Homemade Shrimp Toast (No Egg Needed)5 (1)
Nostalgic Chinese food is making a huge comeback now, with fancy restaurants and home cooks alike re-indulging in their favorite Chinese Takeaway dishes from their childhood. From classics like General Tso’s Chicken, to Peking Duck, this nostalgic food not only holds a place in peoples hearts, but it also tastes great. Perhaps one of the favorite nostalgic foods is the classic Shrimp Toast. For this recipe we’ll show you how to prepare a simple Homemade Shrimp Toast from scratch. This Shrimp Toast recipes does not require Egg either, so one less ingredient and great for anyone with Egg allergies!
Why does everyone love Shrimp Toast so much?
Theres a saying in the heavy metal music community (of which I’m a big fan of!) which goes something along the lines of “Don’t trust anyone who doesn’t listen to Slayer”. The same should be said for Shrimp Toast. Don’t trust anyone who doesn’t eat Shrimp Toast! Good food is all about creating a combination of great flavors and texture, and Shrimp Toast delivers both in tonnage!
Obviously there is the nostalgia behind the dish. Who doesn’t remember enjoying these crispy fried morsels of greatness on a Friday night, complete with that sweet and sour sauce that was as bright as the surface of the sun!
They were a wonderful way to kick off Chinese Takeaway, and perhaps one of the few foods that truly symbolize the start to the weekend (along with Fish and Chips and Pizza of course!)
Our Homemade Shrimp Toast stays true to the classic, but the flavors are elevated
The flavor of our delicious Homemade Shrimp Toast is simply outstanding and is achieved by adding a whole bunch of beautiful aromatics to the Shrimp. This dish is truly about elevating the flavors from the Chinese takeaway version, which lean towards flavors on the fattier, oilier side of the spectrum
For this dish the flavors are amazingly balanced, which is due to adding a delicious combination of Garlic, Ginger, Scallions, Cilantro, Soy Sauce, and a dash of Chinese Vinegar to the Shrimp. The flavor is uniquely balanced, with every ingredient added to the Shrimp given space to flourish. You can truly taste every ingredient in each bite, and it’s a phenomenal experience!
To prepare the Shrimp you can either combine all the ingredients into a food processor, or simply chop it all up on a heavy cutting board. We didn’t bother using a food processor and were able to cut the Shrimp into a beautiful paste-like texture. By avoiding a food processor, you can also achieve a texture that doesn’t feel as dense or gummy. You’ll also have a few larger bits of Shrimp which adds to the overall eating experience
Many Homemade Shrimp Toast Recipes require Egg Whites, however our recipe doesn’t need it
Egg White is commonly added to the Shrimp paste mixture before it is applied to the bread. It’s main purpose is not for flavor, but to help bind the Shrimp mixture together. In our Homemade Shrimp Toast recipe, we’ve found that this step is completely not necessary. Once finely chopped the ingredients will hold together very well, and stick to the Bread without the need for Egg. So, this recipe is great for folks who have Egg allergies, as well as people who don’t want to waste an Egg for no real reason in a dish!
