Craving coconut shrimp? Skip the restaurant and make your own

All it takes is one Red Lobster commercial to inspire a craving for coconut shrimp.

But in reality, the Red Lobster coconut shrimp are always smaller than they appear on TV, and they are cloying in their sweetness, especially with the dipping sauce. But if you have shrimp in your freezer and shredded coconut in your pantry, you’re well on your way to making them at home.

In the new book, “Betty Crocker The Smart Dinner: Clever and Versatile Ways to Use What You’ve Got on Hand,” from General Mills (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $19.99), you’ll find this version of DIY coconut shrimp that you can adjust according to your preference on sweetness. The recipe conveniently calls for Bisquick, a General Mills product, but you could use flour instead. (If you want to make your own Bisquick mix, whisk together 1 cup flour with 1½ teaspoons baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon salt and then mix in 1 tablespoon shortening, olive oil or melted butter.)

If you do not like coconut shrimp with any sweetness, seek out unsweetened shredded coconut for this recipe and skip the dipping sauce altogether. To butterfly the shrimp, which is how it is most often served at restaurants, slice the shrimp nearly in half when deveining it, but don’t cut all the way through the flesh. The goal is to be able to open the shrimp like a book, which will flatten it and help it cook faster and with more surface area, which adds to the crispy crust.