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Make a delicious shrimp stir fry with juicy shrimp, crisp vegetables, and garlicky sauce. This quick and easy recipe is ready in 20 minutes and will become your new favorite weeknight meal.
If you like a quick and easy shrimp fried rice, I am sure you will love this garlic shrimp stir fry with rainbow vegetables. It is a flavorful, easy, and quick one-pan meal you can enjoy on a busy weeknight. Plus, it’s easily customizable with your favorite veggies or whatever you have on hand at the moment (perfect for clearing out the fridge).
This recipe is super quick to make—make the sauce, prep the veggies, and finally stir-fry everything. Serve it with cooked jasmine rice or noodles, and voila—a complete meal packed with flavor is ready in just about 20 minutes.
This shrimp stir fry is a great addition to your rotation of quick and delicious seafood and stir fry recipes, such as this quick air fryer shrimp, pan-seared Chilean sea bass, Chinese eggplant stir fry, and pepper steak stir fry.
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Ingredients
- Raw shrimp: To get super juicy results, I recommend getting medium or large shrimp. The smaller they are, the faster they will cook and risk overcooking or becoming dry. To save time, buy peeled and deveined shrimp (tail on or off), but you can also learn how to peel and devein shrimp yourself.
- Vegetables: I love adding red bell pepper, asparagus, broccoli, sugar snap peas, and carrots, but you can use other vegetables, too (snow peas, bok choy, mushrooms, etc). I usually use fresh vegetables, but you can also use frozen stir-fry veggies (cook them from frozen).
- Aromatics: Garlic, ginger, and chili flakes.
- Vegetable oil.
- For the sauce: Sugar (I like using light brown sugar), sesame oil, soy sauce (use low-sodium or gluten-free tamari if wanted), and cornstarch.
- To garnish: Cilantro and sesame seeds.
See the printable recipe card below for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to make the best shrimp stir fry
If you are planning on serving this with rice, it’s best to start cooking the rice before preparing the stir fry. Check my perfect stovetop jasmine rice for the method. If serving with noodles, prepare them as per their package instructions.
Prepare the sauce and other ingredients: Start by making the stir fry sauce. In a small bowl, mix the sugar, sesame oil, soy sauce, and cornstarch. Whisk until there are no lumps.
Also, prepare the vegetables and aromatics. Roughly chop the asparagus into bite-sized pieces, cut the bell pepper into thin strips, and thinly slice the carrot. Mince the garlic and grate or mince the ginger. If using cilantro for garnish, chop it now as well.
If they are not ready, peel and devein the shrimp and pat it dry with a paper towel.
Sauté the shrimp: Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet or a wok over medium-high heat. Add the minced garlic, ginger, and chili flakes and stir-fry for 1-2 minutes.
Next, add the shrimp and stir to coat it with the oil. Cook for 2-3 minutes until they just turn opaque.
Cook the veggies and shrimp together: Add the vegetables and stir fry for a few more minutes until they are tender-crisp. Stir occasionally.
Pour the sauce and finish: Pour the prepared sauce and stir to coat all the shrimp and veggies. Let it cook for a couple more minutes to allow the sauce to thicken. Finally, add the chopped cilantro and sesame seeds and stir to combine. Then, remove the pan from the heat.
Serve: The shrimp stir fry with vegetables is now ready to serve. Enjoy it with some cooked rice (stovetop jasmine rice, brown rice, or basmati rice) or with some noodles (rice noodles or soba noodles are great options). Alternatively, you can also serve it with perfect quinoa, cauliflower rice, or even zoodles (zucchini noodles).
To avoid overcooked, tough shrimp, cook them just until they turn opaque. Then, add the vegetables and cook until they are crisp-tender. Finally, add the sauce and mix everything.
More shrimp recipes you’ll love
For more inspiration, check out my collection of the best seafood recipes!
If you try this shrimp stir fry recipe, let me know how it goes in the comments below. I’d appreciate a recipe card rating and would love to see your recipe recreations – tag me on Instagram @Alphafoodie!
Best Ever Shrimp Stir Fry
Ingredients
- 1.5 lb shrimp peeled and deveined, medium or large are better
- 6.5 oz red bell pepper 1 medium
- 4.3 oz asparagus
- 4 oz broccoli
- 4 oz sugar snap peas
- 4.5 oz carrot 1 large
- 3 Tbsp vegetable oil
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 Tbsp ginger minced
- 2 Tbsp soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp sesame oil
- 1/2 tsp chili flakes
- 2 Tbsp light brown sugar
- 1 Tbsp cornstarch
To garnish
- cilantro chopped
- 1/2 Tbsp sesame seeds
Instructions
- In a small bowl, mix the sugar, sesame oil, soy sauce, and cornstarch. Whisk well until there are no lumps.
- Roughly chop the asparagus into bite-sized pieces, cut the bell pepper into thin strips, and thinly slice the carrot. Mince the garlic and the ginger, and chop the cilantro.
- If needed, peel and devein the shrimp and pat it dry with a paper towel.
- In a large cast iron skillet or a wok, heat the vegetable oil over medium-high heat. Add the minced garlic, ginger, and chili flakes and stir-fry for 1-2 minutes.
- Add the shrimp. Stir to coat it with the oil. Cook for 2-3 minutes until they just turn opaque.
- Add the vegetables and stir fry for about 4-5 minutes until they are tender-crisp. Stir occasionally.
- Pour the sauce and stir to coat the shrimp and veggies. Let it cook for 2-3 minutes to thicken the sauce.
- Add the chopped cilantro and sesame seeds and stir to combine. Remove the pan from the heat.The shrimp stir fry is now ready to serve. Enjoy with rice or noodles.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Such a delicious and easy recipe! We loved it at home.