MONDAY RECIPE POST - EASY STIR-FRIED THAI GARLIC SHRIMP

This recipe comes from The Spruce Eats and the name by this recipe is Darlene Schmidt.  I would recommend looking at her photos and the original recipe here.  

Easy Stir-Fried Thai Garlic Shrimp
(2 servings)


Total: 13 minutes
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 3 minutes  
Yield: 12 to 15 shrimp
Calories: 94 per serving

Ingredients:

For the marinade:

1-1/2 to 2 tablespoons oyster sauce (Thai Oyster Sauce or Lee Kum Kee)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 tablespoon brown sugar (this is the second time we made this recipe and we added an extra tablespoon of sugar)
4 to 6 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons lime juice  (we had an abundance of lemons and used those instead of the lime juice)
1 red chili pepper, minced or 1/2 teaspoon dried crushed chili

(We replaced the fresh chili with a large spoonful of chili paste that comes in a red container. Pictured below.

We bought it from Lottes, our local Asian grocery market.)

For the Stir-Fry:

12 to 15 medium to large shrimp (the original recipe calls for them to be butterflied and that the shells can be removed or left on - we bought our shrimp, peeled and deveined them and did nothing else)

2 to 3 tablespoons of oil for stir-frying - at the moment we are trying avocado oil but used olive oil the first time

Garnish: 1 lemon cut into wedges
               1/2 cup fresh cilantro, coriander or our 
               personal favorite, Thai Basil Leaves

Instructions: 

In a bowl combine oyster sauce, soy sauce, fish sauce, brown sugar, garlic, lime juice and chili pepper.  Stir until the sugar has dissolved.  We added that extra tablespoon of sugar here.

Place the shrimp in the marinade and stir well to coat.

In a wok or frying pan, heat the oil.

Once hot, add the shrimp along with the marinade.

Stir-fry for 2 to 3 minutes or until the shrimp are plump and pink.  They will also be lightly browned from the sauce.

Avoid overcooking or the shrimp will turn rubbery.

Test the sauce for taste and adjust as needed to achieve a salty-sweet balance.  Add more sugar if its too sour, add more lime juice if it's too salty or sweet.

Darlene offers two ways to serve the shrimp:

It makes a a light entrée for two people, or an appetizer for a group, and can be plated for a nice presentation. 

For a dinner or lunch entrée, simply slide the shrimp onto a serving platter and sprinkle with your choice of Coriander, Cilantro or Thai Sweet Basil, plus an extra fresh chili if using.  Add lemon or lime wedges to the side and serve with rice or a crusty loaf of French bread.

For an appetizer: use tongs to pick shrimp out of the pan, allowing most of the sauce to drip back into the pan.  Arrange the shrimp on a serving platter with tails up and stick a toothpick into each to make eating them easier.  Pour sauce over the platter and sprinkle with fresh Coriander.  Garnish with lime wedges.

Our choice was to make the same Bok Choy dish we made last week, having but not mixing the  Jasmine Rice this time.  I also had some steamed cauliflower just because I had used it for another meal earlier and wanted to use up the rest.