Jamaican Curry Shrimp
Enjoy bold, tropical flavors with Jamaican curry shrimp thanks to coconut milk, curry powder, garlic, and bell peppers. And, of course, we can’t forget the delectable, juicy shrimp. This mouthwatering stew is flavor-packed yet surprisingly straightforward to make.
I know this dish looks exotic and complex, which may scare off some people, but honestly, it’s not any of those. Large, juicy shrimp simmered in a hearty sauce infused with garlic, thyme, ginger, and curry powder are pure yum!!!
Speaking of curry, if you haven’t made my easy curry powder, then you’re missing out. Store-bought curry powder pales in comparison to homemade. So take a little time, try it, and tell me what you think.
The Secret to Extraordinary Shrimp
Besides the perfect curry powder, coconut milk gives this dish a unique flavor. Anyone who has tried Thai curry knows what I’m talking about. Plus, you can have this easy shrimp recipe on the table in about 30 minutes, including prep. Your family will be a bunch of happy campers.
How to Make Jamaican Curry Shrimp
- Season and saute the shrimp, and set aside.
- Sauté onions, garlic, thyme, and curry powder for 2-3 minutes. Add the scotch bonnet pepper if using, pour in the coconut milk, and stir in the tomato paste.
- Pour in the broth, add the carrots, and simmer. Add the bell peppers and cook for a minute or two, and add the shrimp back in. Adjust seasonings and enjoy.
Recipe Tips
- If shrimp is not your thing, you can make curry chicken with breast or thighs.
- Use full-fat coconut milk for the best shrimp curry. Or even better, make your own super fast.
- Curries and stews can burn quickly, so stir often and reduce the heat to low for a burn-free stew.
- Some people swear that soaking shrimp in beer for 10 minutes helps their texture and flavor. Just don’t go longer than that, or it can ruin the texture instead of helping it.
Make-Ahead and Leftovers
Overcooking shrimp is easy, so I follow the recipe until it goes in. Let the stew cool and store it in the fridge until the next day. Add the shrimp while the stew is reheating and simmer until it’s done. Enjoy a fast and easy meal.
You can store leftover Jamaican curry shrimp in the fridge for 3-4 days or in the freezer for three months. Gently reheat in a saucepan on low just until it starts simmering. It also makes an ideal addition to soups and stews.
Perfect Pairings for Jamaican Curry Shrimp
This recipe is excellent with Jamaican pigeon peas and rice or rice and beans. Simple coconut rice turns this into tropical goodness. Vegetables on the side, like broccoli, side salad, or whatever vegetable suits your mood.
More Incredible Shrimp Recipes
By Imma
Watch How to Make It
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This blog post was first published in May 2016 and has been updated with new tips, fresh photos, and a video.
Jamaican Curry Shrimp
Ingredients
- 1-1½ pounds (450-680g) extra-large shrimp, peeled and deveined
- salt and pepper to taste (see notes)
- 1 teaspoon (2g) Jamaican curry powder
- 2 tablespoons (28ml) cooking oil (canola, sunflower, or avocado works fine)
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 3-4 large cloves garlic, minced (1 tablespoon minced garlic)
- 2 teaspoons (2g) fresh thyme, minced (or ½ teaspoon dried)
- 1-2 tablespoon (6-12g) Jamaican curry powder
- 1 scotch bonnet pepper (optional)
- 1 tablespoon (15g) tomato paste
- ½ cup (70g) sliced carrots, blanched or frozen (optional)
- ½ red or green bell pepper, diced (or both red and green)
- 2 green onions, chopped
- 1-1½ cups (236-350ml) unsweetened coconut milk
- 1 cup (236ml) broth or more (see notes)
Instructions
- Heat oil over medium heat in a heavy-bottomed Dutch oven. Season the shrimp with salt, pepper, and curry powder. Sauté until barely opaque and slightly curled. Remove from the pan and set aside.
- Add onions, garlic, thyme, and curry powder to the same pan, and sauté for 2-3 minutes. If using scotch bonnet pepper, add it at this time.
- Add tomato paste, optional carrots, bell pepper, and green onions, followed by coconut milk and broth. Bring it to a boil, then simmer for 7-10 minutes.
- Toss in the shrimp and heat through. Adjust for salt, pepper, and thickness. Enjoy!
Tips & Notes:
- Salting shrimp to taste is easy. Start with ¾ teaspoon per pound of cleaned shrimp. You can always add more later.
- I used chicken broth in this recipe, but making your own shrimp broth is easy. Cover the shrimp shells with some chopped celery and garlic in a saucepan and simmer for 30-45 minutes or until the water reduces by half, then strain and use.
- You can use habanero pepper instead of scotch bonnet pepper, or add a ¼ teaspoon of cayenne pepper (adjust to taste) if you want some heat. If not, leave it out completely.
