As you’re winding down your summer, you may be thinking through all of the things you had hoped to do during these months of late sunsets and al fresco nights.  I know at the top of my personal summer bucket list was to throw an at-home shrimp boil for our closest friends.  

A boil, I’ve found, always feels more impressive than it really is to pull off.  It’s one of those hands-off ideas for the hosts; they can still enjoy themselves while the food is cooking, and every single thing can be prepped the night before.  Not to mention, it’s a fun thing to do when the guests are already there, too.

We usually stick to crab boils, but we also have found that those can add up quickly.  Shrimp boils, on the other hand, are fun, easy and cost less to bring to life.  PLUS, a shrimp boil doesn’t require as big of equipment; you can use a 16-20 quart pot that goes on the stovetop instead of the big old cooker you need to order off Amazon. 

I kept the shrimp boil recipe pretty simple and straight forward; it has the standard corn on the cob, red potatoes and andouille sausage that pair perfectly with the shrimp in the Cajun seasoning. 

Speaking of seasoning, if you’ve never tried Slap Ya Mama seasoning, stop what you’re doing right now and stock up on a supply.  We run through this stuff so fast in my house.  It’s hands-down the best flavoring, in my opinion, for something like this. 

When planning serving sizes and the grocery run, I always approach it as I want each person to get a piece of corn, 3-4 potato pieces, etc.  This way, I’m able to accurately proportion all of the ingredients.  This recipe in particular should serve 6-8 people. 

A few things to keep in mind as you’re cooking: you don’t want the potatoes to turn to mush and fall apart.  Remember that the boil becomes very hot as you’re watching the potatoes boil, before adding the shrimp and sausage.  The latter will only take about five minutes to cook.  It’s the potatoes you’ll want to keep the closest eye on!

You’ll also notice I added two large artichokes to the mix; I’ve started to see this more and more in boils and couldn’t wait to get on board with it myself.  Though something to note: I used them mostly for color here honestly, and if you want to serve them as part of the boil to eat, be sure to cut off the spiky corners of each leaf, as well as the central stalk. 

While you could most certainly serve directly onto a covered table, I kept mine on a sheet pan for easy clean-up.  And I think my final garnish of melted butter and chives really tie it all together.  You could also serve with fresh parsley; it adds that same pop of green that looks nice.  

So thrilled to check a Summer Shrimp Boil off the summer bucket list!  Do you have any final to-do’s like this great idea?  I’m also using about every summer fruit and seasonal flavor I can before we move onto fall.   Truly, MKR