- Hey, everyone, it's Natasha of natashaskitchen.com,
and today, I'm gonna teach you how to make
the ultimate party appetizer.
It is a make-head, super easy shrimp cocktail.
You're gonna love this sauce,
so let's get this party started.
(hands tapping) (electronic music)
I have two pounds of peeled and deveined
fully thawed shrimp with the tails still on.
Give those a quick rinse under cold water,
then, thoroughly pat dry with paper towels.
You wanna make sure there's no excess water
on those shrimp.
If you can find shrimp that are already peeled,
that's even better because it cuts the prep time in half.
Transfer those to a large rimmed baking sheet
and drizzle the top with about a tablespoon and a half
of olive oil, then sprinkle on half a teaspoon of sea salt
and half a teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper.
Give the shrimp a quick toss to combine,
then, spread them in an even single layer on your pan.
Now bake them in the center of a fully preheated oven
at 450 degrees Fahrenheit.
For extra large, 16 to 20-count shrimp,
bake for eight to 10 minutes,
and for smaller 21 to 25-count shrimp,
bake for six to seven minutes.
Take them out of the oven when they're just cooked through
and they've turned pink.
And as soon as they come outta the oven,
you wanna carefully transfer them right away
to a serving platter.
Make sure to get them off of the baking sheet
because if they sit on a hot baking sheet,
they can overcook.
Set the shrimp aside to cool to room temperature.
Now we're gonna make that fabulous zesty cocktail sauce.
In a small mixing bowl, combine half a cup of ketchup
and half a cup of regular chili sauce.
Next, add three to four tablespoons of prepared horseradish.
The horseradish does give it a nice spicy kick,
so add this to taste.
Next, add 1 1/2 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice.
And if you don't have a good lemon squeezer,
you'll love this one.
I'll leave a link to it in the notes.
(laughing)
Next, add a teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce
and half a teaspoon of hot sauce
or add the hot sauce to taste.
Stir everything together to combine,
and the sauce will taste pretty spicy at this point,
but keep in mind, you wanna refrigerate that sauce
for at least an hour and give the flavors
a chance to meld and mellow out.
Transfer the sauce to a serving dish,
then, cover the sauce and the shrimp
and you wanna refrigerate that
for at least an hour or overnight.
This is completely a make-ahead recipe.
The shrimp and the sauce taste best
when they are fully chilled,
so keep it in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
All right, it is the moment I've been waiting for,
the taste test.
The shrimp is nicely chilled,
and you wanna make sure that you let that sauce rest
at least an hour.
And it's totally make-ahead.
I think it tastes even better the next day
because the flavors meld.
Mm, mm, mmm.
This looks so good.
That's a lotta shrimp, but I'm telling you,
it makes a big batch, but it's great
because it always disappears fast.
And to serve, I love adding some lemon wedges
so people can squeeze fresh lemon juice over their shrimp.
So I have a trick.
The best way to get even lemon slices
is I'll just have to show you, okay?
(lemon smashing)
All right. (laughing)
Impressive. (laughing)
A little messy, but whatever.
(laughing)
Okay.
I'm just gonna squeeze some fresh lemon juice
right over these shrimp.
Okay.
And then, add some more to our platter.
Oh, these are just irresistible.
This is always the empty platter at parties.
They go so fast.
All right.
I'm gonna dig right in because I can't wait. (laughing)
Okay, here we go.
Mmm.
Mmm, mm hmm.
Mmm.
That combination of flavors in the cocktail sauce,
oh, it is the perfect balance of tangy and spicy.
You've got a little bit of kick from the horseradish sauce
and the hot sauce, and you can add those to taste.
If you like a little more heat,
add a little more.
That's what we do. (laughing)
It tastes amazing chilled, which is awesome
because this is completely a make-ahead appetizer.
Also, when you roast shrimp,
it's so much more flavorful than boiling
because the store-bought cocktail rings,
that's usually boiled shrimp.
This has just, just this natural sweet,
roasted flavor in it.
Anytime you roast any kind of meat or seafood,
it always tastes better.
It is the perfect make-ahead appetizer,
and this literally takes like 15 minutes.
It is so fast, easy,
absolutely delicious, and I hope this becomes
your new favorite shrimp cocktail.
You'll never want the store-bought again.
I'm just gonna warn ya right now. (laughing)
So delicious.
Make this for your next party,
and it will disappear fast.
Hey, before you go, if you guys are looking
for more quick and easy appetizers,
you have to make that one right over there,
and don't miss that one right down there.
And before you go, make sure you click below to subscribe,
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We'll see you in our next video.