- Please keep in mind that the nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary significantly based on the products used in the recipe.
Check step 3 . It’s stated . Thanks!
Made this the other day and my neighbors enjoyed it. The curry sauce over the rice was the best, didn’t need the shrimp (ok it helped). Gonna try the curry chicken recipe next. One more thing I like the step by step directions and pictures of the process. Thanks again
My pleasure! So glad to hear the step by step pictorials are really helpful . Thanks for taking the time to share this with me .
Thank you so much for this amazing recipe!! I made it tonight for my family and everyone loved it! Just the right amount of spice and flavor. I followed the recipe with no variations. Will defiantly be making again.
You are Welcome Melinda! Thanks for the feedback! Glad to hear it’s going on the menu again.
I have tried different Curry Recipes & this recipe Is the best! I added Mussels with the shrimp, My Family loved it.
That’s so fantastic !!! I’m so pleased to hear it turned out well with added Mussels , thanks for letting me know!
Yes it is.
Outstanding! This recipe is a great base for you to customize. I used frozen diced green, red and yellow peppers. I didn’t have fresh thyme so I used dried. I also used store bought curry powder but I certainly intend to make my own, now that I have a recipe. I added a 1/4 tsp of roasted chili powder ( I didn’t have scotch bonnet) and the heat was perfect. Hot enough to give you a sniffle but not enough to distort the flavor or set your mouth on fire . For me tomato paste or canned tomatoes always need a pinch of sugar to cut the acidity and believe me, that little pinch really made a difference. Salt is absolutely necessary, taste and adjust. My only problem was thickening. I added cornstarch (dissolved in water) to help thicken up the broth but it just didn’t thicken to my liking, or hardly for that matter. I was afraid if I added more cornstarch it would alter the taste so I left it as is and enjoyed it over some basmati rice. All and all this is a great easy recipe. Thank you so much xoxo
I forgot to add I also used a tiny pinch of powdered ginger!
Awesome! Glad it all worked out for you. Thanks for taking the time to offer feedback.
This looks great and am going to try it. I will also try preparing your curry powder and use that. I think, though, that you meant to say that the store bought curry powder pales in comparison to yours, not the other way around 🙂
Yes! Thanks for the clarification.
Tofu is good, make sure it’s the extre firm and extract the water first. I cut it into bite sized cubes and added after onions. But Tempeh is even better!
Hey IB, you still have your metaphors mixed up when comparing homemade curry powder to store-bought, better change that!
Thanks for the feedback Kim. I have made the corrections.
. What’s a good brand of curry to use?
I make my own curry powder featured here . Or try Chief if you can find it .
I never make comments on recipes, but I had to stop and praise this one! I used some quick fixes to make my usual curry powder similar to yours, adding Dijon mustard and ginger root. It was so delicious I couldn’t wait to get up the next morning and eat it again. I’m a Georgia girl and ended up with Shrimp and Grits, which was even better than the creamy rice I made the night before! Thank you so much!
Awesome! Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts. I appreciate you!!!
Hi Imma,
What rice do you use? I can’t find Jamaican rice in my local grocery stores.
Thanks for the great recipe!
I always use Long grain rice (Basmatic rice) for most of the recipes here.
Oh, this was SO GOOD! Next time I think we’ll use less broth to make it a thicker sauce, but all the flavours were there! Thanks!
Nice recipe but the food came out bland.
Thanks for giving this a try. Sorry to hear you didn’t enjoy it. what kind of curry powder did you use? Homemade makes it really flavorful.
This was delicious and simple. I absolutely love your recipes!
Awesome!!! Thanks for feedback Amber
I usually use chicken broth. However, feel free to use whatever you have on hand.
What a spatular curry dish Imma! You’re totally right. The name of the dish sounds very exotic, but surprisingly I found I have all the ingredients in my kitchen. Can’t wait to try it out!
What kind of vegetable is served with the curry in the picture above? Are those plantains or sweet potatoes? Something else???? Looks amazing! 🙂
Thanks! They are Plantains(Fried) .
I love curry. Love curry shrimp. With rice, roti, bread.. lol. I love seeing the different processes for currying too.
I love curry! Especially with shrimp. And I will definitely be looking up your curry mix recipe. I use curry mix all the time.
Don’t just taste way better than the bottled ones?
I am such a curry fan. I looked through the ingredients and it is amazing how universal the basics are. They transcend so many food cultures. I make a lot of Indian food and it is very similar. The colors you have on this dish are amazing. I need to try this more Caribbean style of curry.
I love how this can be made in about 30 minutes! Some nights you just don’t feel like cooking, so this would be a perfect flavor packed meal for those nights!
Oh, this looks wonderful! So vibrant and fresh! I must make this ASAP! Yummed and pinned!