Bang Bang Shrimp from the Bonefish Grill is crispy, creamy, sweet and spicy with just a few ingredients and tastes just like the most popular appetizer on the menu.
Bonefish Grill Bang Bang Shrimp is a recipe that in no way is authentic to another cuisine, but it is definitely a delicious appetizer and hands down the most popular item on the menu. When we go to the Bonefish Grill we actually order two of these appetizers to prevent fighting over them.
It actually reminds me of the Panda Express Crispy Honey Shrimp with Walnuts entree I did a recipe for last year. The main ingredients at play here are mayo, a very specific Thai Sweet Chili Sauce and Sriracha. 
I’ve read countless versions of the recipes online for this Bang Bang Shrimp and came across a post where a reader said he worked for the chain and that they would soak the shrimp in buttermilk before breading. This made total sense to me because most of the recipes I’d seen didn’t have enough body in the coating to be like the original.
I’d also caution you to use the right brand of sweet chili sauce as that is authentic to the recipe as well. A friend who used to work at the restaurant confirmed the brand of sweet chili sauce used in the recipe.
Looking for more Asian Food?
- Asian Sweet Chili Chicken
- Cheesecake Factory Mandarin Cashew Chicken
- PF Chang’s Orange Peel Chicken
- California Pizza Kitchen’s Kung Pao Chicken Spaghetti
- General Tso’s Chicken
- Easy Mongolian Beef
- Panda Express Recipes… every single one in fact: Panda Express Recipes Index
- Many more Chinese food options…
Tools used in the making of this Bonefish Grill Bang Bang Shrimp:
Thai Sweet Chili Sauce: The authentic sauce used in the Bonefish Grill kitchen, if you don’t want to order it online, it is widely distributed in Asian grocery stores.
Sriracha: The king of chili garlic sauces, always keep this in your kitchen.
Dutch Oven: Perfect for deep frying, inexpensive pot and will last you for years.
Oil Thermometer: Keeping the oil at the right temperature will ensure you don’t burn the shrimp or have soggy shrimp by frying too hot or too cold.S
Shrimp Deveiner: If you love cooking with shrimp you will love this tool, it makes cleaning shrimp a hundred times easier!
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1/4 cup Thai sweet chili sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon Sriracha
- 1 pound shrimp shelled and deveined
- 1/2 cup buttermilk
- 3/4 cup cornstarch
- canola oil for frying
Instructions
- In a small bowl add the mayonnaise, Thai sweet chili sauce and Sriracha and stir.
- In a second bowl add the shrimp and buttermilk and stir to coat all the shrimp.
- Remove from the buttermilk and let excess liquid drain away.
- Coat the shrimp in cornstarch.
- In a heavy bottomed pan add 2-3 inches of canola oil and heat to 375 degrees
- Fry the shrimp until lightly brown, 1-2 minutes on each side.
- Once fried coat with the sauce and serve immediately.
Notes
Nutrition
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This was AMAZING. I didn’t have sweet Thai chili sauce so I substituted 2 tbls chili paste and 2 tbls quality honey. Did everything the same and it turned out wonderful. Thank you.
Loved this recipe, came out perfect thank you so much,would never had thought of you corn starch.
how do we feel about me using oat milk (maybe with lemon juice?) instead of buttermilk? okthxbye
I have not tried it that way but experimenting is half the fun! Hope it turns out well!
Totally awesome recipe! I, too, doubled the sriracha amount and my husband scraped every drop of the sauce off the plate as he smiled and remarked that it was better than Bonefish! Thank you so much for sharing this awesome recipe ??
Made this after looking at countless other recipes, and only thing i did differently was add twice the listed amount of Sriracha, It came out absolutely amazing, tastes exactly like Bonefish as well, Definitely going to make this all the time now!
Thanks, Dakota! love to hear this!
Thank you so much for this recipe. I was so nervous to make it but my dad and brother loved it. I’ll definitely be using more of your recipes.
