Garlic Butter Crab Stuffed Shrimp
This is the kind of dish that looks restaurant-fancy but comes together with a handful of ingredients and a hot oven. A quick crab-cake filling — lump crab folded with mayo, Dijon, lemon, egg, and crushed crackers — gets piled onto butterflied shrimp that stand up on the tray. A few minutes at high heat sets the crab into a golden mound, and a finishing pour of garlic-parsley butter makes the whole plate shine. Serve them as a showpiece appetizer or the star of a seafood dinner.
The move worth stealing here is the butterfly cut: slice each shrimp down the middle to open a pocket, and that pocket is what lets it stand upright on the tray holding its own mound of crab. Fair warning, and I say it in the video — stuffing them gets messy, and the first few will wobble before they balance. That's normal. Once they're all standing, the tray already looks like a restaurant plate.
It's the one I point people to when they want to show off without a hard recipe. The filling mixes up in one bowl, the oven does the work, and the finish is just melted Irish butter with garlic and parsley. If you can mix a bowl and slice a shrimp, you can pull this off.
Watch me make it — video from my YouTube channel
The recipe
Garlic Butter Crab Stuffed Shrimp
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons mayonnaise (or to taste)
- Dijon mustard, to taste
- seasonings, to taste (use your favorites)
- crushed unsalted crackers, to taste (or breadcrumbs, just enough to bind)
- 1/2 lemon, squeezed
- 1 egg
- lump crab meat, to taste
- peeled and deveined shrimp, tails on, to taste
- Irish butter, to taste (for the garlic butter)
- fresh garlic, to taste (for the garlic butter)
- fresh parsley, to taste (for the garlic butter)
How to Make It
- Add the mayonnaise to a mixing bowl.
- Stir in the Dijon mustard.
- Season with your favorite seasonings.
- Add the crushed unsalted crackers to help bind the mixture.
- Squeeze in half a lemon and mix well.
- Crack in the egg and mix until combined.
- Gently fold in the lump crab meat, keeping it lumpy rather than breaking it down.
- Take peeled and deveined shrimp with the tails left on, and slice each one down the middle to open a pocket so it can stand upright.
- Mound the crab mixture into each butterflied shrimp and stand them up on a baking tray.
- Bake at 450°F for about 8 to 12 minutes, until the crab is set and golden.
- Meanwhile, melt the Irish butter with garlic and parsley to make a quick garlic butter.
- Drizzle the garlic butter over the stuffed shrimp and serve.
Curtis's Tips
- Adjust the mayonnaise to your liking; about three tablespoons is a good starting point.
- Breadcrumbs work too, but crushed unsalted crackers are a great binder for the filling.
- Roll the lemon firmly on the counter before squeezing to loosen it and get more juice.
- Don't over-mix the crab — keep it lumpy so you get those nice chunks of crab in every bite.
- Leave the tails on the shrimp to make plating easier, and slice down the middle so each one stands up on the tray.
- The stuffing step can get a little messy, and the shrimp take a moment to balance — that's normal.
- The same crab filling makes an excellent crab cake if you have extra.
Why this works
I fold the lump crab in last, and gently, because keeping it lumpy is the whole point of lump crab — you want those chunks of crab in every bite. The crackers are only there to bind, so add just enough to hold everything together. The hot 450°F oven sets the filling into a golden mound in 8 to 12 minutes, and the garlic butter goes on after the bake, not into the mix — a fresh pour over the finished shrimp is what puts the shine on the plate.
- Crushed unsalted crackers — the binder; breadcrumbs work too, but crackers are my pick.
- Half a lemon — roll it firmly on the counter before squeezing to loosen it and get more juice out.
FAQ
Can I use breadcrumbs instead of crackers?
Yes. Breadcrumbs bind the filling fine — I simply like crushed unsalted crackers better for this. Either way, add only enough to hold the mixture together.
Why won't my shrimp stand up?
They fight you at first — mine did too, and I left that in the video. The slice down the middle is what opens the pocket, so make sure every shrimp gets a real one, and leave the tails on to make plating easier.
How do I know when they're done?
At 450°F they take about 8 to 12 minutes. Pull them when the crab filling is set and golden on top.
What do I do with extra crab filling?
Make a crab cake — this same mixture makes a good one, and I mention that in the video. Don't toss the extra.
Estimated nutrition, per serving (recipe makes about 4 servings): ~375 calories · 35 g protein · 23 g fat · 6 g carbs. Computed from the ingredient list using standard reference values — an estimate, not a lab analysis; your exact brands and portions will vary.
