Instant Pot shrimp boil is an easy and healthy dinner you can throw together in no time. If you love seafood and your Ninja Foodi pressure cooker this is the best way of How to Cook Frozen Shrimp with corn, potatoes, kielbasa sausage and Old Bay.

Doesn’t this Instant Pot shrimp boil look amazing??!! It’s probably our favorite new Instant Pot recipe hands down. With tender flavorful seafood, potatoes and corn your family will surely give this meal a thumbs up too.
Ninja Foodi Shrimp Boil
If you need easy Ninja Foodi recipes, you can use that pot instead, with the lid that is not attached to pressure cook. The brand doesn’t matter when it comes to cooking any or all of our Instant Pot shrimp recipes. They all work the same. 😉
The beauty of this meal is that it is complete in of itself. With protein, vegetables and a starch all cooked together you just dump it out, drizzle with butter and seasonings and you’re ready to enjoy this baby.

Instant Pot Shrimp Boil with Frozen Shrimp
Yes we have made plain Instant Pot frozen shrimp before, but this takes it to a whole new level. I always buy the largest I can find. Extra jumbo is great because they cook so quickly. The smaller you use the more cooked they will be once it is all cooked together. Frozen actually works better to give the other items more time to get tender.
There is also a choice of with shell or without the shell. That is up to you but with it on it can withstand a bit more cook time and heat without overcooking. You really want your seafood to become pink but not too long where it becomes a weird rubbery texture.
SO the larger you can find them the better this will be since all 3 main ingredients need to be done at the same time. This was tricky when we made our air fryer shrimp boil too. For that we layered the items and cooked one at a time essentially, adding more as time went on. Potatoes take the longest so they went in first.
Since you cannot open the lid on this pot that doesn’t work but if you follow these directions it will end up perfectly.
First – Invite over some friends, run to the grocery store, and get ready for the “OH MY Goodness” comments that will come. Seafood has never tasted this good with such a short cooking time before. If you have never tried Old Bay, this is the key to all the deliciousness seasoning wise. All in one container I love it with seafood.

Shrimp Country Boil Ingredients
You are going to want to base this off of cooking Frozen shrimp – large with shells on in this case. The reason why we use frozen shellfish vs. defrosted is it takes a bit longer to cook so the other ingredients can get done at the same time.
Could you use crab instead of shrimp for a boil?
Yes for sure, use what you love and what is in season. I prefer fresh corn on the cob but if you must use frozen corn that is possible too. I would just buy the ones cut in half and then frozen so they fit better. I do the same thing when I make Instant Pot crab legs. Another great one to try next.
Do you peel shrimp for shrimp boil?
NO. I have made this several times to test different methods and large frozen shrimp with the shell on work best! They will come off easily once they’re cooked
I like to use baby red potatoes, or petite other colors for ease. The smaller size allows me to leave them whole, just poked and not have to peel or cut them really at all. You can find these in a bag at the store with white, purple and red mixed together.
Corn on the cob broken into 3rds is what we add with the kielbasa sausage (that is optional). spicy kielbasa is great if you really like it hot! I mean down South that is a given but I can only handle so much myself so this is set to mild below.
You will want some salted and melted butter of course for the end. Better yet use our seafood boil sauce for a real wow.
With Old Bay seasoning is a must for this. If you love this flavor we have even more Old Bay recipes here to enjoy. You could add cajun spices if you really want heat, or add hot sauce at the end when done.
Vegetable broth or use water if you like. Broth just gives this so much more flavor that that is recommended. Lemon squeeze is great at the end. Minced garlic is added to everything at my house.
Cajun (option)
In order to add heat to this dish you could add a whole bunch of different things. Dry Sriracha is probably my favorite because not only will it make your dish spicy but has some great flavor to it too. Red pepper flakes you likely already have in your cupboard, or chili powder will add a bit of heat. Start with 1 tsp and see what you think. A sheet pan is great to serve this once it’s all done.

