New England Shrimp Rolls

Putting a little Southern spin on classic New England lobster rolls with these simple and delicious shrimp rolls! They’re an easy and delicious 15-minute lunch or dinner when served alongside coleslaw, potato chips, hush puppies, or pickles!

After a lifetime of summer vacations spent on the Vineyard, my mom has mastered the art of the New England lobster roll — served on a buttered, toasted, split hot dog bun with just a touch of mayo to let the lobster shine. On a warm summer day, there’s just nothing better than a chilled sandwich and a cold beverage.

Since we live in the southeast, however, where lobster is not exactly easy to come by, I’m putting a Southern spin on one of our favorite summer meals with these New England-style shrimp rolls. After all, shrimp is abundant around here, it’s more affordable than lobster, and it’s absolutely delicious when turned into a shrimp sandwich filling!

Make the shrimp roll recipe ahead if you’re entertaining, or whip up the no-cook meal in about 15 minutes. And if you love shrimp as much as we do, be sure to try these marinated grilled shrimp, these crispy fried shrimp, and these quick honey garlic shrimp, too!

The Best Shrimp for a Shrimp Roll Recipe

You have plenty of options when it comes to the shrimp that you use in this recipe. You’ll need peeled, cooked and deveined shrimp that are diced into bite-sized pieces. I typically take a shortcut and purchase fresh or frozen pre-cooked shrimp so that all I have to do is chop them up. I like the meatier texture of large or extra-large shrimp, but any size will work fine.

If you’re starting with raw shrimp, you will need to cook them before proceeding with the recipe. To do so, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Once the liquid boils, turn off the heat. Add the shrimp to the hot water and allow the shrimp to poach, uncovered, for a couple of minutes (stirring occasionally) just until they turn pink.

While the shrimp cooks, prepare an ice bath by combining cold water and a lot of ice in a large bowl. When the shrimp is just pink and opaque, transfer the shrimp to the ice bath to immediately chill and stop the cooking process. Allow the shrimp to sit in the ice bath for 10 minutes. Drain, pat dry with a paper towel, and peel (if necessary). Pat dry again, cover, and refrigerate until ready to use.

Serving Suggestions

Offer a couple of quick sides to round out the meal and your summer picnic is complete! Here are some easy options that go well with the shrimp rolls:

• Hush Puppies or Hoe Cakes
• Potato chips
• House Salad with Candied Pecans, Southern Caesar Salad, Green Salad with Red Wine Vinaigrette, a Classic Caesar Salad, Mixed Greens with Dijon Vinaigrette, or a Wedge Salad
• Cucumber Salad with Vinegar (shown here), Cucumber Radish Salad, Pickled Red Onions, Pickles, or Cucumber Dill Salad
• Baked Potato Wedges
• Southern Macaroni Salad
• Carrot and Raisin Salad
• Vinegar Coleslaw
• Three Bean Salad
• Broccoli Cauliflower Salad
• Corn Salad or Rice Salad with Corn, Bacon and Pimentos
• Southern Succotash
• Fruit Salad
• A simple green salad dressed in Pepper Jelly Vinaigrette
• Easy Potato Salad

Plus, don’t forget a cold drink! A chilled beer, a glass of white wine, a pitcher of sweet tea or freshly-squeezed lemonade will all be perfect.

Recipe Variations

• Seafood Roll: You can use just about any seafood that you prefer in this dish. Swap out the shrimp and replace it with imitation crab, real crabmeat, or lobster meat. You can also use a combination of seafood — for instance crabmeat and shrimp. Just make sure that you have a total of 1 pound of cooked seafood for the recipe.
• Add finely diced red onion instead of the green onion for a little bit of zesty flavor. Alternatively, you can use chives instead of green onions for a mild flavor.
• Swap out the dill for other fresh herbs, such as parsley, basil, thyme, or oregano.
• Add horseradish to the sauce for a bit of spice.
• Instead of toasted hot dog buns, serve the shrimp salad mixture on croissants, brioche buns or other sandwich rolls, pita bread, with crackers, or on top of salad greens.

