A shrimp Louie is an old-school seafood salad that originated in early 1900s San Francisco. The primary elements of his salad include shrimp, iceberg lettuce, hard-boiled eggs and a thick Louie dressing many confuse for Thousand Island salad dressing. The famous shrimp salad is said to have been named for Llewellyn "Louis" Davenport, who had the salad on his hotel's menu. The hotel opened in 1914 and the salad is still on the menu!
Louie is not too sweet and slightly spicy from the often added chili sauce or horseradish. Be sure to have plenty of lemon on the side. I swap out the iceberg for little gems from my garden or romaine lettuce and add my favorite blanched vegetables to make it an entrée salad!. Either way, this authentic shrimp Louie salad from San Fran is a delicious and quick warm-weather meal for lunch or dinner.
If you're not a fan of shrimp, you could substitute crab or lobster for this seafood salad recipe. You could also chop the shrimp and mix with a little of the dressing before adding them to the salad and serve the dressing on the side (as pictured below). Wonderful for lunch or dinner!
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Servings: 4
Ingredients
1/2 cup - 3/4 a cup
Louie Dressing
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 1/2 - 3/4 cup ketchup (some like more ketchup flavor)
- 1 teaspoon prepared horseradish
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon sriracha
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
Salad
- 2 large eggs, medium boiled
- 1 pound (12 to 15 count) large shrimp, peeled and deveined (some use Bay shrimp)
- 2 hearts romaine lettuce, washed and torn
- 2 ripe Roma tomatoes, cut into 6 wedges
- 1/2 English cucumber, thinly sliced
- 1 ripe avocado, diced
- steamed asparagus, steam and cut into pieces (optional)
Here's how to make it:
- Whisk together the mayonnaise, ketchup, horseradish, lemon juice, sriracha, vinegar, Worcestershire and a pinch each of salt and pepper in a small bowl until smooth. Refrigerate until ready to use.
- Place eggs in a small saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil, remove from heat, cover and let stand for 5 minutes. Transfer to an ice bath. Remove the shells once cool and quarter each egg lengthwise.
- Place the lettuce, tomato, cucumber and avocado in a large bowl. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Dress with about 1/3 cup of the dressing and toss gently to coat.
- Divide onto four plates and arrange the shrimp and medium-boiled eggs on top before serving. Serve the remaining dressing on the side.
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