Baked in an oven-proof skillet, this shrimp casserole is made with leeks, corn (fresh or frozen), Arborio rice, clam juice, coconut milk, and topped with shrimp. It’s my favorite formula for a gluten-free casserole recipe that’s ready in under 1 hour!
You’ve heard me opine about Chicken and Rice Casseroles (CRC’s) many times, and at a higher clip than usual this year. There’s a lot to love: no stovetop work—everything gets tossed together in a mixing bowl and poured into a pan. Many of my CRC flavor profiles are inspired by soups, but zero of them actually require a can of one as the base.
I borrow from this formula whenever I’m at a loss for new gluten-free recipe ideas, which tends to happen when I’m deep at work on a new cookbook. And that is exactly how I arrived at this baked shrimp casserole inspired by a seafood and corn chowder.
Remarkably I had never taken my gluten-free casserole recipe formula and used shrimp as the main protein, and CHOWDER as the creamy canvas. For this shrimp and rice casserole I borrow from this dairy-free corn chowder recipe—an old summer fave. It uses coconut milk, fresh corn off the cob (though you can use frozen in non-summer months), fresh leeks, scallions and thyme. (Don’t worry, I’ve offered some low FODMAP tweaks in the recipe below.)
Can you make this baked shrimp casserole in advance?
The only difference between a CRC and a SRC is that the seafood cooks much quicker than the rice does, so you need to add it later on in the cooking process—easy enough. This shrimp casserole recipe a great make ahead dish for this reason. Just cook the rice until it’s al dente, remove from the oven until you’re ready to eat, pop the shrimp on top and dinner is complete in 10 minutes.
Can this gluten-free casserole recipe also be low FODMAP?
This baked shrimp casserole can be adapted to be low FODMAP. But if you don’t want the hassle, check out this low FODMAP shrimp recipe or this shrimp packet recipe that can also be low FODMAP.
If you’re simply looking for recipes without lactose, here are some more dairy-free recipe suggestions.
Can you make this shrimp casserole recipe year-round?
Fresh corn is always a perk, but you can easily make this casserole in the winter months using frozen corn, which is not too far off from it’s peak deliciousness. I would avoid canned corn since it tends to be a little anemic.
This seafood corn casserole is especially festive during the holiday season. During the summer months, if you want to go with more of a succotash theme, this shrimp and rice casserole recipe would also be delicious with some diced zucchini or summer squash thrown in the mix.
You can also add some chopped kale for more veg. But I love serving this alongside an acid-forward bright salad to offset the creamy base.
Lastly, if you can’t find it at the store, you can use fish stock or regular chicken broth as a clam juice substitute.
Read on the for this shrimp and corn chowder rice casserole, one of many easy recipes with shrimp from my archives. And please leave your requests in the comments for the next coming of the CRC or SRC!
With health and hedonism,
Phoebe
Baked Shrimp & Rice Casserole (Gluten Free)
Ingredients
- 4 ears corn shucked and kernels removed
- 1 leek trimmed and thinly sliced
- 1 bunch scallions thinly sliced
- 1 ¼ cup Arborio rice
- One 15-ounce can coconut milk
- 8 ounces clam juice
- ½ cup dry white wine
- 2 tablespoons olive oil or melted butter
- Sea salt
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme or 4 sprigs fresh
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ¾ pound peeled deveined shrimp
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice from half a lemon
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the corn kernels, leeks, scallions, rice, coconut milk, clam juice, white wine, olive oil or butter, 1 teaspoon sea salt, thyme, and red pepper flakes. Fold the ingredients together until well-mixed.
- Transfer to a 15-inch oven-proof skillet or a 9 x 13 casserole dish and arrange in an even layer. Bake the casserole for 40 minutes, or until the rice is tender and most of the liquid is absorbed. Remove from the oven, fluff the rice to redistribute, and nestle the shrimp on top in an even layer. Season lightly with salt and drizzle with the lemon juice.
- Return to the oven for 5 to 7 minutes, or until the shrimp are light pink and curled.
- Set the casserole aside to cool for a few minutes, then garnish with additional scallions and serve!
It looks so yummy and the recipe is so easy.