Thank you, Georgiana!
Love this recipe!
Looks real good. Do you start with raw or pre cooked shrimp? Thanks
For this recipe, you need raw shrimp.
I do a bit of travel for work and have come across the bang bang shrimp at bonefish Grill. Not much to do when you’re on the road by yourself. I followed the recipe to a T and it came out absolutely perfect! I do agree with other readers about adding additional space to make it truly authentic but my kids raved about it., No disappointment in this household.
Scott this is awesome! thank you for your support.
I am getting ready to make this tomorrow; is it possible to leave the shrimp in the refrigerator overnight after they have been coated wit the cornstarch.
I don’t recommend doing that because the coating will get wet and the texture can become mushy.
Very good recipe
Since a lot of folks have commented on this recipe already, I thought I would just add my $.02 in terms of what worked for me when I made this dish tonight. First, for the sauce, I reduced the mayo from 1/2 to 1/4 cup. Next I increased the sweet thai chile sauce to 1/3 cup. Also, per some suggestions here, I added a little lemon juice, vinegar and dijon mustard. Lastly, I increased the siracha to 1 and 1/4 teaspoon to give it that Bonefish bang.
As for the shrimp, after soaking in the buttermilk for 5 min, I used a mixture of cornstarch and flour for 1/2 of them and panko crumbs for the other half so we could compare how each fried up. Also, I followed the suggestion to deep fry the shrimp and used a combination of canola and peanut oils. The panko coated shrimp were definitely crisper and reminded us more of Bonefish. I think next time I make this dish, I will combine all three, cornstarch, flour and panko to see how it turns out, although we were very pleased with the results we achieved tonight.
I have not try this recipe yet but plan on doing so soon. Can you serve this over rice and broccoli for a meal instead of appetizer?
Sure!
Hello! I am going to make this tonight! Do you think it would come out just as good in the air fryer?! Thank you for the recipe!
Hi! I haven’t tried it in an air fryer so I am not sure how different it would be, sorry!
Very good! As indicated throughout the comments we thought it needed more sriracha. Wish we could reproduce this recipe without frying—would be a bit healthier, but I’m sure I’ll make it again.
So easy and tastes great!
Made this and it was great!! I had to keep adding sriracha and sweet chili to taste but it was good! I also used this recipe with already cooked shrimp and it still worked out well. Excited to try the honey walnut shrimp recipe next 🙂
What size shrimp, or doesn’t it matter?
I normally use 16-20 count.
Why you keep the shell on ?
Sorry for any confusion, shelled means taking the shell off. I should’ve said “peeled and deveined”.
May I ask what form of Sriracha is being used in this recipe – sauce or seasoning?
sauce, the red rooster squirting bottle with the green nozzle top.
Any specific mayonnaise
Not that made a difference in my recipe testing, but I used Best Foods.
After making it can you refrigerate for a couple days would it still be good?
I do not recommend freezing this recipe, as the panko-coated shrimp will be mushy once thawed. To reheat, coat a baking sheet with nonstick spray, and rewarm shrimp on the baking sheet in the oven at 350 degrees F.
Can you substitute buttermilk for a dairy free milk like almond or oat?
I would add 1 tablespoons of lemon juice to 1/2 cup almond milk to make your own dairy free buttermilk to use. Easy peasy!
I have never used corn starch for frying. Could you coat it in flour?
Yes, I was just making it a copycat and doing exactly what Bonefish does for their recipe. Good luck!
OMG! This was SO easy. So GOOD! I will definitely be making this again.
Yay!! Thanks for the 5 stars!
AMAZING Recipe! I had this at Bonefish grill in Florida a while ago and loved it soo much looked for a recipe for it on-line. Came out great and the family thoroughly enjoyed it. I probably could have eaten the entire thing myself but was forced to share. Thank you for a wonderful recipe!!
