This Instant Pot Cajun Shrimp Boil takes the classic elements of a shrimp boil-corn, red potatoes, andouille sausage, shrimp, and lots of Cajun spices-and scales them down for a Sunday family dinner. Best of all, by pressure steaming in layers rather than boiling in water, every single bite retains maximum spice and seasoning.
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My friend Rhonda lived in New Orleans for years, and one of the treats of our fall is when she gets all of our friends together and makes a shrimp boil. It makes quite a show when she pours out the big strainer pot of shrimp, potatoes, corn, and sausage onto a newspaper-covered table, where we dig in with our bare hands.
Now, obviously I can't do that in an Instant Pot - Rhonda uses an outdoor boiler with a huge strainer pot inside - but I can do a small-scale version when I want to make it for a smaller Sunday dinner.
The trick is not to boil, but to steam. I tried it both ways, and I got better results when I steamed everything in the pot with a small amount of liquid. Everything was more seasoned when I steamed it - the whole pot of water was diluting the seasoning too much, no matter how much extra seasoning I added.
The only other trick to this recipe is to layer the ingredients. The lower ingredients in the pot (potatoes, sausage) need a little more cooking, so they're sitting in the liquid to start.
This is a surprisingly easy recipe to put together - it seems complicated, but there is not much prep work beyond thawing the shrimp and peeling the corn on the cob. Add everything in layers, sprinkle each layer with seasonings, and you're ready to cook.
Ingredients Notes and Substitutions
Concentrated Seafood Boil: I'm adding a lot of concentrated seafood boil to 1 cup of liquid, because I want to flavor the steam in the pot as much as possible. If you have to substitute dry seafood boil, stir ¼ cup of dry boil into the 1 cup of water. (Dry boil is a lot less concentrated than the liquid seafood boil.)
Frozen shrimp: You can quick-thaw frozen shrimp by putting them in a bowl and running cold water over them for about 15 minutes, then pat them dry and toss with the seasoning. (I can start thawing the shrimp before I start adding things to the pot, and the shrimp will be thawed before the pressure cooking is done.)
Old Bay and Cajun Seasoning: All the shrimp boils I've had use both Old Bay and Cajun seasoning, which make a good blend of spice flavors. (For the Cajun seasoning, I like Slap Ya Mama, but my friend Rhonda swears by Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning). If you want to kick up the heat, replace the Old Bay with more Cajun Seasoning. (To kick the heat up to levels unknown, add ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper to each layer of spices.) If you use my salt-free Homemade Cajun Rub as your Cajun seasoning, add ¼ teaspoon of fine sea salt to each teaspoon of Cajun seasoning (and ¾ teaspoons of fine sea salt to the tablespoon of Cajun seasoning tossed with the shrimp.)
Frozen corn on the cob: You can use frozen corn on the cob - do everything as written, and add a 12-piece package of frozen corn on the cob, still frozen, for the corn layer. (That is the equivalent of 4 whole ears of corn, but rather than leaving a few extra pieces, I use them in the recipe.) The pressure cooking time is unchanged with frozen corn.
Andouille Sausage: If you can't get andouille sausage, substitute kielbasa or smoked sausage.
Cajun hot sauce: I like Crystal, but Tabasco and Louisiana hot sauces also work well with this recipe.
How to make Instant Pot Cajun Shrimp Boil in pictures
Layer the ingredients in the pot
Add the water and concentrated crab boil, then a layer of potatoes and sausages, then a layer of corn on the cob. Sprinkle with Cajun seasoning and Old Bay.
Pressure Cook for 8 minutes with a quick release
Pressure cook on high for 8 minutes with a quick pressure release
Make garlic butter while we pressure cook
While we pressure cook, melt the butter on the stovetop, and add the garlic and seasonings.
Cook the shrimp in the residual heat
Toss the shrimp with Cajun seasoning and old bay. Unlock the lid and spread the shrimp out over the corn. Cover the pot and let the shrimp steam for 10 minutes. Serve with the garlic butter and enjoy!
