Hawaiian garlic shrimp is the signature plate at Oʻahu's North Shore shrimp trucks: shell-on shrimp seared in butter and garlic with a light flour dredge, plated next to two scoops of white rice with a lemon wedge on the side. You eat it with your hands. Your fingers smell like garlic for the rest of the afternoon.
The trucks trace to the late 1980s and early 1990s, when sugar production collapsed across the island and farmers around Kahuku converted plantation land into aquaculture ponds for Pacific white shrimp. John "Giovanni" and Connie Aragona opened Giovanni's Shrimp Truck in 1993, and the spray-paint-tagged white truck in Kahuku has been parked there long enough that the truck itself is now the landmark.
At a glance
2 as a plate lunch
10 minutes
15 minutes
Easy
Where to try it on Oʻahu
- Giovanni's Shrimp Truck, Kahuku. Three plates on the menu: shrimp scampi (garlic), "No Refunds" hot & spicy, and lemon-butter. Bring cash to be safe, though some locations have started taking cards and digital wallets.
- Romy's Kahuku Prawns & Shrimp, Kahuku. Sells right off the aquaculture farm where the prawns are raised. The head-on prawns eat sweeter and meatier than the white shrimp at the other trucks.
- Fumi's Kahuku Shrimp. Quieter than Giovanni's, smaller portions, equally good plate — but the North Shore truck has closed, and Fumi's now operates out of the Makai Food Court at Ala Moana Center in Honolulu.
Giovanni's and Romy's both sit on Kamehameha Highway in Kahuku, about a mile and a half apart, so a North Shore loop day covers both easily. Our Oʻahu food truck guide has the wider lineup.
Ingredients
For the shrimp
- 1 lb large shrimp (16–20 count), shell-on. Head-on if you can find them; otherwise shell-on, tail-on works.
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 8 cloves garlic, minced (yes, eight)
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, plus lemon wedges for serving
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley (optional)
- Pinch of cayenne or Hawaiian chili pepper, to taste (optional)
To serve
- 4 cups hot cooked white rice (two scoops per plate; that's the rule)
- Lemon wedges
Equipment
- Large heavy skillet (cast iron is ideal)
- Wide bowl for dredging
- Paper towels to pat the shrimp dry
Steps
- Leave the shells on. Do not peel the shrimp. The shells protect the meat during the high-heat sear and hold most of the garlic and butter flavor. If you want easier access to the meat, use kitchen scissors to butterfly through the back of the shell so the flesh opens up — the shrimp will still hold together and you get the flavor with easy access.
- Pat the shrimp dry. Lay the shrimp on paper towels and blot dry. Water on the shells will steam the pan instead of searing.
- Dredge. In a wide bowl, whisk together the flour, paprika, salt, and pepper. Toss the shrimp in the seasoned flour until each one has a light coating. Shake off excess.
- Heat the pan. In a large heavy skillet, melt 2 tablespoons of the butter with the olive oil over medium-high heat. The pan should be hot, bubbling but not smoking.
- Sear the shrimp. Add the shrimp in a single layer. Cook 1½ to 2 minutes per side, until the shells turn pink-orange and the dredge picks up a golden crust. Move the shrimp to a plate. They will not be fully cooked through yet, and that is what you want.
- Build the garlic butter. Lower the heat to medium. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons butter and all the garlic to the same pan. Cook the garlic 60 to 90 seconds, stirring constantly. You want it fragrant and just barely starting to color, not browned.
- Finish the shrimp. Return the shrimp to the pan and toss for 1 more minute, coating every piece. Squeeze the lemon juice over the top. Sprinkle with parsley and cayenne if using.
- Plate it like the truck. Two scoops of rice on each plate. Pile the shrimp next to the rice, then spoon all the garlic butter from the pan over both. A wedge of lemon on the side. Eat immediately with your hands.
Notes from making this at home
The shells are the point. Most home cooks instinctively peel before cooking, and the dish suffers for it. The shells render flavor into the butter and protect the meat during the sear; peel them first and you get butter-sauced shrimp instead of garlic shrimp.
Frozen shrimp works. If you cannot find head-on shrimp (most mainland markets do not carry them), frozen shell-on tail-on shrimp from any Asian market is the next best option. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then pat very dry before cooking.
Two scoops, always. The rice is not a garnish. It is half the plate. A good plate of garlic shrimp leaves behind enough butter and garlic that you mop it up with the rice. Bread is wrong here; rice is the sponge.
While You're on the Islands
Eat it made by someone else. Giovanni's Shrimp Truck in Kahuku is the headline stop, with Romy's Kahuku Prawns & Shrimp a mile and a half up the same highway for head-on prawns straight off the farm. Both are worth the North Shore detour on the same loop day. See our Oʻahu food truck guide for the wider lineup.
Buy the ingredients fresh. Romy's Kahuku Prawns & Shrimp sells head-on, shell-on shrimp right off the aquaculture farm where they're raised — about as fresh as this gets outside catching it yourself. If you're staying anywhere on the North Shore, picking some up to cook that night beats anything you can buy frozen.
Bring It Home
What you can substitute, what you can't: head-on shrimp is rare at mainland markets, but frozen shell-on, tail-on shrimp from any Asian market is the next-best stand-in — thaw overnight in the fridge and pat very dry before cooking. The garlic-butter sauce is the same either way.
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