Ebi Fry, an easy Japanese-style dish of shrimp dipped in egg, flour and panko, then fried until it turns to a delicious, crispy golden brown. Serve with some tartar sauce, or even on a bed of hot white rice.
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Ebi Fry Vs Shrimp Tempura
As a kid, ebi fry and shrimp tempura were my gateway to Japanese cuisine, and ones that I would always order whenever given the chance. Though honestly, these succulent shrimps are still a favorite to this day.
There’s only a slight difference between the two, and that lies in the batter that it’s coated with. For shrimp tempura, that would normally be flour, egg, and a bit of starch for that airy and crispy bite. Whereas for ebi fry, there’s the use of Panko crumbs for the coating.
What Is Ebi Fry?
Ebi fry is a Japanese shrimp dish that’s dipped in egg, flour, and Panko crumbs, then fried until it turns into a beautiful golden brown. It has that delightful crunchy texture, and is prepared similarly to other Japanese fried dishes such as korokke.
It’s often eaten as a dish on its own with a side of tartar sauce or tonkatsu sauce, but it’s not unusual to pair it up with a bowl of hot white rice. (Which is just the way I like it!)
This breaded fried shrimp is one of the more popular Japanese-style Western dishes, known as “yoshoku”. Some other yoshoku dishes include omurice, curry rice, tonkatsu, and chicken katsu curry.
Ingredients You’ll Need
(For full ingredient measurements, please proceed to the recipe card below.)
- Shrimp
- Eggs
- Flour
- Panko crumbs
- Salt
- Pepper
- Tartar sauce
How To Make Ebi Fry (Fried Shrimp Japanese-style)
Shrimp prep (for straight ebi fry)
- Peel the skin off the shrimp and only leave the tail. Rinse and devein.
- Optional: Mix the peeled and deveined shrimp with 1 tbsp of corn starch and then rinse (see notes).
- Cut off a little bit of the end of the tail to prevent oil explosion when frying because of the water trapped there.
- Make slits on the underside of the shrimp and flip it over.
- Press down and bend the shrimp backwards (see notes).
- Pat dry then season with salt and pepper.
Dredging
- Break two eggs in a bowl and whisk it.
- Season with a pinch of salt and pepper.
- Add flour and mix it all together. Prepare the panko crumbs in a separate tray.
- Coat the shrimp with the egg mixture then with the panko crumbs.
- Heat oil over medium heat and once it’s hot enough, fry the shrimp for 3-5 minutes or until golden brown.
- Let the shrimp rest on a cooling rack for a few minutes and serve with tartar sauce or as a side for your favorite dish. Enjoy!
Notes for Ebi Fry (Fried Shrimp Japanese-style)
- Cleaning Shrimp – I mix the peeled and deveined shrimp with 1 tbsp of corn starch and then rinse it off. This helps to get rid of the fishy smell.
- Shrimp prep (for straightening) – You can skip the shrimp prep (straightening the shrimp), but ebi fry is traditionally straight.
- Cut off tail – Cut off a little bit of the end of the tail to prevent oil explosion when frying because of the water trapped there.
- Am I prepping it correctly? – You want to feel like a little bit of “tearing” when straightening to know if you’re doing it right.
- Air fry option – You can also air fry this at 390°F for 10 minutes. Make sure to spray a layer of oil on the bottom of the air fryer basket before placing in the shrimp.
More Japanese Recipes
- Japanese Garlic Fried Rice (15 Minutes)
- Crunchy Creamy Crab Croquette
- Karaage Don
- Gyudon (Japanese Beef Rice Bowl)
- Spicy Tuna Onigiri (Japanese Rice Balls)
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Ebi Fry (Fried Shrimp Japanese-style)
Ingredients
- 1 lb shrimp
- 2 eggs
- 3 tbsp flour
- Panko crumbs
- Salt
- Pepper
- Tartar sauce
Instructions
Shrimp prep (for straight ebi fry)
- Peel the skin off the shrimp and only leave the tail. Rinse and devein.
- Optional: Mix the peeled and deveined shrimp with 1 tbsp of corn starch and then rinse (see notes).
- Cut off a little bit of the end of the tail to prevent oil explosion when frying because of the water trapped there.
- Make slits on the underside of the shrimp and flip it over.
- Press down and bend the shrimp backwards (see notes).
- Pat dry then season with salt and pepper.
Dredging
- Break two eggs in a bowl and whisk it.
- Season with a pinch of salt and pepper.
- Add flour and mix it all together. Prepare the panko crumbs in a separate tray.
- Coat the shrimp with the egg mixture then with the panko crumbs.
- Heat oil over medium heat and once it's hot enough, fry the shrimp for 3-5 minutes or until golden brown.
- Let the shrimp rest on a cooling rack for a few minutes and serve with tartar sauce or as a side for your favorite dish. Enjoy!
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