Preparing the Shrimp Toast for cooking
The final step before cooking is to liberally smear the Shrimp paste that you’ve created all over some plain white bread. We recommend getting a thicker cut of bread as this will produce a heartier Shrimp Toast. Heck, you can even go for Texas Toast for the optimal Shrimp Toast experience, but really, any regular White Bread is totally fine
Slice the crusts off the bread and then apply the Shrimp Paste liberally over one side of the Toast. Try to cover the toast completely so that the Shrimp goes all the way to the edge. For this recipe we use 8 regular sized Shrimp, which was enough to generously coat 2 pieces of white bread. So, consider 4 Shrimp will cover 1 piece of Toast and plan according to those ratios
Applying the Sesame Seeds
This part is easy, albeit a bit daunting because it’s the first of two times you’re going to completely tip over the bread to have the Shrimp mixture facing down. Trust in the stickiness of the Shrimp mixture adhering to the bread and you’ll be fine during this step
Scatter a generous amount of Sesame Seeds out on a large surface and then place the bread Shrimp-side-down straight onto the seeds. The seeds will instantly stick to the Shrimp on the Toast. Flip it back over then use any remaining seeds to cover up any gaps. You want the entire Shrimp Toast to be covered in Sesame Seeds
Homemade Shrimp Toast requires 4 minutes of shallow frying in hot oil
2 minutes on each side is all that is required to cook this dish completely through. Heat the Oil in a large frying pan, ensuring you have enough Oil to form a small pool that completely covers the pan. We’re not deep frying this dish, just shallow frying, so enough Oil to ensure each part of the Toast will have constant contact with the hot oil while cooking
Begin by placing the Toast Shrimp-side-down straight into the Oil. Carefully place the toast into the Oil and always remember to slowly drop it into the Oil, and always do so facing away from you. This way, if any Oil splashes up, it’ll splash away from you! Safety first!
Cook it for 2 minutes until you can see the edges are turning a darkish brown color. Then, flip the Toast carefully and cook the bread side for a further 2 minutes. Once cooked, place the Shrimp Toast onto some paper towels to remove any excess Oil before slicing and serving
Recipe Details
2 – 4 people
15 minutes
5 minutes
20 minutes
Homemade Shrimp Toast Recipe
Ingredients
- 8 Large Shrimp, uncooked
- 2 slices of White Bread
- 2 tbsp. Sesame Seeds
- ½ inch of Ginger, grated
- 2 Garlic Cloves, finely chopped
- ½ tsp. Chinese Cooking Wine (Shaoxing Wine)
- 1 tsp. Soy Sauce
- ½ cup of Neutral Frying Oil (eg: Canola or Vegetable Oil)
Instructions
- If required peel and devein the Shrimp, and remove their tails then place in a food processor along with the Ginger, Garlic, Chinese Cooking Wine, Cilantro, and Soy Sauce
- If you do not have a food processor, simply cut the Shrimp into fine pieces so it resembles a paste and then mix in a small bowl with the other ingredients
- Remove the crusts from the White Bread and then generously smear the Shrimp mixture all over the bread. Be sure to cover the entire surface area
- Sprinkle the Sesame Seeds onto a flat surface so they are heaped together, but not piled on top of each other. Carefully place the Bread shrimp-side-down directly onto the Sesame Seeds to completely cover them
- Heat the Oil in a large frying pan until hot. You can check the temperature by dipping the bread crust into the Oil. If it immediately starts to bubble and begin to brown, the Oil is hot enough
- Carefully lay the Bread covered with Shimp and Sesame Seeds onto the Oil, Shrimp side down. Fry for 2 minutes and then carefully flip over and fry the bread side for 2 more minutes
- Remove from the Oil and place the Toast on a wire rack or paper towel to remove any excess Oil. Cut each piece into 4 triangles and serve with Sweet Chili Sauce
Recipe Notes
- If preparing the Homemade Shrimp Toast for more people, you can simply double the ingredients. Approximately 4 Shrimp is required for 1 piece of Toast
- If you have a kitchen thermometer you can use it to measure the right temperature of the Oil. Once the Oil hits 300F it’s good to go!
- We have a great video on our YouTube channel on how to correctly peel and devein Shrimp
That’s our delicious recipe for authentic tasting Homemade Shrimp Toast with no Egg needed! The best way to enjoy these delicious Chinese treats is with a big serving of Sweet Chili Sauce. Give these Shrimp Toast triangles a big dip into that sauce and enjoy!
If you enjoyed this recipe we just know you’re going to love these amazing Asian-inspired recipes on our website:
- Asian Pork Lettuce Wraps
- Japanese Beef Bowl (Gyudon)
- Panko Red Curry Chicken
- Air Fryer Chicken Spring Rolls
Happy Cooking!