This spicy southern classic, shrimp creole, is so flavorful, delicious, and completely packed with vegetables. Gets a healthy and satisfying weeknight dinner on your table in less than an hour! Serve over Instant Pot White Rice or Instant Pot Brown Rice.
This spicy southern classic, shrimp creole, is so flavorful, delicious, and completely packed with vegetables.
Go all out with every vegetable listed, or use whatever vegetables you have on hand in the kitchen. Either way, this shrimp creole dish will come out amazing, guaranteed!
I love this recipe because it’s:
- quick & easy
- versatile
- dairy-free friendly (use bacon grease)
- gluten free-friendly (use gluten-free flour)
- can be made vegetarian (use lentils)
Ingredient Notes:
- Shrimp. Any shrimp will work, but using shrimp that’s raw, peeled and deveined saves time. If the shrimp are large, halve or quarter them. (I recommend wild shrimp – see note below.)
- White Cooking Wine or Stock. If you don’t have cooking wine, use fish, chicken, or vegetable stock (not beef). (See my slow cooker chicken stock method here, or my Instant Pot chicken stock method.)
- Whole Grain Flour. I like to use whole grain einkorn flour, but regular flour works as well. For gluten-free, use gluten-free flour (not almond flour or coconut flour).
- Bacon grease or butter. For dairy-free, opt for the bacon grease (plus saving bacon grease is an easy way to save money on real food.)
- Diced tomatoes. Most creole recipes call for crushed tomatoes, but I think it comes out too ‘tomato-ey.’ If that’s what you have on hand and you like a thick tomato flavor, then use them! But if you have a choice, go for diced tomatoes. They make the dish lighter, allowing some of the other yummy flavors to come through better.
- Vegetables. Onion + bell pepper + celery + carrots + zucchini (or whatever vegetables you have on hand). I like to add mushroom for a rich, umami flavor, but they’re optional.
A complete list of ingredients with the amounts you need is located in the recipe card below.
A Note About the Shrimp…
Because of the way farmed shrimp is grown in large, man-made “ponds,” farmed shrimp usually contains several antibiotics and harmful chemical residues, so I recommend wild-caught seafood. Sources: (1) (2) (3)
If you can’t find wild-caught shrimp or are allergic, you can substitute chicken and/or sausage. Or use a combination of all three!
Note: If you don’t have access to these stores OR your local stores don’t carry high-quality seafood, I recommend Butcher Box. I have a subscription myself! You can read my honest review of their products here!
Step-By-Step Instructions
Step 1. Prepare rice for serving. Use my Instant Pot White Rice recipe, or follow the package instructions for stove top.
Step 2. Make a Roux. Melt bacon grease or butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add flour and whisk to combine with the fat. Cook flour for 1-2 minutes, stirring often.
Step 3. Add Vegetables. Add the celery, onions, bell peppers, carrots and garlic. Cook vegetables until they are soft and colored, stirring often, about 8-10 minutes.
Step 4. Add zucchini and mushrooms (if using) and bay leaves, tomatoes, white cooking wine or stock, salt, pepper, thyme, parsley, and Worcestershire sauce. Simmer uncovered for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Step 5. Add shrimp and cook until they turn pink and are no longer raw, about 3-5 minutes.
If using cooked sausage and chicken, add with shrimp and allow to warm as shrimp cooks through. If using uncooked sausage and chicken, add BEFORE the shrimp and cook for about 5 minutes, or until three-quarters of the way cooked through. Then add the shrimp and cook thoroughly.
Step 6. Serve over rice.
Recipe FAQ
Creole is spicier than gumbo, and the rice is prepared separately. With jambalaya, the rice is cooked together with the meat and vegetables.
Yes! Omit the meat altogether and use lentils instead.
Yes! This recipe freezes very well – for up to 3 months. Follow the cooking instructions, and let the recipe cool completely before freezing. Freeze in a tightly-sealed, freezer-safe container, or a freezer bag (let the air out and seal, so it can lay flat in your freezer). The night before you want to serve, pop the frozen container in the fridge. For mealtime, saute your shrimp creole in a pan until the sauce is hot. Serve over rice.
To Serve:
- Serve over Instant Pot white rice or Instant Pot brown rice.
- Or wrap in a homemade tortilla if you prefer.
- For a low-carb option, serve over cauliflower rice.
- In order to have a good, spicy creole, you need all of the spices. Don’t skimp out on them, but do feel free to add more if you like it even hotter!
More Quick & Easy Dinners
- Instant Pot Steamed Shrimp
- Sheet Pan Hawaiian Shrimp
- Eggroll in a Bowl
- Vegetable Fried Rice
- Instant Pot Honey Garlic Chicken
30 Minute Dinners Sample Meal Plan
Sign up to get instant access to my 30 Minute Dinners Sample Meal Plan, complete with recipes and step-by-step instructions!Shrimp Creole
This spicy southern classic, shrimp creole, is so flavorful, delicious, and completely packed with vegetables. Gets a healthy and satisfying weeknight dinner on your table in less than an hour! Serve over Instant Pot White Rice or Instant Pot Brown Rice.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 45 mins
- Total Time: 55
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Main Meals
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 5 Tbsp bacon grease or butter
- 5 Tbsp whole grain flour (or gluten free)
- 1/2 large onion, chopped
- 1 large bell pepper, chopped
- 4 ribs celery, chopped
- 2 large carrots, peeled and chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 medium zucchini, chopped (optional)
- 1/2 cup mushrooms, sliced (optional)
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 (16 oz) can (equals 2 cups) diced tomatoes with juices
- 1–2 cups white cooking wine or fish/chicken/vegetable stock (not beef) (See my slow cooker chicken stock method here, or my Instant Pot chicken stock method.)
