Phyllo cups exist so you can serve something warm on a tray without plates or forks. They also give you an exact portion, which is why twenty-four of them turn into twelve servings with no math and no argument. The shells come frozen and they are one of the few shortcuts worth taking.

Shrimp get cooked separately and then chopped, and there is no way around it. Whole shrimp in a shell cannot be eaten in one bite, and shrimp cooked inside the cup steam instead of roast and dump water into the pastry. Six to eight minutes on their own pan, cooled slightly, then chopped small enough that every spoonful gets shrimp, corn, and pepper.

The bake at the end is five to seven minutes and it is only there to warm the filling and re-crisp the shells. Any longer and the pastry goes dark and the shrimp turn to rubber. Fill them close to service, warm them fast, and get the tray out while the sauce is still shining.