Good for you for sharing! I know how hard it can be with this dish.
Oh, so good! Made this tonight. Let the shrimp hang out in the buttermilk for about 5 minutes. I dredged them in the cornstarch and let them sit on a paper towel while the oil got hot. They came out perfect. I adjusted the Sriracha to about 1 full tsp. It was perfect! Thank you for the wonderful addition to the meal rotation!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Julie.
Can I use precooked large shrimp for this. ? Or must it be fresh
I need a good appie for tonite but I am a few hours from town. Just looking for options
I am just seeing this tonight. I am sure the recipe has long been cooked/or not but I still want to try to help.
No pre-cooked wouldn’t work for this, it has to be raw.
Tastes just like Bonefish!
Yay!! Thanks for the 5 star rating, JD.
I made this tonight but cornstarch did not stick to shrimp so did not brown – flavor was ok but did not look great – any thoughts – thinking I should have used peanut oil – used LsCreuset pan so think the oil was hot enough – frustrating!
Oh no! After you coat in cornstarch (try pushing down a bit to really get it on there), gently place it into the oil as to allow it to stick. You can also place them in the fridge for about 30 minutes after the cornstarch and before frying to allow it to settle a bit more. Hope this helps for next time.
What is the thai sweet chili brand? The link is not working for me. Thanks!
Mae Ploy Sweet Chili Sauce. Enjoy!
Hello made the shrimp tonight and it was a success! The only thing that might make it better would be knowing where to get one size of shrimp above baby shrimp. I bought what the market had and these were the smallest but they were not close to baby shrimp size. Do I need to go to a seafood market? BTW had to add Siracha to the mix, wasn’t nearly enough and believe me, I don’t like breathing fire.
Amazing!
Soooooo good! We added a lot more Sriracha but starting off with a little and adding more to your taste is how it should be done so you can adjust it to your liking. No complaints- this was awesome and simple!
Excited to try
I made this last night for my son’s 30th birthday. I’ve never had the original and do not eat spicy foods. This turned out amazing! I love that the shrimp were crunchy, and tasty even before I added the sauce. The sauce had a kick, but tolerable. Everyone enjoyed it. Will make this again. Thank you!
I’m glad to hear it was such a hit, Omayra.
I’ve made this 3 times and can’t wait to make it again! My only comment is that I cut the Mayo and sweet chili sauce in half and it’s still plenty to coat the shrimp perfectly.
Hi! This sounds really good! Do you think it could work in an air fryer? Thanks!
I haven’t tested it but if you decide to try, I’d love to know how it turns out. Thanks!
This is the one I use in air fryer not as crispy as this recipe
Ingredients
½ cup mayonnaise
¼ cup Thai sweet chili sauce
½ teaspoon Sriracha
1 tablespoon honey
1 pound shrimp, peeled, deveined, tail removed
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup panko
nonstick cooking spray
Instructions
Preheat the air fryer to 380°F and spray the basket of the air fryer with nonstick cooking spray.
In a small bowl, combine the mayonnaise, Thai sweet chili sauce, Sriracha, and honey. Mix well and set aside.
Set out three bowls. In one bowl, add flour. In the second bowl, pour in the buttermilk. In the third bowl, add panko.
With each piece of shrimp, first, dredge in the flour. Then, dip the shrimp in the buttermilk, and finally, coat with the panko. Gently press the panko into the shrimp to set the final coat.
Place the coated shrimp in the basket of an air fryer and spray the tops of the shrimp with nonstick cooking spray. Cook for 6 minutes. Then, using tongs, flip the shrimp over and cook for another 6 minutes, or until golden brown.
Remove the air fried shrimp and coat with the bang bang sauce. Serve immediately
One of the best copycat recipes and so easy to make! I also had some scallops and they were just as good. I only added a little more Thai sauce and sriracha. Delicious! Thank you for the recipe. I will be making this again and again!