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- 2 tsp ground thyme
- 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 1/2 Tbsp dried parsley
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)
- 8oz wild shrimp, peeled & deveined (halved or quartered if large)
Instructions
- Make the rice for serving on the stove-top, or use my recipes for Instant Pot White Rice or Instant Pot Brown Rice.
- Melt bacon grease or butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add flour and whisk to combine with the fat. Cook flour for 1-2 minutes.
- Add onions, bell peppers, celery, carrots and garlic. Cook vegetables until they are soft and colored, stirring often, about 8-10 minutes.
- Add zucchini and mushrooms (if using) and bay leaves, tomatoes, white cooking wine or stock, salt, pepper, thyme, parsley, and Worcestershire sauce. Simmer uncovered for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add shrimp and cook until they turn pink and are no longer raw, about 3-5 minutes. (If using cooked sausage and chicken, add with shrimp and allow to warm as shrimp cooks through. If using uncooked sausage and chicken, add BEFORE the shrimp and cook for about 5 minutes, or until three-quarters of the way cooked through. Then add the shrimp and cook thoroughly.)
- Serve over rice.
Notes
- Tomatoes. I prefer diced tomatoes, but you can also use crushed tomatoes for a strong, tomato flavor.
- Shrimp: Substitute 6oz nitrate-free sausage, cut into bite-size rounds AND/OR 1 cup chopped chicken instead of shrimp.
- Flour. I like to use whole grain Einkorn flour, but regular flour works too. For gluten-free, use gluten-free flour.
Nutrition
- Calories: 302
Keywords: Shrimp Creole
When do you add the parsley? I added it same time as the thyme and it came out good but wanted to double check and ask.
Hi Nicole,
That was a perfect time to add the parsley. I will fix the post. 🙂 Thanks so much for sharing with us.
I love your recipes! But, being from Louisiana, it is my responsibility to let you know that a true Cajun would NEVER use the word “crayfish”. Because I like you, I want you to know that they are called “crawfish”. Crayfish sounds cray cray:)
Love ya!
Thanks Diana! I look forward to the update! 🙂
Made this last night and it was awesome! I chopped up the veggies really small and even my picky eater ate the entire bowl!
★★★★★
Awesome! I’m glad you guys liked it!
YUM! Going on my meal plan, friend! Love this beautiful and simple dish!
★★★★★
Thank you for sharing with your readers!!
We love creole, etouffe, and gumbo though, sadly, I never make any of them myself! 🙁 I love that this is affordable and a double batch – it’s pinned for next week’s menu since I’m trying to stock my freezer for those late afternoon swim team days that are just around the corner. Thanks!
Dena, you are such an encourager! What a blessing you are! Just wanted to let you know that!
I’ve never really thought about the problems with seafood in other parts of the country. My family is blessed to live in southern Louisiana where you can get fresh fish, shrimp, oysters, and all manner of seafood right off the boats. The prices aren’t unreasonable so we eat seafood at least once a week. Finding grass fed beef around here though isn’t nearly as easy. (:
Natalie! You’re the Cajun I wish I was, lol! 🙂
Hahaha the food down here is great!
Okay – this looks good but I gotta ask -how on earth is it only $5. The meat alone would cost me more than that!
Price break down? 🙂
Absolutely!
The recipe as written covers two nights worth of meals, so the breakdown for one meal is: chicken ($1), shrimp ($1.50) and nitrate-free chicken sausage ($0.75). I buy the vegetables listed in bulk from Costco, so the per item cost on those is really low. Spices and other things are just pennies, making the total skirt in just under $5 for each meal. It would be less for non-organic foods and is always slightly conditional on the produce available in your area. 🙂
What are you paying per pound for organic chicken, shrimp and sausage when you shop? Do you aim for around $6/lb for shrimp – split it into 8oz. portions and call it two meals?
I do agree with Lydia; that the prices seem REALLY low, but what I’m guessing, is that you go extra light on the meat, and heavy on the veggies…
Either way, I’d love to see a greater breakdown on recipes like these. My family loves seafood !
★★★★★
Hi Mary Katherine,
On average, we pay $2.49/lb for organic chicken. I do aim for $6/lb for shrimp and I can get nitrate-free sausage regularly for $3 per 12oz package. If we’re hosting company, we’ll serve the whole pound of shrimp. Otherwise we split into 8oz portions and make two meals, as you wrote.
I’ll update the post with a more accurate calculation of the prices, but you’re right, light on meat and heavy on veggies!