Shrimp Dip with Cream Cheese
This old fashioned Shrimp Dip with Cream Cheese is the perfect easy appetizer. Serve with crackers or potato chips for scooping it up!
When it’s time to party, you NEED a good dip! You just can’t go wrong with old favorites like Cream Cheese Corn Dip or Dill Dip with Sour Cream.
Load the table with dippables like chips, crackers, and cut veggies and let everyone dig in!
This Shrimp Dip with Cream Cheese is sure to become your new go-to party dip. It’s creamy, zesty, and undeniably crave-worthy.
This particular recipe is from a 1960s newspaper clipping. I kept seeing variations of this recipe over and over, so this appears to be “the” recipe for shrimp dip from that era. You’ll fall in love with its classic tangy flavors.
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Why is this the best recipe for Shrimp Dip with Cream Cheese?
I compared a variety of recipes that were printed in the 60s and 70s, and this was the most common shrimp dip recipe. Most recipes have cream cheese plus either mayonnaise or sour cream. After some taste-testing, I really think sour cream adds the best flavor to the dip.
Tangy cocktail sauce perfectly complements the cream cheese. Add more to taste if you like it tangier!
This recipe is flexible. You can adjust the ingredients according to preference, what you have on hand, or how you remember the recipe tasting.
Don’t have cocktail sauce? Replace it with ketchup or chili sauce. Don’t like sour cream? Use mayo! Like more flavor? Adjust the seasonings. (See variations section below.)
Ingredients
- Traditionally, shrimp dip is made using canned mini shrimp. Make sure to drain well before folding into the dip mixture.
- The base for shrimp dip always starts with cream cheese. I used full fat cream cheese because it has the best flavor. Allow the cream cheese to come to room temperature before mixing; it will be much easier to mix!
- I love the tangy flavor sour cream adds to the dip.
- Cocktail sauce adds some wow-factor. It is a tomato based sauce with seasonings, like horseradish, that pair nicely with seafood. If you don’t have cocktail sauce, see the variations section below for substitutions.
- Lemon juice adds a touch of brightness to the dip.
- And, salt and pepper enhance all the flavors.
How to Make Shrimp Dip with Cream Cheese
Place all ingredients except shrimp in a large bowl. Mix with a handheld mixer until combined.
Fold in the shrimp.
Serve with crackers or potato chips.
This is the ultimate easy appetizer!
Best shrimp to use
This recipe is normally made with canned shrimp. I used a 6-oz can of Bumble Bee Tiny Shrimp.
However, you can also use fresh or frozen shrimp. You’ll need to cook and cool the shrimp before adding it to the cream cheese mixture.
Keep in mind that most fresh and frozen shrimp are larger than mini shrimp. You’ll need to chop the shrimp into smaller pieces that are easy to scoop up with a cracker or chip.
Variations
These are all based on recipes from ’60s and ’70s cookbooks. Home cooks adapted it over the years, so try one of these if you like!
- Substitute sour cream 1:1 with mayo if desired.
- If you don’t have cocktail sauce, you can use ketchup OR chili sauce in its place. Then add 1 teaspoon of prepared horseradish to the mixture to get a more classic cocktail sauce flavor (cocktail sauce already has horseradish in it).
- Add more flavor to the dip by adding ¼ teaspoon onion salt and/or 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce.
- If desired, you can replace full fat cream cheese and/or sour cream with low fat or fat free varieties.
Storing the shrimp dip
If covered and refrigerated, the dip will keep for 4–5 days. Make it ahead of time (up to a day or two in advance) so that the flavors have time to meld together. Let it sit for an hour at room temperature before serving so it’s easier to scoop.
I don’t recommend freezing the dip. Its texture will not be appetizing after being thawed.
More old fashioned dip recipes
Have you tried this recipe? Please leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating and/or comment below!
📖 Recipe
Shrimp Dip with Cream Cheese
Ingredients
- 6 oz mini shrimp (1 can), drained
- 8 oz cream cheese, softened
- 1 cup sour cream
- ¼ cup cocktail sauce (or chili sauce or ketchup, see Note below)
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon salt (or more, to taste)
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- Place all ingredients EXCEPT shrimp in a large bowl. Mix with a handheld mixer until combined.
- Fold in the shrimp.
- Serve with crackers or potato chips. (I'm partial to Kettle brand jalapeño potato chips for a spicy kick!)
Video
Notes
- If you don’t have canned shrimp, use fresh or frozen shrimp. Cook and cool the shrimp before adding to the cream cheese mixture. Chop shrimp into smaller pieces that are easy to scoop and swallow.
- Substitute sour cream 1:1 with mayo if desired.
- If you don’t have cocktail sauce, you can use ketchup or chili sauce in its place. Then add 1 teaspoon prepared horseradish to the mixture to get a more classic cocktail sauce flavor (cocktail sauce already has horseradish in it).
- Add more flavor to the dip by adding ¼ teaspoon onion salt and/or 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce.
- Replace full fat cream cheese and/or sour cream with low fat or fat free varieties.
