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Home » Recipes » Recipes

Ebi Mayo (Fried Shrimp in Mayonnaise Sauce)

Published: May 21, 2021 · Modified: Sep 16, 2023 by Yuto Omura

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Juicy prawns fried in a light yet crispy batter then coated in a sweet and creamy mayonnaise based sauce, "Ebi Mayo" is a sure crowd pleaser! This popular Chinese restaurant and izakaya style appetizer is also popular to make at home!

Ebi Mayo served on a black plate with shredded cabbage with text title

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  • Ebi Mayo (Fried Shrimp in Mayonnaise Sauce)
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Ebi Mayo

What is Ebi Mayo?

Ebi Mayo is a simple prawn (shrimp) dish that is usually fried and then coated in a seasoned mayonnaise based sauce. It's usually served as an appetizer with shredded cabbage on the side.

close up of ebi mayo served on a slate plate with shredded cabbage side view

The word "ebi" (エビ) is the Japanese word for prawn and usually tiger prawns or king prawns are used for this recipe.

Although my recipe requires making a batter and deep frying, it's not uncommon to simply coat the prawns in potato starch and fry them in a pan.

The mayonnaise sauce can be used to fully coat the prawns, drizzled over or even served on the side as a dipping sauce. It's totally up to you! (I used Japanese Kewpie Mayonnaise to make the sauce.)

close up of ebi mayo served on a slate plate with shredded cabbage top down

The Origin

Ebi Mayo was created by popular TV chef "Shu Tomitoku", also famously known as "Iron Chef". Shu Tomitoku was Chinese, born in Japan and was one of the greatest contributors to "Chuka Ryori" (Chinese style Japanese dishes) in Japan.

During a trip to LA, Tomitoku tried a mayonnaise flavoured shrimp dish. Although he wasn't too impressed with it, he could see the potential and this is where he got his inspiration for Ebi Mayo.

He coated the prawns in starch, fried them and added extra seasonings to the mayonnaise, Ebi Mayo was born! After introducing the recipe on TV, the dish became a well loved menu item at Chinese restaurants in Japan, as well as being popular to make at home too!

close up of ebi mayo served on a slate plate with shredded cabbage close up

Batter

As I mentioned, making a batter is not essential for this dish. But who doesn't love a light yet crispy batter? My batter recipe is inspired by Japanese tempura and British fish and chips! You could say that my ebi mayo recipe is a combination of Chinese, Japanese and British cuisine.

Beer Batter

Beer batter is a popular kind of batter used for fish and chips in the UK. A light lager is most commonly used. I used Sapporo lager in my recipe.

Why beer? You might ask... well beer has three components that help to create a perfectly light and crispy batter: carbon dioxide (CO2), foaming agents and alcohol.

close up of ebi mayo served on a slate plate with shredded cabbage top down view

The CO2 is the bubbles in the beer, when these react with hot oil they froth up making the batter airy. You could also achieve a similar effect with soda water, but it's still lacking two things that beer has.

You know when you pour a beer and a foam layer forms at the top? Well, this foam coats the CO2 bubbles which slows the rate in which they pop, essentially stopping the batter from deflating. It also helps direct the heat to the batter, resulting in the crispiest coating without overcooking what's inside.

Lastly, the alcohol. Alcohol evaporates at a lower temperature than water, this means that beer batter cooks quicker and again prevents over cooking. This also helps stop it from absorbing too much oil resulting in a crispier and less oily batter.

Sorry about the science talk, but this batter is so good! You can use it for prawns, fish, onion rings, whatever you like!

close up of ebi mayo served on a slate plate with shredded cabbage close up portrait

How to Prep Prawns

Prepping the prawns is probably the most annoying thing about cooking them. You have to use fresh prawns for this recipe otherwise the batter won't stick. I have 3 steps for you to follow.

Step One: Deshell

deshelling fresh shrimp

First, deshell. I find the easiest way is to rip the legs off first and then the shell just comes clean off. It's up to you whether to pull the tails off too, I usually leave them on for decoration and added crunch.

Step Two: Devein

removing vein on shrimp

Next, remove the vein. The best way to do this is take a cocktail stick and pierce horizontally through the back of the prawn. You should be able to hook the vein and pull it straight out.

