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Shrimp Stir Fry

Shrimp stir fry is a complete meal-in-one and easy to make at home in less time than driving to your favorite Chinese restaurant! It’s bursting with juicy shrimp and crisp tender veggies enveloped in a drool-worthy orange sweet and sour sauce laced with ginger, garlic and chili sauce. This shrimp stir fry recipe is easy to make with a quick marinade while you chop the veggies then you’re just a 10-minute stir fry away from dinner. This recipe is also easy to customize with whatever veggies you love from bell peppers and snow peas to, carrots, mushrooms and zucchini. Complete shrimp stir fry recipe with steamed rice or low carb cauliflower rice, homemade egg rolls and cream cheese wontons for a complete Chinese feast.
Course Main Dish
Cuisine Asian
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes
Servings 4 -6 servings

Ingredients

Marinade

Stir Fry Sauce

Stir Fry

  • 3 tablespoons Vegetable oil divided
  • 1/2 large yellow onion chopped into 1-inch pieces
  • 2 carrots thinly sliced
  • 1 red bell pepper chopped into 1-inch pieces
  • 4 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 tablespoon minced ginger
  • 6 oz. Snow peas ends trimmed

Instructions

  • Whisk soy sauce and rice wine together in a medium bowl. Add shrimp and stir to combine; let rest for 10 minutes up to 30 minutes at room temperature. Meanwhile, whisk the Stir Fry Sauce ingredients together in a medium bowl starting with 1/3 cup sugar. Add additional sugar to taste (will depend on orange juice and how spicy you like it); set aside.
  • Heat 1 tablespoon vegetable oil in a large cast iron skillet over high heat until just smoking. Add half of the shrimp and cook, without stirring, until the bottom of the shrimp are browned at the edges, about 1 minute. Flip shrimp over and cook just until opaque and nearly cooked through, about 30 seconds; transfer to a plate. Repeat with remaining shrimp.
  • Heat 1 tablespoon oil in in the now empty skillet over medium high heat. Add onions and carrots and stir fry for 2 minutes. Add bell peppers, ginger and garlic and stir fry for 1 minute.
  • Whisk sauce (to recombine) and add to skillet. Bring the sauce to a boil then reduce to a simmer until sauce has thickened, 1-2 minutes. Stir in snow peas and cook one additional minute. Add shrimp and heat through.
  • Garnish with additional chili sauce, green onions to taste if desired.

Notes

COOKING TIPS 

This shrimp stir fry recipe is pretty straightforward, but here is a summary of tips and tricks to make it a sizzling success:

  • Saucy stir fry.  This stir fry has extra sauce because you will want to drink the sauce!  This also means it can accommodate extra veggies if you wish. 
  • Purchase raw, deveined shrimp.  Buying prepared shrimp saves you TONS of time and makes your job a snap because all you have to do is thaw the shrimp. 
  • Frozen  shrimp is awesome.   I use frozen shrimp all the time for this recipe.  Just make sure you thaw the shrimp completely per instructions and pat it dry before using.
  • Mixed vegetables. You can make meal prep faster by picking up a bag of mixed vegetables, and then doing a little chopping if needed.
  • How to chop vegetables.  The most important key to making a good stir-fry is cutting each ingredient to a uniform size as specified in the recipe. As detailed earlier in the post, chop the bell peppers large and the carrots thinly.
  • Customize veggies.  You can substitute the carrots and bell peppers for your favorite veggies.  Cut long cooking vegetables small and short cooking vegetables larger.
  • Don’t marinate shrimp for too long. The shrimp should not be marinated longer than 30 minutes or else it can become mushy.
  • Prep veggies and sauce first.  While your shrimp is marinating, chop all your veggies, aromatics and prep your sauce.  You want everything ready before you start cooking because the actually stir fry portion just takes a few minutes. If you have to stop to make your sauce while your bell peppers are still in the pan, they can end up soft and even worse – mushy.
  • Use a large cast iron skillet.  You don’t need a wok to make a fabulous a stir fry.  A cast iron skillet provides enough surface area to stir fry the ingredients and retain constant heat.
  • Use a hot skillet. Wait until your skillet is hot before adding the shrimp.  This will ensure a nice sear on the outside of the shrimp without overcooking the inside which will ensure juicy, tender morsels.
  • Don’t overcook shrimp.  Cook shrimp just until opaque.
  • Don’t overcook veggies.  Set a timer and DON’T over-cook the veggies because the bell peppers will continue to cook in the sauce – we want crisp tender veggies, not tender crisp. Also, you don’t want to burn the garlic.
  • Ginger pro tip.  I like to freeze ginger so it’s always at my fingertips.  To freeze ginger: grate it, spread it by the teaspoon or tablespoon on parchment paper and flash freeze until solid, about 1 hour.  Transfer to an airtight container or plastic bag for up to 6 months.   You can add frozen ginger directly to your stir fry.
  • How do you thicken the stir fry sauce?  The cornstarch in the sauce will thicken the sauce as it simmers with the vegetables.  If you still would like a thicker sauce, then continue to simmer until it reaches desired consistency.  For an even thicker sauce, make a slurry by whisking 1 teaspoon cornstarch in 2 tablespoons water then adding to the simmering sauce. 
  • How do you thin the stir fry sauce?  Your sauce will thicken more the longer it is simmers. If it simmers to the point of too thick, don’t worry! It is easy to thin by whisking in water a tablespoon at a time until it thins to desired consistency. 

HOW TO STORE AND REHEAT

Shrimp stir fry reheats well if the shrimp is not initially overcooked.  You will want to take care not to overcook leftovers as well or the shrimp can taste rubbery.  
  • How to store:  store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
  • How to reheat in microwave:  transfer small portions to a microwave safe dish, heat for one minute, stir then continue to heat at 30 second intervals. 
  • How to reheat on the stove:  for larger portions, rewarm gently in a large skillet, stirring often.  You may need to add a splash of water to thin the sauce.

how to FREEZE

Shrimp stir fry freezes very well, except for the bell peppers.  If using bell peppers, you may want to pick them out or they will become mushy when thawed.  Also, you should not freeze shrimp stir fry IF you have use frozen, thawed shrimp as frozen shrimp should not be re-frozen. To freeze:
  • Let shrimp stir fry cool completely in the refrigerator. 
  • Transfer to an airtight container.  If using a freezer bag, squeeze out any excess air to prevent freezer burn.
  • Label and freeze for up to 3 months. 
  • When ready to eat, let the stir fry thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
  • Reheat per instructions. in the microwave for 60 seconds then at 30 second intervals or gently on the stove.v