These “Shrimp Boil” Foil Packets are inspired by the summer seafood classic – with shrimp, smoked sausage and potatoes. They come in handy when you need a quick fix dinner with easy prep and a short cooking time.

They can cook on the grill or in the oven – and make for a great camping meal, too!

overhead close up of shrimp foil in foil packet

Foil packet dinner with shrimp and sausage

This is a quick and easy way to make a dinner that resembles the taste of a classic seafood boil. It’s great if you’re short on time and don’t have a lot of time to spend in the kitchen!
We like these foil pouches with Old Bay style seasoning, but you can use Cajun seasoning or your favorite seafood boil seasoning if you prefer – it’s easy to make this your own!
The foil pouches can be assembled up to a day ahead, which makes them great for short camping trips or to prepare a meal on Sundays before church; or for days you just don’t have time in the kitchen in the afternoon.

Ingredients you’ll need

Here is a visual overview of the ingredients in the recipe. Scroll down to the recipe at the bottom for quantities.

ingredients for shrimp boil foil packets with text labels — Ingredients for Shrimp Boil Foil Packets: Potatoes, shrimp, corn on the cob, cooked sausage, onion, garlic, lemon juice, oil, butter, parsley, old bay seasoning, garlic powder, salt and pepper.

Ingredient notes and substitutes

Potatoes: I usually make this recipe with baby red potatoes, but I went to five different stores and none had them on offer at this time. So I used regular baby potatoes – they work just fine, too.
Smoked sausage: Andouille sausage is great here, but if you can only find Kielbasa… go for it! The main point to me is to use smoked sausage for the flavor.
Corn: I used fresh cobs of corn and cut them up myself. Feel free to use frozen corn on the cob, just make sure to thaw it first.
Old Bay seasoning: I made my own because I couldn’t find it at the stores I went to (that’s what you get for rural living…), but store-bought is just fine. I sometimes use Cajun seasoning or a mix of Old Bay and Cajun for this recipe, which is super delicious as well!

How to make Shrimp Boil Foil Packets

Please note that you must pre-cook the potatoes before assembling the foil packets – either in the microwave or on the stove in boiling salted water. Otherwise, the potatoes will still be raw once the shrimp is done.

Then, the rest of the recipe is incredibly simple:

ingredients for shrimp boil foil packets combined in large glass bowl — combine all ingredients

uncooked shrimp boil in middle of piece of aluminium foil — combine all ingredients

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl, making sure the seasoning evenly coats everything.
Set out 4 large pieces of aluminium foil and evenly divide the ingredients between them.
Fold into foil packets, then bake or grill. Done!

How to fold foil packets

In case you have never made a foil packet dinner before and are wondering how to make a tightly sealed pouch around your ingredients, here is my favorite method:

female hands holding ends of foil packet — gather long ends

female hands folding down top of foil packet — gather long ends

And then you’ll have a perfectly sealed foil packet:

sealed foil packet on light marble surface

This ensures the food is fully sealed and no juices will leak out during cooking; and it helps the food to cook evenly inside the pouch.

Careful when opening your foil packet dinners – there’s a lot of hot steam trapped inside that emerges as you’re unfolding it!

overhead view of three shrimp boil foil packets on marble surface

Recipe tips

Do not skip pre-cooking the potatoes! The shrimp and other ingredients in this recipe cook much faster than raw potatoes; you must pre-cook the potatoes in order to make sure they are done in time.
Slice the ingredients evenly for best results.
Make sure you’re properly and fully sealing the foil pouches – not only does this keep juices from leaking out, it ensures the developing steam stays trapped inside the foil pouch, cooking the ingredients in the time given in the recipe below.

Make ahead tips

If you want to assemble these foil pouches ahead of time, you can make them up to a day before cooking them.

The potatoes must be fully cooled before assembling, otherwise they will start cooking the shrimp! Then, store the assembled and fully sealed foil packets in the fridge for up to a day. Remove from the fridge 15 minutes before cooking them; they may need 5-10 minutes longer on the grill/in the oven as they are colder than freshly assembled.