Tips and Tricks
Serving the pot liquid as cups of broth: This is not for the faint of heart - there is a lot of seasoning in that broth - but if you can take the heat, a cup of broth makes a great side dish. (It's also good for dipping bread into.)
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Instant Pot Shrimp Boil
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
Ingredients
- 1 cup water
- 1 tablespoon concentrated liquid seafood boil
- 1.5 pounds (24oz) petite red skin potatoes (aka New potatoes or baby potatoes)
- 1 pound andouille sausage, cut into 2-inch pieces (or smoked sausage or kielbasa)
- 1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
- 1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning
- 3 ears fresh corn, peeled and broken in half (6 pieces)
- 1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
- 1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning
- 1 pound 16-20 count easy-peel shrimp, thawed, with shell still on
- 1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning
Cajun Garlic Butter (Optional, for dipping)
- 1 stick of butter (4 ounces)
- 3 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
- 1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning
- A few dashes of Cajun hot sauce
- 1 tablespoon fresh chopped parsley
Instructions
- Layer the ingredients in the pot: Add water and 1 tablespoon concentrated liquid seafood boil to an Instant Pot or other pressure cooker. Add the potatoes and sausage in a flat layer, and sprinkle 1 teaspoon Old Bay and 1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning evenly over the potatoes and sausage. Add the ears of corn in a flat(ish) layer, and sprinkle 1 teaspoon of Old Bay and 1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning evenly over the corn.
- Pressure cook for 8 minutes with a quick release: Lock the lid and pressure cook for 8 minutes with a quick release - it is the same timing for Instant Pots and stovetop pressure cookers. (Use Manual or Pressure Cook mode set to 8 minutes in an Instant Pot.) Quick release the pressure.
- Steam the shrimp: Unlock the lid, tilting it away from you to avoid the hot steam. Toss the shrimp with 1 tablespoon of Cajun seasoning and add it in a layer on top of the pot. Put the lid back on the pot (use a non-pressure lid if you have it) and leave the pot on keep warm mode. (Use low heat with a stovetop PC). Let the shrimp steam in the covered pot until they are pink all the way through, about 10 minutes.
- Make the Cajun garlic butter (optional): While the shrimp are steaming, make Cajun garlic butter on the stovetop. Melt the stick of butter in a small pot over medium heat. When the butter stops foaming, add the garlic, Old Bay, and Cajun seasoning, and cook for 1 minute to release the flavors in the garlic and spices. Remove from the heat and mix in a few dashes of Cajun hot sauce and the chopped parsley. Pour into separate dipping bowls, one per person.
- Serve and enjoy: Scoop the shrimp boil out of the pot with a slotted spoon and transfer to a large platter (or individual serving bowls). Drizzle a ladle of the pot liquid over the shrimp and serve with the dipping bowls of garlic butter. Enjoy!
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
Nutrition
- Serving Size: A big bowl
- Calories: 862
- Sugar: 17 g
- Sodium: 813.4 mg
- Fat: 57.8 g
- Carbohydrates: 79.5 g
- Fiber: 32.8 g
- Protein: 40.7 g
- Cholesterol: 208.3 mg
What to serve with a Shrimp Boil
Other than the boil and the garlic butter, I like to serve a couple of lemons cut into wedges, a bottle of Cajun hot sauce, a bottle of cocktail sauce, and bread (rolls or a loaf of french bread cut into pieces). This is a meal in a pot, so you don't have to serve anything else with it, but for some extra sides serve coleslaw, potato salad (like my Instant Pot Potato Salad), and/or Instant Pot Dirty Rice.
Related Posts
For some other classic New Orleans recipes re-interpreted for the Instant Pot, check out my Instant Pot Red Beans and Rice, Instant Pot Brown Rice Jambalaya, Instant Pot Shrimp Etouffee, Instant Pot Cajun Pinto Beans, or Instant Pot Rotisserie Chicken Gumbo Soup.
If you're looking for something else, here is my index of Instant Pot and Pressure Cooker Recipes.
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