heat!
Alejandra Graf says
I’m allergic to shrimp but will try this recipe with tofu.
Silvia Martinez says
Denise, love your dish. I love how we can have dinner en 30 minutes. Shrimp cooks so fast and I love how it always takes the flavor of the sauce.
Jenalys says
I’ll be trying this over the weekend and will report back! Very excited! I’m low carb so I’ll be putting it over cauliflower rice. The one thing I am questioning is the amount of oil. 5 tbsp seems like overkill. Do you think I could scale back to 3 and it still be delish?
Denise Browning says
Hi, Jenalys! You can certainly use less oil especially if you cook this stew in a no stick pan. I would suggest to use 1 1/2 TBSP oil for the vegetables and 1 1/2 TBSP oil for the shrimp. I hope you enjoy this family favorite!
Caroline says
Hi!
This looks delicious. Do you think I can use
Requeijao instead of cream cheese?
Obrigada!
Denise Browning says
Hi Caroline! Yes, you can use requeijao instead. Make sure to start with the same amount asked for cream cheese and increase the amount of requeijao only if necessary to make the stew creamy but not runny. The reason way is cream cheese is thicker than requeijao even when heated. Enjoy! Um abraco!
Nina says
Hi, Denise! Thansk for the best shrimp stew recipe ever. It amde our list of top dinner recipes.
Kad says
Hi
Can i add pasta to it at the end ?
Denise Browning says
Yes, you can add cooked, drained pasta or noodles to it. That is a great idea! Enjoy!
Cinda C. says
I have already made this shrimp in coconut sauce 3 times in a month. The best seafood stew so far.
Kay Novotny says
We made this for dinner last night, and it was a hit! The only change I made was to use grated fresh ginger rather than the ground ginger. Used extra large shrimp – it was amazing!
Denise Browning says
Hi, Kay! Thank you for stopping by. I am so glad you made our shrimp in coconut sauce and your family enjoyed. Indeed, if you have access to fresh ginger it makes the dish even more flavorful. Have a an amazing week!
Luiza says
As a Brazilian missing home, I tried this recipe and loved it. Served to a group of friend and they loved even more. We ate all and scrape the pan for more. Thanks for sharing with us this beautiful taste of Bahia.
Denise Browning says
Oi Luiza! I am so happy to read that you enjoyed our shrimo in coconut sauce ou camarao no leite de coco. My family enjoyed ita lot too. I hope you return for more easya nd delish recipes. Have a great week!
Paula Bucher says
Are the canned tomatoes drained or undrained???
Denise Browning says
Hi Paula! The canned tomatoes must be drained.
Paula Bucher says
Thank you!
Getting ready to make this tonight for dinner.
Wish me luck!