Costco Panko Shrimp (Kirkland) + Crispy Air Fryer Recipe

Kirkland Signature Panko Shrimp at Costco

Costco sells a 2.5-pound box of their Kirkland Signature Panko Shrimp for $19.99. The panko shrimp can be found in Costco’s frozen food area near other Costco favorites such as the Tempura Shrimp, Beer Battered Cod, and the Coconut Shrimp.

Costco’s Panko Shrimp contains approximately 40-50 shrimp per box. The shrimp are farm raised and a product of Ecuador.

What Is Panko Shrimp?

Panko bread crumbs are a Japanese bread crumb that is fantastic for frying as it is incredibly crispy, doesn’t absorb much oil, and, most importantly, lets the food item still be the star of the show.

Panko bread crumbs are typically lighter, flakier, crispier, and crunchier than their traditional bread crumb counterparts.

The Kirkland Signature Panko Shrimp are seasoned butterflied shrimp lightly coated with delicate panko bread crumbs. The end result is a delicious, light and crispy shrimp.

Non-Resealable Bag

These Costco panko shrimp are not in a resealable bag, and it’s super disappointing for a Kirkland Signature product. Costco sells in bulk and there is some reasonable expectation to be able to easily preserve the food. Are we supposed to eat 50 shrimp in one sitting?

Costco items are usually huge, and in my mind, resealable bags are necessary, and at this point, I expect all items to either be portioned individually or in resealable bags.

Costco Cost Comparison

Kirkland Signature Panko Shrimp costs $19.99 at retail and $15.99 when on sale. When on sale, this is a discount of $4 or 20%.

Each box holds 2.5 pounds of panko shrimp, and at retail, the price per pound is $8 but will drop to $6.40 per pound when Costco puts the item on sale.

At the sale price, each shrimp goes for $0.32 to $0.40, depending on how many shrimp are in each box.

Costco vs The Competition

Because this is Kirkland Signature Panko Shrimp, they can only be found at Costco, but other retailers do sell brand name panko shrimp.

Sam’s Club sells 3 pounds of Aqua Star Butterfly Panko Shrimp for $18.98 or $6.33 per pound. This is better than Costco’s retail price and right at Costco’s sale price per pound.

Target sells 20 ounces of Aqua Star Butterfly Shrimp for $10.89 or $8.71 per pound. This is slightly more expensive than Costco’s retail price for their Kirkland Signature Panko Shrimp.

Costco Is Not The Winner on Price

In this case, Costco does not offer the best overall price for breaded panko shrimp.

Kirkland Signature Panko Shrimp Taste Test

Cook in The Air Fryer

For these Costco Panko Shrimp, Kirkland Signature recommends a couple of different oven cooking options.

I opted to use my air fryer as it would save a significant amount of time. My air fryer instructions will be included below with the other cooking directions.

Obviously, the point of the air fryer is to cook the food quickly and to make it extra crispy, and that is exactly what the air fryer did. The panko shrimp came out looking beautiful, and the shrimp was cooked to 165°F.

Looks Like Chicken Nuggets With a Tail

The first thing I noticed about the shrimp was how much it reminded me of Costco’s panko-breaded chicken nuggets.

Both items use panko breading, and I couldn’t help but think these were panko breaded chicken nuggets with a shrimp tail attached. They look very, very similar.

Panko Breading - A Little Too Thick

The panko breading was an amazing golden brown and was super crunchy and crispy. There was a lot of crunch in each bite, and the panko breading was not overly salty.

My biggest complaint about the breading/crust was how thick it was. Some of the panko shrimp were maybe 60% shrimp and 40% breading.

It’s not a dealbreaker for these shrimp, but they would be significantly better with a lighter, more authentic panko breading or if they were tempura battered.

Needs More Shrimp Flavor

For the actual shrimp, I would say they are pretty good. I would have liked them to be a little larger, but I can’t really complain about the shrimp size for $6.40 a pound.

The shrimp flavor didn’t stand out as much as it could have when combined with the panko breading. I really had to search for the shrimp flavor when I was eating these, and the portion with the most intense shrimp flavor was the tail.

Overall

Overall, Costco’s panko shrimp is a very solid product. It didn’t wow me in flavor, but it was still quite tasty. I enjoyed eating the shrimp, and I finished off the box rather quickly. Good stuff!

Costco Panko Shrimp Cooking Instructions + Air Fryer Cook

How to Cook Costco Panko Shrimp

Kirkland Signature offers 3 cooking methods for these panko shrimp, but they all, unfortunately, involve the oven.

The fried shrimp take 15-18 minutes to cook, plus whatever time it takes to get the oven preheated. You are potentially looking at 30 minutes total time to get these panko shrimp ready.

Microwaving is not recommended!

The Air Fryer Is The Easiest Option

A better alternative would be to Air Fry the Costco panko shrimp which can cut the total cook time in half, if not more. I have included my personal air fryer cooking directions below.

Are These Sold In Restaurants?

Another interesting thing to point out is that Kirkland Signature does provide commercial convection oven cooking directions. I wonder how many restaurants out there are serving this Costco Panko Shrimp.

Bake Conventional Oven (Kirkland Recommended Method)

Preheat Oven to 400°F.
Arrange in a single layer, so panko shrimp don’t touch.
Bake for 16 to 18 minutes on a middle oven rack.
For best results, turn the Costco panko shrimp over after 10 minutes.
Let stand for 2 minutes after removing from the oven.
Before serving, place on paper towels.
Remove from paper towels and place on a serving dish.
For a crispier coating, follow the oven directions above, baking at 425°F.

Bake Household Convection Oven

Preheat Oven to 400°F.
Arrange in a single layer, so panko shrimp don’t touch.
Bake for 15 to 17 minutes on a middle oven rack.
For best results, turn the panko shrimp over after 6 minutes.
Let stand for 2 minutes after removing from the oven.
Before serving, place on paper towels.
Remove from paper towels and place on a serving dish.

Bake Commercial Convection Oven

Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Cover sheet pan with parchment paper.
Arrange in a single layer, so shrimp don’t touch.
Bake for 12 to 14 minutes on a middle oven rack.
For best results, turn the Costco Panko shrimp over after 6 minutes.
Let stand for 2 minutes after removing from the oven.
Before serving, place on paper towels.
Remove from paper towels and place on a serving dish.

Costco Panko Shrimp Air Fryer Cooking Directions

Preheat the Air Fryer to 400°F.
Place Panko Shrimp in the air fryer and cook for 10 minutes.
Spritz with cooking oil for additional crispiness.
Flip halfway through cooking time.
Serve and enjoy.

Panko Shrimp Nutritional Information and Calories

How Many Calories in Costco Panko Shrimp

One serving of Kirkland Signature Panko Shrimp will be 3 shrimp pieces. Each serving will contain 220 calories coming from 12 grams of fat, 14 grams of carbs, and 13 grams of protein.

This is a fascinating nutritional profile as there is nearly an equal amount of fats, carbohydrates, and protein. I do like the high amount of protein in comparison to the rest of the macronutrients.

The 220 calories for 3 fried panko shrimp seems about right.

Moderate Sodium, But Be Careful

Each serving of 3 Costco panko shrimp will have 200 mg of sodium or 9% of the recommended daily value. This isn’t a lot of sodium, but eating multiple servings of these smaller panko shrimps is very easy.

I would have no problem eating 3+ servings or 9 panko shrimp, and the sodium will really start to add up.