If you love shrimp, you will love these Easy Thai Shrimp Cakes. They are so easy to make - the mixture actually gets made in a food processor, and then pan fried till crisp outside. Don't skip the Thai Sweet Chilli Sauce for dipping!
I think all our guests have had these easy Thai shrimp cakes at some point. Because these are so fast that I make them all the time. Time to change the menu? I think not! Because everyone LOVES them.
To be honest, I didn't have them in Thailand but read about them somewhere. The sound of shrimp or prawns flavored with garlic, fish sauce and lots of other aromatics made into cutlets and cooked was so irresistible.
And here's the best part - there is NO CHOPPING required. I usually dump everything in a food processor and process it till chunky or smooth (depending on the mood). The second best part is that you don't even need to dirty your hands. If you follow my instructions (check out the video below), you can use an ice cream scoop to scoop out the mixture and put it straight on the pan.
Fresh Prawns vs Frozen for these Thai Shrimp Cakes
I'm a firm believer that unless you stay near the sea and have access to truly fresh prawns, frozen prawns are best. And in this case, you won't be able to tell the difference at all. Just make sure to thaw them well before you use them.
Check Out: How to defrost prawns safely
Here's what you need
The ingredient list for these Thai Shrimp Cakes is super simple. We flavor these with onions, celery, garlic, thai chillies, cilantro and fish sauce. I also like to use egg and rice flour for binding. You can swap the rice flour for breadcrumbs if that's what you have on hand.
With less than ten ingredients and minimal prep, these easy Thai shrimp cakes are such a winner! Make the mixture a few hours earlier and just refrigerate it. Take it out 20 minutes ahead to bring the mixture to room temperature and you are good to go!
Try these with the Shrimp Cutlets
- Quick Lemon Rice to make this a meal
- Asian Cauliflower Rice if you like your meals low carb
- Watermelon Basil Salad for a fresh, side salad
- Thai Sweet Chili Sauce for dipping
- Mango Mustard Sauce for dipping
Watch Thai Shrimp Cakes Recipe Video
Easy Thai Shrimp Cakes (Video Recipe)
Equipment
- Food Processor
Ingredients
- ¾ cup Onions finely chopped
- ¾ cup Celery finely chopped
- 500 g Shrimp or Prawns
- 1 Egg
- 1 tablespoon Garlic finely chopped
- 2 Thai Chillies finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon Fish Sauce
- ½ cup Rice Flour
- ½ cup Cilantro / Coriander roughly chopped
- Salt to taste
- 3-4 tablespoons Oil
Instructions
- In a food processor, add onions, celery, shrimp, egg, garlic, thai chillies, fish sauce, rice flour, cilantro (I forgot to add this in the video but this adds a ton of flavor) and salt. Blend till mixed well but still slightly chunky.
- Heat oil in a skillet, and using an ice cream scooper, scoop the mixture on the pan. Use the back of a spatula to flatten it into cakes or cutlets. Cook on each side for 5-6 minutes, and take the shrimp cakes out on a tissue lined plate. Repeat till all the mixture is used. Serve hot with Thai sweet chilli sauce.
Notes
- Shrimp: Use either fresh or frozen shrimp. Make sure the shrimp is cleaned, deveined and thawed to room temperature
- Store mixture: The mixture can be made ahead and stored in the fridge for 5-6 hours. Make sure to bring it to room temperature before cooking
- Rice Flour: Rice flour can easily be swapped with bread crumbs
Süleymaniye says
Woow. Its seems very nice. Thanks
nerede çekiliyor says
Vavv. it seems very delicious. Thanks
Richa says
Thank you!