So for the liquid you could really use anything. Yes you could use a can of beer but in this case we typically choose broth instead. That is a personal preference really, you just need liquid to build up the pressure and steam all the ingredients.
How Long to Cook Shrimp Boil in Instant Pot
Once you prepare your ingredients like slicing your sausage and breaking Instant Pot corn pieces and sausage pieces on top of that. into smaller pieces then you will pressure cook on high for just 4 minutes followed by a quick pressure release. Then cook the shrimp by placing them on the very top of all ingredients and cooking for an additional ONE minute This will make them fully cooked and perfect.
Can you add the shrimp at the beginning with everything else?
NO. Shrimp takes ONLY 1 minute to cook, any longer and they will be WAY overcooked, rubbery and not edible. Add at the end to the very top as directed below. Even if you make Crock Pot shrimp boil you add the seafood at the end.
Serve on a large tray or cookie sheet with butter and a sprinkle of more seasonings like garlic powder, salt and pepper on the very top.
Because anything that comes out of the sea is our favorite dinner!! I also appreciate just how fast all of this cooks together AND the flavors really compliment each other inside the pot. In just 5 short minutes (including time to pressurize) you can make a meal for 1/4 the price vs. ordering this in a restaurant.


Instant Pot Shrimp Boil Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp butter
- 2 tbsp garlic, minced
- 1/2 medium onion, sliced
- 2 cup vegetable broth
- 1 1/4 tsp Old Bay, more if you want to sprinkle some on top when done
- 1 large lemon, juiced
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 lb baby red potatoes
- 1 lb sausage, kielbasa, sliced
- 3 ears corn on the cob, cut into thirds
- 1 lb frozen shrimp, raw with shells on
Instructions
- Put pressure cooker on saute, then add butter so it melts. Add onion and garlic and saute for a few minutes.
- In a bowl combine broth and 1/4 tsp of Old Bay, set aside. Add remaining Old Bay into your pot with butter, then add salt. Mix.
- Pour in broth and lemon juiced. Stir to combine. Turn pot off.
- Now arrange the potatoes in the pot into the broth, then layer the corn pieces on to of those.
- Place sliced sausage pieces on top of the corn. Can sprinkle a bit more Old Bay in now if you'd like.
- Close the lid and set to pressure cook high for 4 minutes, then do a quick release.
- Put frozen shrimp into the pot on top of other ingredients. Close the lid and set to pressure cook high for 1 minute followed by a quick release.
- Serve everything on a large baking sheet with a bit of the broth poured on top. Put a small bowl of melted butter with a sprinkle of Old Bay on the side, and slices of lemon on the tray.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

What goes with shrimp boil?
Hawaiian cole slaw is always a great side dish. Macaroni salad is super cheap, pasta salad too. Instant Pot baked beans are made with dry beans in no time Our Instant Pot macaroni and cheese is a favorite side dish
You can find other pressure cooker fish recipes here so your whole week will be filled with healthy goodness. And make air fryer fried shrimp another night with another bag.
Can you freeze leftovers?
You can if you’d like. Place the cooked shrimp on a baking sheet and into the freezer. Then freeze the shrimp within 1-2 days after boiling them. If you don’t have enough space to keep cookie sheets in the fridge for a few days don’t worry. After this step is done you will store them in smaller containers once they’re frozen.
Can you reheat shrimp boil?
Ideally you want to eat this as fresh as possible. If you want the entire thing reheated though it’s easy to throw small batches into the microwave.
Do so in 30 second increments moving the ingredients every time that time is up. Don’t cook too long or seafood will be rubbery. Overcooked shrimp is never a good thing. You can also boil some water, add more seasonings, and throw the entire meal in. Boil just long enough to reheat without cooking. Several minutes should do it. Enjoy friends and try our Instant Pot bang bang shrimp next!!












I did it! Thank you so much. I will say I don’t have a Ninja and my :04 turned to :06 and I dipped everything out and cooked the shrimp another minute or two on the Sauté setting. And it was PERFECT!
Justine, thanks to you this Southern Lady gave my West Coast Hubby a taste of down home southern cooking. He went back for seconds, too.
By using the air fryer, this was done in no time and clean up was a breeze. I will definitely be making this again.
So glad I could help
I use beer for liquid…really adds to flavor….also use frozen peeled shrimp….
Amazing!!! Made it tonight and will definitely make it again
yay!