New England Style Shrimp Rolls

What’s the best use of succulent shrimp salad? Shrimp rolls! Here’s everything you need to know to make them like a New Englander!

New England-style lobster rolls get all the attention. But for my money, it’s hard to beat a good shrimp roll.

Why? Well for one, it’s literally a lot less money to make shrimp rolls. And two, good shrimp is much easier to find than lobster, and it’s easier to cook. True, lobster is a different flavor than shrimp. But both are sweet, succulent seafood at its best.

(If you like succulent seafood, you also might enjoy my shrimp cocktail recipe.)

What Do You Need For A Shrimp Roll?

So then, there are really only two things you need for a good New England Style Shrimp Roll. One is a good shrimp salad, easy on the mayo and add-ins and full of nice chunks of quality shrimp. My favorite version is included in the recipe below, but if you want to know why it’s my favorite, jump over to this post where I tell you all about it.

(You also might want to check out this post for how to thaw shrimp, this post for how to cook shrimp from frozen, and this post for how to poach shrimp.)

The other thing you need is a real New England-style split-top hot dog bun. These open from the top instead of the sides, making it easier for you to fill them with your delicious shrimp salad. They also come baked such that they’re slightly stuck together at the edges, which means that when you pull them apart you get two soft, uncrusty bun outsides. New Englanders spread those outsides with butter and toast them, making crisped, brown-buttery vessels for the rolls. Trust me—this is a really delicious touch.

Depending on where you live, however, it’s a lot easier said than done—finding New England-style split-top hot dog buns can be near impossible. If you live outside of New England, try looking for ones from Pepperidge Farms or others online.

If you can’t find them, I prefer potato hot dog rolls over regular hot dog rolls, with the insides buttered and toasted instead of the outsides.

Others might debate whether the resulting sandwich is a “real” New England-style roll. But let them—your mouth will be too full and happy to argue.

New England Style Shrimp Rolls

• Author: Christine Pittman
• Prep Time: 20 minutes
• Cook Time: 2 minutes
• Total Time: 22 minutes
• Yield: 4–6 servings 1x
• Category: Entrée
• Method: Mix
• Cuisine: American

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What’s the best use of succulent shrimp salad? Shrimp rolls! Here’s everything you need to know to make them like a New Englander!

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Ingredients

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• ⅓ cup mayonnaise
• 1 celery rib, finely chopped
• 2 green onions, chopped
• 1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
• 1 and ½ tsp. prepared horseradish
• 1 and ½ tsp. chopped fresh tarragon
• ¼ tsp. salt, or more to taste
• ¼ tsp. black pepper, or more to taste
• 1 and ¼ lbs. cooked shrimp, patted dry and chopped into ½– to ¾-in. pieces (see this post for how to cook shrimp)
• 4 hot dog buns, preferably New England-style split-top buns
• 1 to 1 and ½ Tbsp. unsalted butter, softened

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Instructions

1. Put the mayonnaise, celery, green onions, lemon juice, horseradish, tarragon, salt, and pepper in a large bowl and mix well.
2. Fold in the shrimp. Add more salt and pepper to taste.
3. Ideally, chill for about an hour before serving.
4. Just before serving, preheat the broiler.
5. Split the buns and spread either the outsides (if they are true New England-style split-top buns that pulled apart and have uncrusted outsides) or the insides (if they are regular or potato hot dog buns) with the butter. Arrange them buttered side up on a baking sheet and toast in the broiler until browned, 1 to 2 minutes.
6. Fill the rolls with the shrimp salad and serve.