Preparing seafood can be daunting, but shrimp is a great way to get started! A simple but flavorful pan-fry like this means you can put seafood on the table as part of a fulfilling weeknight dinner.
Check out a quick story summary of our recipe!
Prep Time
15 min
Total Time
25 min
Yields
4 servings
Ingredients
Weight: US
oz
g
Volume: US
cup
mL
Servings
4
Main Ingredients
- 10 oz shrimp
- 5 clove garlic
- 3 tbsp corn oil (
or other neutral oil
)
Shrimp Seasoning
- 0.25 tsp garlic salt
- 1.5 tsp cornstarch
Seasoning
- 1 tsp garlic salt
- 0.25 tsp salt
- 0.25 tsp sugar
- 0.20 tsp black pepper
- 0.20 tsp white pepper
Shrimp by size
For Pan-fried Shrimp with Minced Garlic, the shrimp is a rather lonely star. It's flavored with aromatic ingredients like garlic, but it's really the only main ingredient. Although we prefer larger shrimp to make this dish, it's really more important to get good quality shrimp.
If you'd like to use the same size that we do in the video, go for what's called "extra large" at 26/30, which means 26 to 30 pieces of shrimp per pound. Smaller or larger shrimp work just fine, though! Remember to adjust the cooking time accordingly. Small shrimp may cook through faster.
Sustainable sources of shrimp
If you’re looking to buy sustainably sourced shrimp, Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch recommends that you avoid shrimp from places like Argentina, China, India.
If you do end up buying shrimp from those areas, it's totally fine (my parents do), but Seafood Watch notes that the shrimp are sourced with less sustainable methods.
To learn more, check out the link at Seafood Watch.
Step 1: Cut & devein shrimp
Start by preparing the shrimp (10 oz). Use scissors to cut off the legs. While you have the scissors out, you can beautify the tail by cutting it into a sharp diamond. this is called "Phoenix-tailed Shrimp".
You can then easily remove the dark vein by jabbing a sharp toothpick horizontally into the shrimp, under the vein. Then, pull the toothpick up out of the back of the shrimp to remove the vein.
Then, split the back of the shrimp open by pushing a small paring knife in and cutting outwards. This is especially important for large shrimp, to help flavor and heat penetrate. It also makes the eating process much easier, as they'll be easy to peel!
Remove the legs and devein all of the shrimp.
Season & coat shrimp
Put the prepared shrimp in a bowl to season them. Add garlic salt (0.25 tsp) and toss the shrimp until it's evenly coated. Then, add cornstarch (1.5 tsp) and toss to coat. The cornstarch is important to help crisp up the shell and give the dish an amazing fried aroma.
Step 2: Prepare garlic & dry seasoning
Give the garlic (5 clove) a quick smash, so it's easy to peel. Trim and discard the hard ends of each clove. Then, you can smash the cloves with a heavier hand to get it really broken up, giving the garlic flavor its best chance to release into the dish. The smashed cloves will be much flatter and easier to mince roughly. Set the minced garlic aside.
Prepare the dry seasoning in a separate bowl. Add garlic salt (1 tsp), salt, sugar, black pepper, and white pepper. Mix well.
Step 3: Pan-fry shrimp
Heat a flat pan on high. Once the pan is hot enough, lower the heat to medium to avoid burning your lovely shrimp. Add oil (2 tbsp) and swirl the pan to spread it around. Then, individually place each shrimp down onto the pan, pulling them a little straighter as you put them down.
Let the shrimp cook without moving or flipping them. Add more oil (1 tbsp) along the edge of the pan.
When the bottom side of the shrimp turns red, or about 2 minutes, flip the shrimp. It's easier to use chopsticks or tongs to flip each piece individually than trying to turn them with a spatula.
Cook on this side for another 2 minutes, or until it turns reddish-orange. Plate the shrimp for now.
Step 4: Stir-fry everything
No need to clean yet! Add the minced garlic to the pan. Turn the heat down to low and stir-fry the garlic alone to get it aromatic. It'll take about 30 seconds for the garlic to start turning golden.
Once the garlic is fragrant and golden, turn the heat off add the shrimp back in. Mix it around to help the garlic coat the shrimp.
Turn the heat back on to low, then start sprinkling in the dry seasoning. Avoid creating large clumps of seasoning by sprinkling it in a bit at a time while stirring and tossing the shrimp.
When you've added all the seasoning and it's thoroughly mixed in, plate the shrimp. Don't forget to get all the crispy bits of golden garlic out of the pan!