Tips for the Best Shrimp Roll Recipe

• Pat the shrimp dry so that it doesn’t water down the dressing.
• I use large or extra-large cooked shrimp. The larger shrimp have a meatier texture, but you can substitute with any size shrimp that you prefer.
• Use a high-quality mayonnaise (we prefer Duke’s brand) for the best flavor.
• Scale the recipe up or down to suit the size of your family. For instance, if you’re feeding a larger group, double all of the ingredients.
• For a classic New England-style preparation, use top-split hot dog buns like these.
• Old Bay is a seafood seasoning that we love in Virginia, but you can omit that ingredient if you don’t have it on hand.

More Shrimp Recipes to Try

Honey Garlic Shrimp {15 Minutes!}

15 minutes mins

Marinated Grilled Shrimp

35 minutes mins

Italian Baked Shrimp {20 Minute Dinner!}

20 minutes mins

Shrimp Rolls

5 from 3 votes

Prep: 15 minutes minutes

Total: 15 minutes minutes

Servings 4 people

Calories 414 kcal

Putting a little Southern spin on classic New England Shrimp Rolls with this simple and delicious sandwich recipe!

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Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 1 lb. peeled and deveined cooked shrimp, chopped into bite-size pieces (see note below if starting with raw shrimp)
• 1 stalk celery, finely diced
• 2 green onions, thinly sliced
• ⅓ cup mayonnaise
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon white vinegar
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh dill
• ¼ teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
• ¼ teaspoon sugar
• Kosher salt and freshly-ground black pepper, to taste
• 4 hot dog buns, split
• 2-3 tablespoons salted butter, at room temperature
• Optional garnish: fresh parsley or additional dill

Instructions

• Pat shrimp dry and place in a large bowl. Add the celery and green onions; toss gently to combine.
  
• In a separate bowl or large measuring cup, whisk together the mayonnaise, lemon juice, vinegar, dill, Old Bay and sugar. Add the mayonnaise mixture to the shrimp mixture; toss to coat. Taste and season with kosher salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
  
• Butter the cut sides of the hot dog buns. On a griddle or in a cast iron skillet, toast the buns buttered-side down, until golden brown. Fill each bun with shrimp salad. Garnish with additional dill or freshly-chopped parsley.
  

Notes

• Pat the shrimp dry so that it doesn’t water down the dressing.
• I use large or extra-large cooked shrimp. The larger shrimp have a meatier texture, but you can substitute with any size shrimp that you prefer.
• Use a high-quality mayonnaise (we prefer Duke’s brand) for the best flavor.
• Scale the recipe up or down to suit the size of your family. For instance, if you’re feeding a larger group, double all of the ingredients.
• For a classic New England-style preparation, use top-split hot dog buns like these.
• Old Bay is a classic seafood seasoning that we love in Virginia, but you can omit that ingredient if you don’t have it on hand.
• If you’re starting with raw shrimp, you will need to cook them before proceeding with the recipe. To do so, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Once the liquid boils, turn off the heat. Add the shrimp to the hot water and allow the shrimp to poach, uncovered, for a couple of minutes (stirring occasionally) just until they turn pink. While the shrimp cooks, prepare an ice bath by combining cold water and a lot of ice in a large bowl. When the shrimp is just pink and opaque, transfer the shrimp to the ice bath to immediately chill and stop the cooking process. Allow the shrimp to sit in the ice bath for 10 minutes. Drain, pat dry, and peel (if necessary). Pat dry again, cover, and refrigerate until ready to use.

Nutrition

Serving: 1shrimp rollCalories: 414kcalCarbohydrates: 23gProtein: 28gFat: 23gSaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 309mgSodium: 1271mgPotassium: 195mgFiber: 1gSugar: 4gVitamin A: 296IUVitamin C: 7mgCalcium: 251mgIron: 4mg

Keyword: new england shrimp roll, shrimp roll recipe, shrimp rolls

Course: Dinner, Lunch

Cuisine: American

Author: Blair Lonergan

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