Sugar Shrimp Bao with Pickled Cucumbers and Creamy Ginger Lime Sauce
Dive into the delightful world of Sugar Shrimp Bao, where tender, fluffy buns cradle crispy sugar shrimp and tangy pickled cucumbers. Drizzled with a zesty ginger lime sauce, each bite bursts with flavor and texture that will leave your taste buds dancing. Perfect for a fun dinner night or a tasty snack, these bao are sure to impress!
Prep
15
min
Cook
30
min
Serves
4
people
Level
intermediate
📝 Ingredients
Serves 4🥬Fresh Produce(5)
- 2 Persian cucumbers, thinly sliced
- 2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger (10 ml)
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger (1.25 ml)
- Juice of 1 lime (1½ tablespoons) (22.5 ml)
- Zest of 1 lime
🥩Meat & Seafood(1)
- 1 lb medium shrimp, peeled and deveined (454 g)
🥛Dairy & Eggs(2)
- 1/4 cup melted butter (56.8 g)
- 1/4 cup sour cream (60 ml)
🫙Pantry Staples(8)
- 1/3 cup light brown sugar (66.6 g)
- 1 teaspoon chili crisp oil (5 ml)
- 2 tablespoons flour (30 ml)
- 1½ tablespoons honey (22.5 ml)
- 2 tablespoons panko breadcrumbs (30 ml)
- 1/4 cup rice vinegar (60 ml)
- 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil (2.5 ml)
- 1½ tablespoons sugar (22.5 ml)
🧂Spices & Seasonings(5)
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne (2.5 ml)
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder (2.5 ml)
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt (2.5 ml)
- Pinch of salt
- 1/2 teaspoon white pepper (2.5 ml)
📦Other(1)
- 1/4 cup mayo (60 ml)
👨🍳 Instructions
- 1
Preheat oven to 475°F and line a baking sheet.
- 2
Mix together the brown sugar, panko, flour, garlic powder, white pepper, ginger, cayenne, and salt.
- 3
Pat the shrimp dry, dip in melted butter, then coat in the sugar mixture.
- 4
Bake for 6–8 minutes, until pink and caramelized. Broil 1–2 minutes for extra crispness, if desired.
- 5
Whisk together the vinegar, sugar, salt, and chili crisp oil.
- 6
Toss with the cucumbers and let sit for 20–30 minutes.
- 7
Whisk together all of the sauce ingredients until smooth. Refrigerate until ready to use.
- 8
Fill warm bao buns with a few pickled cucumbers, 2 jumbo shrimp, and a generous drizzle of ginger lime sauce.
- 9
Finish with chopped chives and enjoy!
💡 Pro Tips
- ✓Pat shrimp completely dry with paper towels before dipping in butter—surface moisture creates steam at 475°F that prevents the brown sugar coating from caramelizing into a crisp crust and instead makes it slide off.technique475°F
- ✓Bake shrimp on the top third oven rack so the high heat hits the sugar coating first, driving Maillard browning and caramelization before the shrimp's internal temperature overshoots 145°F and turns rubbery.equipment145°F internal temp
- ✓Let the cucumbers pickle for exactly 20-30 minutes, not longer—salt draws out water via osmosis, but beyond 30 minutes the cell walls break down further and cucumbers turn limp instead of staying crisp-tender.timing20-30 minutes
- ✓Use a 3:1 ratio of panko to flour in the coating so the coarser panko crumbs create air pockets that crisp up under the broiler, while the flour helps the sugar adhere without clumping.ingredient3:1 ratio
- ✓Only broil for 1-2 minutes maximum and watch constantly—sugar begins to burn and turn bitter above 350°F, and broilers can spike coating temperature past this threshold in under 60 seconds.timing1-2 minutes, 350°F
Share this recipe
Prep
15
min
Cook
30
min
Serves
4
people
Level
intermediate
Share this recipe
Sugar Shrimp Bao with Pickled Cucumbers and Creamy Ginger Lime Sauce
Dive into the delightful world of Sugar Shrimp Bao, where tender, fluffy buns cradle crispy sugar shrimp and tangy pickled cucumbers. Drizzled with a zesty ginger lime sauce, each bite bursts with flavor and texture that will leave your taste buds dancing. Perfect for a fun dinner night or a tasty snack, these bao are sure to impress!
📝 Ingredients
Serves 4🥬Fresh Produce(5)
- 2 Persian cucumbers, thinly sliced
- 2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger (10 ml)
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger (1.25 ml)
- Juice of 1 lime (1½ tablespoons) (22.5 ml)
- Zest of 1 lime
🥩Meat & Seafood(1)
- 1 lb medium shrimp, peeled and deveined (454 g)
🥛Dairy & Eggs(2)
- 1/4 cup melted butter (56.8 g)
- 1/4 cup sour cream (60 ml)
🫙Pantry Staples(8)
- 1/3 cup light brown sugar (66.6 g)
- 1 teaspoon chili crisp oil (5 ml)
- 2 tablespoons flour (30 ml)
- 1½ tablespoons honey (22.5 ml)
- 2 tablespoons panko breadcrumbs (30 ml)
- 1/4 cup rice vinegar (60 ml)
- 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil (2.5 ml)
- 1½ tablespoons sugar (22.5 ml)
🧂Spices & Seasonings(5)
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne (2.5 ml)
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder (2.5 ml)
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt (2.5 ml)
- Pinch of salt
- 1/2 teaspoon white pepper (2.5 ml)
📦Other(1)
- 1/4 cup mayo (60 ml)
👨🍳 Instructions
- 1
Preheat oven to 475°F and line a baking sheet.
- 2
Mix together the brown sugar, panko, flour, garlic powder, white pepper, ginger, cayenne, and salt.
- 3
Pat the shrimp dry, dip in melted butter, then coat in the sugar mixture.
- 4
Bake for 6–8 minutes, until pink and caramelized. Broil 1–2 minutes for extra crispness, if desired.
- 5
Whisk together the vinegar, sugar, salt, and chili crisp oil.
- 6
Toss with the cucumbers and let sit for 20–30 minutes.
- 7
Whisk together all of the sauce ingredients until smooth. Refrigerate until ready to use.
- 8
Fill warm bao buns with a few pickled cucumbers, 2 jumbo shrimp, and a generous drizzle of ginger lime sauce.
- 9
Finish with chopped chives and enjoy!
💡 Pro Tips
- ✓Pat shrimp completely dry with paper towels before dipping in butter—surface moisture creates steam at 475°F that prevents the brown sugar coating from caramelizing into a crisp crust and instead makes it slide off.technique475°F
- ✓Bake shrimp on the top third oven rack so the high heat hits the sugar coating first, driving Maillard browning and caramelization before the shrimp's internal temperature overshoots 145°F and turns rubbery.equipment145°F internal temp
- ✓Let the cucumbers pickle for exactly 20-30 minutes, not longer—salt draws out water via osmosis, but beyond 30 minutes the cell walls break down further and cucumbers turn limp instead of staying crisp-tender.timing20-30 minutes
- ✓Use a 3:1 ratio of panko to flour in the coating so the coarser panko crumbs create air pockets that crisp up under the broiler, while the flour helps the sugar adhere without clumping.ingredient3:1 ratio
- ✓Only broil for 1-2 minutes maximum and watch constantly—sugar begins to burn and turn bitter above 350°F, and broilers can spike coating temperature past this threshold in under 60 seconds.timing1-2 minutes, 350°F