Bang bang sauce is a creamy and spicy sauce that is often used in Asian-inspired dishes. It typically contains mayonnaise, chili garlic sauce, sriracha, and other seasonings.
It can be used as a dipping sauce for seafood such as popcorn shrimp, chicken, or vegetables, or as a dressing for salads. The sauce is known for its unique combination of sweet, spicy, and tangy flavors.
I recently tried Bang Bang shrimp at the Ground Round. If you don't have a Ground Round, it's pretty much like a Ruby Tuesdays type restaurant. On their menu, they had this appetizer called Boom Boom Shrimp. Boom Boom shrimp is similar to the famous Bang Bang Shrimp dish at Bonefish Grill. While we were eating the shrimp we pretty much made fun of the name the whole time because we thought it was so silly.
The air fryer is one of my favorite kitchen appliances. Check out some of these recipes! Air Fryer Omelette, Air Fryer Poutine, or Air Fryer Turkey Breast!
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Why You Will Love this Recipe
Breading shrimp is kind of messy ordeal. I dislike having to dip my fingers in gooey flour hands and eggs. Using breaded popcorn shrimp will save extra time.
Plus, popcorn shrimp comes out super crispy in the air fryer!
Keep this bang bang sauce in your fridge at all times! It's good on burgers or brushed on grilled corn.
Ingredients Needed
Shrimp - There are thousands of ways to cook your shrimp. Grill or air fry. See my methods below in the recipe. I always make sure my shrimp are defrosted first. Place the frozen shrimp in a bowl with some water. Takes less than an hour to defrost.
Low-fat mayonnaise is a reduced-fat alternative to traditional mayonnaise. It typically has fewer calories and less fat than regular mayonnaise
Sweet chili sauce is a condiment commonly used in Southeast Asian cuisine. It is made from chili peppers, vinegar, sugar, and garlic, and has a sweet and slightly spicy flavor.
Sriracha sauce is a type of hot sauce made from chili peppers, vinegar, garlic, sugar, and salt. It originated in Thailand but has gained popularity worldwide in recent years
Serve Bang Bang shrimp on a bed of coleslaw or have it with a side of rice and some asparagus. There are recipes floating around for bang bang shrimp pasta.
See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.
How to make Bang Bang Shrimp
Step 1: Set your air fryer to 400 degrees. Place the popcorn shrimp in the air fryer basket and let the shrimp air fry for 8 to 10 minutes.
Step 2: In a small mixing bowl, combine all the ingredients for the sauce and whisk until well combined.
Step 3: Taste the sauce and adjust the seasoning according to your preference. Add more Sriracha sauce if you like it spicy, or honey if you prefer it sweeter.
Coat the air-fried shrimp in the sauce and serve it over rice (optional).
Recipe Tip: Bang bang sauce is also great with chicken, fish, or shrimp, or use it as a salad dressing or sandwich spread. Enjoy!
Tips for using Air Fryers
The air fryer is so great for cooking simple basic food like air fryer steak, air fryer hard-boiled eggs, and air fryer bacon. Cook up some air fryer chicken breasts for the week and use it chicken quesadillas.
Overcrowding: Do not overcrowd the basket. Place items in a single layer in the air fryer basket or some food will not cook properly or all the way through.
Use a spray oil such as Pam to get food extra crispy and to save on calories.
Use parchment paper on the bottom of your air fryer for easy clean up.
Recipe FAQs
Bang bang sauce is usually made of mayo Sriracha and sweet chili sauce. I lightened this sauce up by using Greek Yogurt.
The Sriracha gives the sauce a little spicy kick and sweet chili sauce gives the sauce a little bit of sweet flavor for taste bud explosions in your mouth!
What air fryer do I use?
Cosori 4 Qt Air Fryer- This air fryer doesn't require any preheating and has several different functions for cooking chicken, meat, frozen foods, etc. There are 5 different functions.
More Air Fryer Recipes:
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Air Fryer Bang Bang Popcorn Shrimp
- Prep Time: 5min
- Cook Time: 10 min
- Total Time: 15min
- Yield: 6 to 8 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Grill
- Cuisine: American
Description
This bang bang shrimp uses frozen popcorn shrimp and these take 8 to 10 minutes in the air fryer. The sauce can be made while the shrimp are cooking for an easy appetizer!
Ingredients
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- ¼ cup sweet chili sauce
- 2 tablespoons Sriracha sauce
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 pound of popcorn shrimp
Instructions
- Set your air fryer to 400 degrees. Place the popcorn shrimp in the air fryer basket and let the shrimp air fry for 8 to 10 minutes.
- In a small mixing bowl, combine all the sauce ingredients and whisk until well combined.
- Taste the sauce and adjust the seasoning according to your preference. Add more Sriracha sauce if you like it spicy, or honey if you prefer it sweeter.
Notes
Bang bang sauce is also great with chicken, fish, or shrimp, or use it as a salad dressing or sandwich spread. Enjoy!
Nutrition
- Calories: 122
- Sugar: 1.24
- Sodium: 435mg
- Fat: 5.65g
- Saturated Fat: .81
- Carbohydrates: 2.79
- Fiber: 0
- Protein: 14.4g
Renee Z says
Just made this on the grill and it is delicious!!! Very easy
Jenna says
When you first load the page that is the original recipe which calls for 1.5 tablespoons.
The scale is there to help you adjust the recipe if you need to serve more or fewer people.
Megan says
Does this recipe use 1.5 or 5.5 T of sweet chili sauce? When I initially open the page, it says 1.5T. If I click on the ingredient adjusting scale option for “1x”, it changes to 5.5T. Obvious that a big difference in points for blue!
Jenna says
I have two different cooking methods to make this. You can choose which one you use...
Laina says
I’m excited to try this! Just for clarification- for raw shrimp do you grill THEN air fry them? Or is it grill (raw), bake (for pre-cooked) or air fryer (precooked or raw) and you only use one cooking method?
Jenna says
There are multiple ways to cook shrimp! Baked, air fried, pan-fried, etc..
Ashlee says
So it’s winter here and freezing but I want to make this. Can I make it in the oven or on gorge Forman with raw shrimp?
Heather says
I love bang bang shrimp from bahama breeze, I however only tolerate the shrimp part because its breaded and you can barely feel the texture... I am going to make this this week but use grilled chicken... I am so excited for the bang bang sauce recipe!! thank you!!!
Janet Lambert says
Really yummy. Served on a bed of arugula salad with fruit and corn on the cob. Perfect summer meal
Jenna says
Yes, cook shrimp in air fryer until they are done. Then mix the sauce together and toss the cooked shrimp in the sauce.