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This Hot Shrimp Dip is cheesy, creamy, and such an easy party appetizer! It takes only minutes to prep then off into the oven to bake. It’s even make-ahead friendly!
Want more like this recipe? Try my Hot Spinach Dip and Crab Spinach Artichoke Dip next.
Table of Contents
Why We Love This Recipe
- Easy Appetizer – You can even prep the dip the day before and bake just before serving.
- Creamy and Cheesy – This dip uses three different cheeses!
- Versatile – You can serve this dip with crackers, raw veggies, crusty bread, and more!
Ingredients For Hot Shrimp Dip
I love that this recipe uses simple, easy-to-find ingredients.
- Unsalted Butter
- Medium Raw Shrimp – I find it easiest to buy shrimp that are already deveined, peeled, and tails removed. Frozen is fine but fresh is best.
- Green Onion – Adds both color and flavor! Use both the whites and greens.
- Garlic – Freshly minced is best, but you can use the kind in a jar too.
- Cream Cheese – You’ll want to use the regular block-style cream cheese and let it come to room temperature.
- Mayonnaise – You can also sub extra sour cream if you don’t like mayo.
- Lemon Juice – Freshly squeezed is best, but the kind in a bottle works too.
- Grated Parmesan Cheese – Divided for both melting into the dip and sprinkling on top.
- Shredded Mozzarella Cheese – Divided for both melting into the dip and sprinkling on top.
- Sour Cream
- Spices – Salt, Ground Black Pepper, Paprika or Old Bay Seasoning
How To Make Hot Shrimp Dip
See recipe card below for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
Prep – Start by preheating the oven and greasing a small (1-2 quart) baking dish with cooking spray.
Cook Shrimp – Cook the shrimp and green onion until just the shrimp turn pink and are cooked through. Don’t overcook! Add the garlic and cook for just a minute more.
Mix Up Dip – Turn off the heat and add the cream cheese, mayo, and lemon juice then stir until fully melted. Add in half of the parmesan and mozzarella, salt, and pepper and stir to fully melt.
Transfer To Dish – Transfer the shrimp dip mixture into the baking dish, sprinkle with the paprika (or Old Bay) and top with remaining cheeses.
Bake – Bake in the preheated oven, uncovered, until lightly browned and bubbly. Serve the shrimp dip hot with crackers, veggies, or crusty bread.
Serve – tortilla chips, vegetable sticks (like celery and carrots), pita chips, or even toasted baguette slices. Choose your favorite or mix and match for a diverse spread.
Recipe FAQs
Yes, you prep the dip up to one day in advance and store tightly covered in the fridge. Remove from the fridge and allow it to warm up for about 30 minutes while you preheat the oven for baking.
Yes, you can use frozen shrimp for this recipe, but they’ll need to be thawed completely. To quickly thaw frozen shrimp, you can run them under cold water. This only takes a few minutes.
While you can use pre-cooked shrimp (and skip the step of cooking the shrimp in the skillet and instead just melt the cheese together), I highly recommend using raw shrimp and cooking with the green onions and garlic for best flavor.
Storage
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Remember to give it a good stir before reheating and serving if the dip has separated or settled.
Creamy dips like this one tend not to freeze well due to the cream cheese content, as it can change in texture when thawed. It’s best enjoyed fresh or stored in the refrigerator for a few days.
Expert Tips
- Cream Cheese – For faster melting, make sure your cream cheese is at room temperature and I also like to chop it into small cubes so it incorporates faster.
- Shrimp Size – I like to chop the shrimp finely so you can easily pick up the dip with a cracker. If you want it really fine, you can use a food processor for a few pulses.
- Make It Spicy – If you want to make this dip spicy, try adding some hot sauce or red pepper flakes.
More Hot Dip Recipes
- Baked Garlic Dip
- Jalapeño Popper Dip
- Warm Crack Chicken Dip
- 3-Ingredient Chili Cheese Dip
- Buffalo Chicken Dip
Cheesy Hot Shrimp Dip
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/2 pound medium shrimp chopped (tail off, peeled, deveined, thawed)
- 1/4 cup green onion finely sliced
- 2 cloves garlic finely minced
- 8 ounces cream cheese room temperature
- 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese divided
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese divided
- 2 tablespoons sour cream
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon paprika or Old Bay seasoning
- Optional: Parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and prepare a small 1-2 quart baking dish with a coating of cooking spray. Set aside.
- In a large skillet, melt butter over medium high heat and cook shrimp and green onion for 2-3 minutes or until pink and cooked through.
- Add the garlic and cook for one additional minute.
- Turn off the heat and add the cream cheese, mayonnaise and lemon juice to the skillet.
- Stir continuously or until fully melted.
- Add ¼ cup parmesan cheese, ½ cup mozzarella, sour cream, salt and black pepper to the skillet and stir until the cheese is mostly melted.
- Transfer into the prepared baking dish and sprinkle the paprika or Old Bay Seasoning on top.
- Top with the remaining parmesan and mozzarella cheese and bake in the preheated oven, uncovered for 30 minutes or until lightly browned and hot and bubbly.
- Remove from the oven and serve hot with your favorite crackers, vegetables or bread.
Can this hot shrimp dip be kept warm in a crock pot while being served?
Yes you can set it to warm and serve from a crockpot.
Question: Can you use fully cooked frozen shrim in this dip?
Thanks.
Hi Maureen, Yes, you could use cooked shrimp. However you’d lose a little of the flavor from cooking with the onions and butter.