Air Fryer Shrimp Toast (Crispy And Not Oily!)

This Chinese Air Fryer Shrimp Toast is crispy on the outside and not at all oily. Ever since I tried this method, I never deep-fried them again. It's easy to make and only takes 6 minutes to cook.

Can't get enough of Chinese Air Fryer Recipes? Try my Air Fried Fish Balls next!

🥡 About This Recipe

Shrimp Toast is one of my FAVORITE uses for the air fryer. It comes out incredibly crispy and is not nearly as oily as the deep-fried version.

The first time I made this was for dinner with my wife. She absolutely loved them, and she's from Hong Kong, so she's had her fair share of shrimp toast. Now, this is both of our preferred methods for cooking it.

🍤 Best Temperature Setting

I've experimented with temperatures ranging from 350℉ to 400℉ and found that 375℉ works best. This temperature gives you golden brown toast on the outside while keeping the shrimp moist and tender inside.

If you like to fill the toast with lots of filling, you may need to lower it to 350℉ so that the shrimp cooks fully before the toast gets too dark.

I found 400℉ was too high for almost all applications. The outside always burned before the inside was cooked.

🧂 Ingredients

• Bread: You can use whatever bread you like, but I prefer the more savory choices like milk bread or brioche. Shrimp toast is supposed to be savory, and since the air-fried version already uses less oil, it's ok to use a bread with more fat 🙂.
• Shrimp Filling: I've kept the filling pretty standard with shrimp, egg white, scallion, ginger, oyster sauce, toasted sesame oil, and white pepper. You can also add cilantro leaves, which taste terrific.
• Sesame Seeds: Just make sure they're raw sesame seeds, as already-roasted ones will burn in the air fryer.
• Oil: My favorite oil is peanut oil, but you can use whatever you have.

🔪 Instructions

For the filling, you can either use a food processor or a Chinese cleaver. The traditional method uses a cleaver, but I use a food processor because it's easier.

If you use the cleaver method, you will need to chop the shrimp into chunks and then use the side of the cleaver to smear it on the cutting board to turn it into a paste.

STEP 1: Place all the ingredients in a food processor. Blend for 2-3 minutes until you get a smooth and sticky paste. This can take a few minutes and is what gives the shrimp a springy texture. If you like a chunkier texture, you can leave some of the shrimp out and mix it in after you make the paste.

STEP 2: Spread the shrimp paste evenly on four slices of bread. Try to spread it all the way to the edge and at a uniform thickness everywhere so it cooks evenly.

STEP 3: Spread sesame seeds on a flat plate and press the shrimp side onto it to make the seeds stick.

STEP 4: Brush a little oil on both sides of the bread. Don't worry, the sesame seeds won't fall off.

STEP 5: Preheat the air fryer to 375°F. Cook with the shrimp side up for 3 minutes, then flip and cook the bread side for another 3 minutes.

My air fryer can only fit one shrimp toast at a time it takes a while to make an entire recipe's worth. If you want to fit more than one, feel free to cut the toast in half.

At this point, they're ready to serve! The traditional way is to cut them into 4 slices diagonally. You can sprinkle some extra scallions and or cilantro on top.

I love eating these with a side of mayonnaise for dipping! In Hong Kong, they use Miracle Whip, but I think Kewpie mayo tastes even better. Enjoy!

📋 Recipe

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