FAQ
How do you buy shrimp?
- Our general rule is that you should always buy frozen, unpeeled, and untreated shrimp. Since most shrimp is frozen at sea, frozen deveined or peeled shrimp in stores have been defrosted at least once, then refrozen. This back and forth process of freezing and thawing and freezing causes the shrimp's natural flavor to deteriorate.
- Also, check the ingredient list to ensure that shrimp is the only ingredient since additives that are often used create an unpleasant texture.
Do you have to cook shrimp with the shell on?
- We definitely recommend cooking with the shell on! We love the crispy flavor and the juiciness from shell-on shrimp. However, if you really don't prefer shell-on shrimp or cannot find it, you can definitely still make this Pan-fried Shrimp with Minced Garlic recipe with peeled shrimp!
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Summary
Made With Lau
madewithlau.com/recipes/pan-fried-shrimp-with-garlicChinese Garlic Shrimp (蒜蓉煎虾)
The crispiest, most savory weeknight shrimp dish of your dreams!
- Prep Time: 15 min
- Total Time: 25 min
- Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients
Main Ingredients
- 10 oz shrimp
- 5 clove garlic
- 3 tbsp corn oil (
or other neutral oil
)
Shrimp Seasoning
- 0.25 tsp garlic salt
- 1.5 tsp cornstarch
Seasoning
- 1 tsp garlic salt
- 0.25 tsp salt
- 0.25 tsp sugar
- 0.20 tsp black pepper
- 0.20 tsp white pepper
Step 1 - Cut & devein shrimp
↑ Jump to detailsStart by preparing the shrimp (10 oz). Use scissors to cut off the legs. While you have the scissors out, you can beautify the tail by cutting it into a sharp diamond.
Remove the dark vein by jabbing a sharp toothpick horizontally into the shrimp, under the vein. Then, pull the toothpick up out of the back of the shrimp to remove the vein.
Then, split the back of the shrimp open by pushing a small paring knife in and cutting outwards.
Remove the legs and devein all of the shrimp.
Season & coat shrimp
Put the prepared shrimp in a bowl to season them. Add garlic salt (0.25 tsp) and toss the shrimp until it's evenly coated. Then, add cornstarch (1.5 tsp) and toss to coat. The cornstarch is important to help crisp up the shell and give the dish an amazing fried aroma.
Step 2 - Prepare garlic & dry seasoning
↑ Jump to detailsSmash and peel the garlic (5 clove). Trim and discard the hard ends of each clove. Then, smash the cloves with a heavier hand to get it really broken up. Mince roughly, and set aside.
Prepare the dry seasoning in a separate bowl. Add garlic salt (1 tsp), salt, sugar, black pepper, and white pepper. Mix well.
Step 3 - Pan-fry shrimp
↑ Jump to detailsHeat a flat pan on high. Once the pan is hot enough, lower the heat to medium. Add oil (1.5 tbsp) and swirl the pan to spread it around. Then, individually place each shrimp down on the pan, pulling them straight.
Let the shrimp cook without moving or flipping them. Add more oil (0.75 tbsp) along the edge of the pan.
When the bottom side of the shrimp turns red, or about 2 minutes, flip the shrimp.
Cook on this side for another 2 minutes, or until it turns reddish-orange. Plate the shrimp for now.
Step 4 - Stir-fry everything
↑ Jump to detailsAdd the minced garlic to the pan. Turn the heat down to low and stir-fry the garlic or about 30 seconds, until fragrant and golden in color.
Once the garlic is fragrant and golden, turn the heat off add the shrimp back in. Mix it around to help the garlic coat the shrimp.
Turn the heat back on to low, then sprinkle in the dry seasoning while stirring and tossing the shrimp.
When you've added all the seasoning and it's thoroughly mixed in, plate the shrimp. Don't forget to get all the crispy bits of golden garlic out of the pan!
Step 5 - Take pictures
Whip out your camera (1). Begin taking photos (1,000,000). Pick your favorites!
Step 6 - Share and tag us on Instagram @madewithlau #madewithlau!
Did you have fun making this recipe? We'd love to see & hear about it. (Especially my dad. He would be THRILLED!)
Enjoy!
We have many, many happy memories of enjoying this dish growing up.
Now, hopefully, you can create your own memories with this dish with your loved ones.
Also, I cordially invite you to eat with us and learn more about the dish, Chinese culture, and my family.
Cheers, and thanks for cooking with us!
Feel free to comment below if you have any questions about the recipe.