Air Fryer Coconut Shrimp with Habanero Passion Fruit Dipping Sauce
Golden, crispy and juicy air fried coconut shrimp with a sweet and spicy habanero passion fruit dipping sauce.
Ingredients
- 1-2 lbs tail on jumbo shrimp - 13-15 per pound
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 cup Tapioca starch
- 2 cups full fat coconut milk
- 2 cups panko breadcrumbs
- 1 cup finely shredded coconut - unsweetened
- 1 cup larger shredded coconut - unsweetened
To serve:
- Sweet and Spicy Habanero Passion Fruit Dipping Sauce recipe and instructions in notes
- Lime slices
Instructions
- Peel and devein the shrimp but leave the tails on. Rinse and pat dry, season with salt and pepper.
- Preheat air fryer to 400 Deg F. Or per your air fryer instructions (See notes for conventional oven)
- Set the tapioca starch in a shallow bowl, next to that the coconut milk in another shallow bowl and in the third bowl whisk together the panko and two kinds of shredded coconut.
- Working with one shrimp at a time, coat in the tapioca, tapping off excess, next dip in coconut milk and fully cover the shrimp, again tapping off excess then finally set into the panko coconut mixture and press the mixture into the shrimp making sure it is well coated. Set the shrimp on a parchment lined tray after they are coated in everything and ready to fry. Once all are coated set the shrimp on the tray in the refrigerator to chill for 20 minutes.
- Preheat your air fryer according to manufacturers directions and spray the air fryer basket with oil.
- Place the shrimp in the bottom of the basket in an even layer, do not overlap them as many that fit in your fryer. Spray with oil. Fry at 380 Deg F for 12-14 minutes, flipping carefully at 6-8 minutes, spraying the tops with oil after flipping, until golden brown. You will have to make these in batches, once fried, set them on a wire rack set on a baking sheet in a warm oven to keep hot ( set oven to 200 Deg F then turn off but keep baking tray in oven to keep warm). My air fryer basket fits 10-12 shrimp in an even layer. Frying time will vary depending on how many shrimp you can cook at once.
- Once all the shrimp are fried, serve with sweet and spicy passion fruit dipping sauce.
Notes
Sweet and Spicy Habanero Passion Fruit Dipping Sauce
Makes about a cup of sauce
1 yellow bell pepper, charred
¼ habanero pepper, charred
1 shallot, peeled and diced ( about ¼ cup)
1 large clove garlic, minced
2 tablespoon sugar
¼ cup rice wine vinegar
¼ cup fresh passion fruit juice, no seeds or pulp
⅓ cup honey
¼ teaspoon salt
Roast the bell pepper and habanero chili over open flame until fully charred. Transfer to a bowl and cover to steam.
Wearing gloves, remove the charred peel, stem and seeds from habanero chili. Cut a very small piece, about 1cm by 1 cm, roughly ¼ of the chili, and add it to a blender. Start with less these are very hot can always add more.
Remove the charred peel, stems and seeds from the yellow bell pepper and roughly chop. Add to the blender along with the rest of the ingredients and blend until smooth
Transfer to a sauce pan and bring to a boil, lower to a simmer and stir until thickened. Taste and add more honey if a sweeter sauce is desired.
Transfer to a bowl and chill to further thicken. Can be served cold or room temp.
Notes:
Habanero chilis are HOT. They work really well with the bell pepper and passion fruit in this sauce. If you don’t want a hot sauce at all, leave them out. If you want more heat, do so at your own risk by adding in more of the chili. If you want an even sweeter sauce add more sugar or honey.