Coconut shrimp are something that my husband Mike learned to make from a friend. We have adapted the recipe to fit our family's dietary needs, but they are absolutely delicious! It is something that we usually save to make on special occasions and it is a great date night recipe that you can make at home. If you want to see the coconut shrimp recipe first, you can scroll to the bottom of this post for the recipe card. These air fried shrimp have a perfect crispy exterior and when you combine that with our favorite sauce it's a tasty meal.
One thing I enjoy about this recipe is that it is so versatile! For some people they are their favorite appetizer, or you can add some sides and have a full meal. Using the air fryer makes this a quick dinner option too for busy weeknights!

Coconut Shrimp Ingredients
The batter has just three ingredients which you probably already have on hand at home. They are flour, egg, and beer. The sauce is also made with just three ingredients. Those ingredients are orange marmalade, honey and dijon mustard. When we go out to eat and order coconut shrimp, we almost always prefer our homemade sauce to what they serve at restaurants. It’s that good and quickly will become your favorite dipping sauce!
Air fryers have seemed to become the new ‘it’ appliance in the kitchen. I didn’t have one until just recently when I got the Nosh Air Fryer and I can see why people enjoy it so much! It has all of the benefits of an oven, but also the frying capabilities without oil! This particular version cleans itself which is a huge win for me. It makes cleaning up a breeze and one less thing to worry about. One thing to note is that the cooking area inside of it is rather small. It fits about one tray of food, so it works for a couple or small family, but if you have a larger family I'd consider a larger air fryer like this one.
If you have an air fryer, you can use that, or you can also fry them in a pan with oil. My Always Pan seems to be my go-to pan in the kitchen. I use it for everything and am so impressed with the quality! This is the fastest way to cook them because it will only take a few minutes. When cooking this way, flip them when they are golden brown and once they start curling up they are ready to enjoy! Air frying is a little healthier than deep frying it with oil, but both are good options.
If you have leftover coconut shrimp, be sure to store them in an airtight container. We only use glass containers in our home, and this is a set that has a variety of sizes for ease of use.
Watch Us Make Air Fryer Coconut Shrimp
If you are looking for more meal ideas, for another special occasion meal, check out my Fondue Recipe. Other favorite meals in our home include my beef pot pie and Zuppa Toscana.

Coconut Shrimp
Ingredients
Coating
- 1 cup shredded coconut
- 1 cup panko bread crumbs
Sauce
- ¼ cup honey
- ¼ cup orange marmalate
- ¼ cup dijon mustard
- Splash tobasco optional
Instructions
- Make sure that the shrimp are cleaned and deveined. For best results, make sure that if you are using frozen shrimp that they are fully thawed
- In a large bowl, combine the flour and beer. Mix to combine
- Add in the egg and salt, mix well
- On a large plate mix together coconut and panko crumbs
- Place shrimp in batter, once covered, place in the coconut mixture until shrimp is coated
- Put coated shrimp on a clean plate
- Repeat the process for all of your shrimp
- Spray olive oil on shrimp to help it become golden brown once cooking
- Add shrimp in a single layer to the air fryer (or in air fryer basket)
- Set the air fryer to 360 degrees f
- Set the cooking time to 10-12 minutes. *time and temperature will vary depending on your air fryer
- Combine sauce ingredients in a small bowl, mix well
- Remove shrimp from air fryer and serve
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