Shrimp and Crab Louie (Louis) Salad is an iconic American classic, packed with delicious seafood, crisp veggies, hard-boiled eggs, and a tangy, creamy dressing. Simple yet elegant, it’s a great choice for lunch, brunch, or a light but satisfying meal.
I found myself at the grocery store last week pondering what to do for dinner. I had NO DESIRE to cook. I just cleaned all the dishes and scrubbed the counters clean. I was looking for an easy dinner that didn’t include a preservative rich pre-packaged meal.
That’s when I found myself in front of the seafood counter and I saw that shrimp was on sale for $5.99/lb. I looked down and saw the imitation-crab was also on sale. I know, IMITATION crab… But, it really is tasty stuff! So it hit me, let’s eat healthy tonight with a classic, Shrimp and Crab Louie Salad!
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Recipe highlights
- Economical: Lump crab meat is expensive, so I used shrimp and imitation crab. This is a great way to spoil yourself, but on a budget!
- Simple: I kept this dish simple, but you can also mix in capers, olives, asparagus spears, cucumbers.
- Texture: This classic salad has crisp lettuce, hard boiled eggs, tomatoes and a tangy creamy dressing. It is typically served with lump crab meat, but I used a combination of shrimp and imitation crab.
- Flavor: I really love the zing of the salad dressing, which comes from the cocktail sauce. If you like more kick, add more horseradish.
Reader’s Reviews
“Yum! 😍It made a great salad for all! Main hit!” — Evelyn via Pinterest
Ingredients you need
- Mayonnaise: You can any mayonnaise you like, from regular to olive oil based.
- Cocktail sauce: If you don’t have cocktail sauce you can substitute with ketchup and horseradish, or just ketchup. For more zing, add more horseradish.
- Dijon mustard: You can also use stone ground mustard or any brown mustard you have in your fridge.
- Lemon: You will the zest and juice from one lemon.
- Chives: I grow chives in my yard – so easy and forgiving! You can also use finely diced green onions.
- Salad greens: I am not a fan of iceberg lettuce, so I use romaine or any variety of leafy greens.
- Seafood: The traditional Louie salad is made with lump crab. I used imitation crab and cooked shrimp.
- Eggs: You will need to hard boil and cool your eggs before assembling the salad.
- Tomatoes: I used grape tomatoes, but you can use any variety of tomatoes.
- Capers: This adds more zing and salt to the salad. You can substitute with chopped green or black olives.
- Salt and pepper
Step-by-step directions
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- In a small bowl whisk together mayonnaise, cocktail sauce, dijon mustard, lemon juice, lemon zest, chives, and salt. Set aside.
- On a large serving platter arrange the mixed salad greens. Top salad greens with shrimp, and lump crabmeat. Arrange hard boiled eggs and tomatoes decoratively around the salad. Top with the capers. Serve salad with prepared dressing.
Recipe tips and FAQs
For the shrimp, you can buy it precooked or raw. I always prefer cooking my own shrimp, because I think I add more flavor, even if I am just boiling the shrimp.
To cook 1-pound of shrimp, I usually drop in half a lemon, a bay leaf, a smashed garlic clove and a teaspoon of peppercorns to the water and bring it all to a boil. Add the shrimp, and it’s done when pink, about 5 minutes.
Want some more salads feature seafood? Then try my avocado crab salad with seville oranges and my Mexican ceviche with avocado (cheviche de pescado). And another favorite light lunch I enjoy all the time are my tuna egg salad lettuce cups.
Storing/Freezing Instructions
TO STORE: Store any leftovers in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Cut salad will brown after a day or two. And if it has dressing on it, the leaves will wilt more quickly. Leftover dressing will keep in the fridge for 1-2 weeks, assuming you are using store bought mayonnaise.
There are several iconic American salads, and this Crab Louie (or Louis) Salad is definitely one of them. Its origins are believed to be from a San Francisco restaurant, Solari’s, dating back to the early 1900s. Other records shows it being served at the Davenport Hotel in Spokane, Washington. So who is the Louie the salad is named after? Well, this salad is known as the King of salads, so I’m guessing King Louis of France.
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Shrimp and Crab Louie Salad
Ingredients
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoon cocktail sauce
- 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest grated
- 1 tablespoon chives chopped
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 9 oz mixed salad greens approximately 7 cups
- ½ lb cooked shrimp
- ½ lb cooked lump crabmeat
- 4 hard boiled eggs cut in half or quarters
- 8 grape tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon capers
Instructions
- In a small bowl whisk together mayonnaise, cocktail sauce, dijon mustard, lemon juice, lemon zest, chives, and salt. Set aside.
- On a large serving platter arrange the mixed salad greens.
Top salad greens with shrimp, and lump crabmeat. - Arrange hard boiled eggs and tomatoes decoratively around the salad. Top with the capers.
- Serve salad with prepared dressing.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer
Nutritional information is an estimate provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the actual nutritional information with the products and brands you are using with your preferred nutritional calculator.
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Written by Laura Bashar
Hi, I’m Laura, a certified professional cook and cookbook author living in San Diego. I have been sharing my family’s favorite recipes inspired from all over the world since 2008. Let’s cook up something fun!
Thank you! That's very kind.
I enjoy to read your recipes especially this salad and i can only imagine how tasteful it is!