Sweet & Spicy Buttermilk Shrimp

2 Reviews / 3 Average
If you love Bang Bang Shrimp then you'll love this better-for-you version of Sweet & Spicy Buttermilk Shrimp. They aren't deep-fried like at the restaurant and are topped with a homemade sauce without the unwanted ingredients. They make the perfect appetizer to hold you over till dinner.
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Breaded buttermilk shrimp covered in sweet and spicy sauce on a white dish with chopsticks.

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One thing I love about making shrimp is how quickly it cooks. Add on a few extra minutes to mix up the sauce in this Sweet & Spicy Shrimp recipe, and you’ve got a tasty dinner on the table in 15 minutes or less.

Copycat Bang Bang Shrimp

This recipe could be considered a better-for-you (and not as spicy) version of Bang Bang Shrimp (which is deep-fried), and my child who “thinks” she doesn’t like shrimp was even willing to try it. Hey, with all the tasty stuff this shrimp is coated in you might just forget what you’re biting into on the inside!

Featured Comment

We tried this tonight and it was so good! My whole family loved it! It came together much quicker than I anticipated, too!
– Michelle

How Long Can Shrimp Marinate in Buttermilk?

While I made this recipe so that you can quickly pull it together for dinner, you can leave it marinating in the fridge for up to 3 or 4 hours.

Can You Double Fry Shrimp?

If you’d like them to be extra crispy, readers have suggested double coating them. Do one layer of buttermilk, then roll in flour, then back in the buttermilk, and one more layer of flour.

What to Serve with Sweet & Spicy Shrimp

Serve this Sweet & Spicy Shrimp with a green veggie, or even some slaw, and brown rice (we love those quick-cooking packets), and your quick and easy dinner is done!

Breaded buttermilk shrimp that was just cooked sitting on a napkin with a bowl of sauce and a whisk ready to pour over them.

More Shrimp Recipes You Might Enjoy

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18 thoughts on “Sweet & Spicy Buttermilk Shrimp”

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Recipe Rating




  1. 1 star
    The pan fried shrimp was great, however when I made the sauce and tried it, it was really not good. I didn’t bother to put it on the shrimp, it had a weird mix of sour and spicy. The sour cream was not a good choice here, maybe a mayo based or sweetened condensed milk based sauce would have worked much better here.

    1. Thanks for your feedback on this recipe. In most of our recipes, we try to avoid mayo since store-bought mayo isn’t exactly what Lisa calls “real food”. You can certainly try again with that substitution and let us know if you like it better. – Nicole

    1. 100 Days Admin

      Hi Amy, while we haven’t tried a dairy-free sub, it looks like oat milk and apple cider vinegar or even lemon juice would work. – Nicole

      1. 5 stars
        We tried this tonight and it was so good! My whole family loved it! It came together much quicker than I anticipated, too!

  2. 100 Days Admin

    Sorry about that! That step accidentally got deleted but we’ve fixed it. Please refresh the page to see the entire recipe. – Nicole

    1. Cassidy Clairmont

      You can make your own buttermilk easily. For this recipe you would put 1 1/2 tsp of vinegar in your measuring cup then fill to the 1/2 C line with milk. Let sit for 5 minutes.

    1. 100 Days Admin

      Sorry about that! That step accidentally got deleted but we’ve fixed it. Please refresh the page to see the entire recipe. – Nicole

    1. Ha! I just said the same thing and guessed air fried. But you are right, the recipe did call for coconut oil! I think the cooking step is missing because eating wet flour would not be delish, haha.

    2. 100 Days Admin

      Sorry about that! That step accidentally got deleted but we’ve fixed it. Please refresh the page to see the entire recipe. – Nicole

    3. 100 Days Admin

      Sorry about that! That step accidentally got deleted but we’ve fixed it. Please refresh the page to see the entire recipe. – Nicole

    4. 100 Days Admin

      Sorry about that! That step accidentally got deleted but we’ve fixed it. Please refresh the page to see the entire recipe. – Nicole

    5. 100 Days Admin

      Sorry about that! That step accidentally got deleted but we’ve fixed it. Please refresh the page to see the entire recipe. – Nicole