You’re welcome, Beth.
The person that left the bad review must have done something wrong. Not to mention rude! Was delicious ?
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Can I use popcorn shrimp or do I buy deveined and peeled raw shrimp and then cut off the tail? Sorry, I have never cooked shrimp before and really want to try this!
I am just seeing this tonight. I am sure the recipe has long been cooked/or not but I still want to try to help.
No it can’t be popcorn shrimp unless you’re just making the sauce, it has to be raw shrimp.
OMG!
These Shrimp are delicious!
And so easy to make.
I think they are every but as good as Bonefish Grill.
I will definitely be making these again.
Thanks for coming back to let me know how much you enjoyed them, Barry.
I posted my comment before, but it looks like it might have been deleted. Anyway, I made this two days ago for one of my Christmas Dinner appetizers. We tasted the sauce before I put it on the shrimp. Good thing. I doubled the recipe, but there was very little taste of sriracha at all. We added much more sriracha and also hot sauce to make it spicy. We also added the requested Thai Sweet Chili Sauce. After the additional spicy sauces, everyone loved the dish.
I’m so glad you were able to customize it more to your liking, Betty.
I made this recipe yesterday as one of my appetizers for Christmas dinner. We tasted the sauce before coating the shrimp”. We all agreed it was super bland. We added a lot more Sriracha and finally got the sauce to have a little kick. Most of us do not really care for super spicy or hot foods, , it was really good.
Can you make these in the oven on 375 in a Dutch oven?
I’ve never tested it that way but my gut is telling me it won’t be the same. Sorry.
This is so good, but a bit spicy. Has anyone seen a mild version of the Bang Bang Shrimp recipe?
You could always cut back on the chili sauce and sriracha to make it milder. Good luck!
I loved the recipe but my coating came out a little to hard. What did I do wrong?
Oh no! Did you use a thermometer to check the heat of the oil? I’m glad to hear you still enjoyed it.
Awesome!! Loved it. Thanks so much!!
I’m sorry but I tried this recipe last night and it tasted nothing like Bone Fish Bang Bang Shrimp. My family Loves Bone Fish Bang Bang Shrimp and we could not eat what I made following this recipe to a tee. So sorry for the poor review.
Sorry it didn’t live up to your expectations.
I both worked at bonefish as a line cook and use this recipe once per year around the holidays, it’s almost an exact duplicate minus a couple minor bells and whistles. We also didn’t soak the shrimp overnight in buttermilk but it’s a countrywide chain at this point now so it could vary based on the head cook and his training.
I would say something in your process was missed if it turned out bad. The bang bang shrimp is the most basic recipe we had on the menu and we couldn’t even supply enough of it due to demand and how good it is.
This recipe isn’t 100% accurate, but it’s very close and really good.
Try the recipe one more time and make sure to use a sweet Thai chili sauce you know you like, because the sauce is everything with this dish.
Thanks, Chris.
Is there a certain brand of sweet Thai chili sauce to use? I don’t want to mess this up. 😉
Thank you for any advice.
There’s a link to the one I use in the tools used section above the recipe. Enjoy!
Several people have suggested adding more sriracha and changing a few other things. After attempting this today, I think next time I make this I will substitute Japanese Mayo for American, sriracha sauce for sriracha Mayo, and Panko breadcrumbs for cornstarch or flour. Also, rather than dredging shrimp, I think I will use a bag to apply the breading for a better result, along with a deep fryer rather than a pan.
FANTASTIC!!!! For our 30th wedding anniversary-my husband and I decided to recreate some of our favorite restaurant date night dishes. This one nailed it perfectly!!! Thank you!!!!
Yay!!
Can I soak the shrimp in the buttermilk for a few hours before coating them in corn starch and frying?
I’ve never tried the bone fish version but this recipe is amazing. My husband even said this was his favorite meal I’ve made. Already made it twice, definitely going in my weekly rotation