Shrimp Creole

Shrimp Creole is a Louisiana-style dish made with green bell pepper, sweet onion, celery, garlic, and shrimp all simmered in a tomato base seasoned with Creole seasoning and a splash of Tabasco. This flavor-packed meal comes together in about 30 minutes, making it ideal for any night of the week.

Shrimp Creole is such a delicious dish, full of rich flavor. Cajun food is one of my favorite regional cuisines. When most people think of Cajun, they think of super-hot, spicy food. Cajun cuisine, to me, is robust with tasty, succulent ingredients and spices. This Shrimp Creole gets plenty of amazing yumminess from stewed tomatoes, sweet onions, earthy bell peppers, and fresh succulent shrimp.

Ingredient Notes and Substitutions

See the complete list of ingredients on the recipe card below.

• Garlic: You can substitute garlic flakes, granulated garlic, or garlic powder.
• Creole seasoning: You can make this homemade. Cajun seasoning is also a great substitute.
• Worcestershire Sauce: If you do not have this on hand, you can mix equal amounts of soy sauce, ketchup, and white wine vinegar (or apple cider vinegar); this mimics its savory, tangy taste.
• Shrimp: I really prefer the wild-caught shrimp over the farmed-raised. Sometimes they are peeled and deveined, which saves you a little bit of time. Switch the shrimp out for andouille sausage, chicken, crawfish, or even make it a combination.

How To Make Shrimp Creole

This is a summary version; for the complete list of ingredients and instructions, please refer to the recipe card below.

1. In a large skillet, heat vegetable oil over medium heat. Toss in green pepper, onion, and celery. Cook until the onions are translucent and light browned.
2. Add in the Creole seasoning and garlic. Cook for an additional minute.
3. Stir in the Worcestershire sauce, stewed tomatoes, fire-roasted tomatoes, tomato sauce, and brown sugar.
4. Cover the skillet and simmer for about 20 minutes to meld the flavors. Add the shrimp and simmer for 2 minutes.
5. Season with Tabasco Sauce to taste. Serve over rice.

Preparation Tips

• Purchase the vegetables as fresh as you can.
• If you have fresh garden tomatoes that you canned, use them. Sun-ripened garden tomatoes have a lot of flavor.
• If you have a sensitive palate, add just a touch of Cajun seasoning before you simmer the tomato/veggie mixture. Then season to taste with more seasoning before you add the shrimp.
• If you are diabetic or simply watching your sugar, skip the brown sugar. It is a light touch of sweetness, and chances are pretty good that you prefer things less sweet.

Serving Suggestions

Serve over white rice, dirty rice, Charleston red rice, or cheesy grits. Or serve with a side of fried okra, collard greens, southern green beans, or hush puppies.

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Shrimp Creole

Shrimp Creole is a Louisiana style dish made with green bell pepper, sweet onion, celery, garlic and shrimp all simmered in a creole seasoned tomato base.

5 from 29 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: main meal shrimp

Cuisine: Creole

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes minutes

Servings: 4 servings

Calories: 188kcal

Author: Beth Pierce

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 green pepper cut in small dice
• 1 medium sweet onion cut in small dice
• 2 stalks celery chopped
• 4 cloves garlic minced
• 1 teaspoon creole seasoning
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
• 1 (14.5 ounce) can stewed tomatoes
• 1 (14.5 ounce) can fire-roasted tomatoes
• 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 lb wild caught shrimp peeled and deveined
• ½ to 1 teaspoon Tabasco Sauce

Instructions

• Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add green pepper, onion, and celery. Cook until the onions are translucent and lightly browned, 5-7 minutes.
• Decrease the heat to low. Add garlic and Creole seasoning; cook for 1 minute.
• Stir in the Worcestershire sauce, stewed tomatoes, fire-roasted tomatoes, tomato sauce, and brown sugar.
• Cover the skillet and simmer for 20 minutes. Add the shrimp and simmer for 2 minutes or until the shrimp are opaque and cooked through.
• Season with Tabasco Sauce to taste. Serve immediately over rice.

Nutrition

Calories: 188kcal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 24g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.03g | Cholesterol: 183mg | Sodium: 232mg | Potassium: 636mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 671IU | Vitamin C: 35mg | Calcium: 117mg | Iron: 1mg

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