Step Three: Clean

salt and corn starch on prawns

Finally, coat the prawns in a couple of pinches of salt and 1 tsp of corn starch. Rub it over the surface of the prawns and once they're covered, wash them under cold water. The corn starch cleans them out while the salt helps draw out excess moisture which will make them fry better.

ebi mayo thumbnail

Ebi Mayo (Fried Shrimp in Mayonnaise Sauce)

Yuto Omura
How to make Japanese Ebi Mayo. (エビマヨ) Juicy fresh prawns fried in a light yet crispy batter then coated in a sweet and creamy mayonnaise based sauce.
5 from 2 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe Save Saved!
Prep Time 20 minutes mins
Cook Time 10 minutes mins
Total Time 30 minutes mins
Course Lunch, Main Course, seafood
Servings 2 portions

Ingredients
 
 

Batter

  • 70 g cake flour
  • 1 tbsp rice flour - or corn starch
  • ½ tsp baking powder
  • 1 pinch salt and pepper
  • 100 ml lager beer - or soda water, chilled

Mayonnaise Sauce

  • 4 tbsp Japanese mayonnaise
  • 1 tbsp condensed milk
  • 1 tsp tomato ketchup
  • 1 tsp rice vinegar
  • ½ tsp soy sauce
  • ½ tsp lemon juice - or lime juice
  • ½ tsp paprika powder

Ebi Mayo

  • 250 g king prawns - or tiger prawns
  • 1 tsp cornstarch - for cleaning
  • 2 pinches salt - for cleaning
  • 3 tbsp cornstarch - or potato starch
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • cooking oil - for deep frying
  • 100 g green cabbage - optional, shredded
  • 1 pinch dried parsley - to garnish
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Instructions
 

  • Start by mixing the dry ingredients for the batter (70 g cake flour, 1 tbsp rice flour, ½ tsp baking powder and 1 pinch salt and pepper) Mix well and place them in the freezer until just before using. (Don't add the beer yet.)
    Mixing dry batter ingredients for beer batter
  • Next, take a large bowl (or small bowl if you prefer dipping) and add all of the sauce ingredients. (4 tbsp Japanese mayonnaise, 1 tbsp condensed milk, 1 tsp tomato ketchup, 1 tsp rice vinegar, ½ tsp soy sauce, ½ tsp lemon juice, ½ tsp paprika powder) and mix well. Set aside for later.
    Mixing ebi mayo sauce in a small glass bowl
  • Next, deshell, devein 250 g king prawns. (Information on how to do this is in the post above.) Rub with 1 tsp cornstarch and 2 pinches salt, rinse with cold water and dry with kitchen paper.
    Deveining shrimp with a cocktail stick
  • Heat your oil to 190 °C.
    Heating the oil to 190 degrees Celsius, using a digital thermometer
  • Drop 2 cloves garlic into your warming oil to add flavour. You can use it as an indicator to know when your oil is hot too. (It will start to sizzle)
    Adding garlic cloves to the oil
  • Add 3 tbsp cornstarch to the prawns and coat them. This will help the batter stick.
    Coating the shrimp in cornstarch
  • Take your dry batter from the freezer and add 100 ml lager beer (chilled). Mix well.
    adding beer to the chilled batter
  • Coat each prawn in the batter and drop it into the oil in batches, be careful not to overcrowd the pot.
    Coating the prawns in beer batter
  • Fry for approximately 2-3 minutes or until golden brown. (Remove the garlic when it turns dark brown and discard.)
    Prawns frying in a pan
  • As each batch is complete, transfer the prawns to a wire rack to let any excess oil drain off.
    transferring the prawns to a wire rack
  • Once the prawns are all cooked, coat in the mayonnaise sauce and dish up.
    coating the fried prawns in mayo sauce
  • Sprinkle with 1 pinch dried parsley and serve with 100 g green cabbage.
    close up of ebi mayo served on a slate plate with shredded cabbage side view
  • Enjoy!
    One ebi mayo prawn held with black chopsticks

Video

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Equipment

Japanese-style fryer
Stainless steel cooking tray with wire rack
Keywords beer batter, cleaning shrimp, ebi mayo, ebi mayo recipe, ebi mayo sauce, ebi mayo shrimp, ebi mayonnaise, fried prawns, fried shrimp, fried shrimp recipe, how to make beer batter, how to make ebi mayo, how to make tempura batter, how to prep shrimp, japanese ebi mayo, Japanese mayonnaise, prepping shrimp, shrimp tempura, tempura batter, what beer to use for beer batter
Tried this recipe?Let us know what you thought!

You might also love...

If you like Ebi Mayo, you might like some of my other recipes. Feel free to check them out.

  • Ebi Fry (エビフライ) Japanese fried shrimp with homemade tartar sauce
  • Tempura Soba (天ぷらそば) Soba noodles served in a dashi soup, topped with tempura
  • Homemade Gyoza (手つくり餃子) Japanese style dumplings and sauce from scratch
  • Ebi Chili (エビチリ) Stir fried shrimp in chili sauce
One ebi mayo prawn held with black chopsticks

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    Recipe Rating




  1. Colette

    August 31, 2021 at 12:48 am

    5 stars
    The dressing is delicious with the shrimp. I added Furakaki and used Korean Fry mix for the batter (because I had it in the pantry and I wanted to try it). The beer was a wonderful idea. My husband and kids loved the recipe!

    Reply
    • Yuto Omura

      August 31, 2021 at 7:11 pm

      Hi Colette,
      Thank you for your kind words and generous rating.
      Furikake and Korean fry mix, sounds delicious! I'm happy you and your family enjoyed the recipe 🙂

      Reply

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