Elevate with this shrimp fried rice recipe that brings on the flavor. Crispy, fried shrimp adds crunchy textures and mix ins of ginger, garlic, soy, and a little rice vinegar deliver lip-smacking seasoning.
If you know a little bit about my blog, then you may have read that I grew up eating rice every, single, day. It’s probably the one flavor and fragrance that truly never gets old for me. I haven’t caught myself ever saying, “Rice, again?”. Nah. It’s more like, “Rice again! Yay!”
So saying that I’ve had my fair share of shrimp fried rice is an understatement. In fact, it’s one of my very favorite leftover rice recipes.
Being that shrimp fried rice is very classic and can easily be made with the foundations from a basic easy fried rice recipe, it’s fun to play with flavors and give it a twist that makes this version, share worthy.
…Where’s the peas? Peas, please. Sorry not today. This dish smacks with flavor and it’s all about the shrimp and umami coated rice.
Notes on making Crispy Shrimp Fried Rice
- Use cold, day-before rice.
- Don’t overmix in the beginning. Give the rice a chance to “fry” by making it into a layer within the pan and allowing the rice to heat up.
- Use medium-high heat. This is a fast recipe so having your ingredients ready is important. High heat helps to brown everything, heat all the grains of rice very well, and it helps impart the sauces and seasonings into the rice.
- The Toss or Fold. Fold and mix, fold and mix. Unless you are good with handling a wok and tossing the rice in the air, it’s good to be able to fold and mix the rice very well, but doing so without breaking, smushing, or cutting the rice. I use this very simple and handy deep spoon ladle that slides under the rice and gently moves it without breakage.
- The goal is fully, individually seasoned, and separated grains of rice. Letting the rice sit in the heat, but then knowing when to give it a good toss, fold, and mix, is important to evenly coating and flavoring the rice.
- Be aware of frozen ingredients. Frozen and icy vegetables can add water to the recipe. Either thaw anything frozen and pat dry before adding, or sauté in a separate pan and add them later. If you can use fresh veggies, that is great.
- Medium to large shrimp is ideal. They are meaty, briney, and waiting to become crisped morsels of savory goodness alongside rice made with complimentary seasonings. The crispy shrimp has to be cooked separately.
How to Prepare Shrimp for Crispy Shrimp Fried Rice
The main step in prepping the shrimp for fried rice is to cook it separately. It’s easy to do in a small pot and set aside till the very end. This ensures that the shrimp stays tender and avoids overcooking which can lead to rubbery, tasteless shrimp.
Making the shrimp crispy gives this fried rice variation a real kick. I especially love keeping the shrimp tails on! (Yes, you can.) As long as your oil is hot enough, you can fry the shrimp and keep the shells and tails on which imparts a lots of crunchy, tasty “shrimp” flavor.
You can also use medium to large shrimp with no shell and no tail…no problem.
Thawing the shrimp (the shrimp still must be cold, but just not frozen) is very important.
Pat dry ALL water off the shrimps. The shrimp must not have water on them, or else they won’t crisp up and it’s going to put water in your oil and make everything soggy. Definitely be sure to have thawed, patted dry shrimp.
Try to aim for frying the shrimp in one batch. A good size, deep cast iron or Dutch oven can certainly fit a nice handful for this recipe. Nonetheless, the shrimp have to have space in between them in order to get that crispy and even fry.
Use neutral high-heat tolerant oil like peanut or canola oil for frying.
How to Make Crispy Shrimp Fried Rice
How to Fry Crispy Shrimp
- Prep your shrimp by ensuring it is thawed, cold, and patted completely dry. Coat the shrimp with cornstarch or potato starch.
- Have your thick bottomed pan with enough oil to cover at least halfway up the shrimp. The oil needs to be hot at 375 F – 380 F.
I use a candy thermometer when I need to be sure. Hot oil will crisp the shrimp up fast. You don’t want to take more than two to three minutes per side or else the shrimp will be overcooked.
- Use a spider ladle or slotted wire ladle to scoop the shrimp out and place on a wire rack. Space the shrimp on the wire rack and have the rack elevated, not just flat on the kitchen surface, so air can circulate the cooling down shrimp. I recommend not even putting the shrimp on paper towel (it traps steam), a wire rack is absolutely the best option for more crisp shrimp.
- Dust with a little salt and pepper to taste.
Ingredients for Shrimp Fried Rice
- LEFTOVER, cold RICE – a must have
- medium to large fresh SHRIMP (shell on or shell off is fine) – meaty shrimp shines in this recipe
- cornstarch or POTATO STARCH for dry-dipping shrimp
- neutral OIL for frying shrimp (peanut or vegetable oil)
- BUTTER – the secret flavor booster that acts as a carrier for all the ingredients throughout the dish
- GARLIC – Fresh. Mandatory. Smash and mince.
- GINGER – Use fresh grated. A nice add in that delivers aroma and spice.
- CARROTS – fresh carrots please. They add texture and subtle sweetness.
- SOY SAUCE – you can use regular or dark soy sauce if you have easy access to it. Just do not add salt until tasting first.
- OYSTER SAUCE – a tablespoon is good. I use a gluten-free version and it works great.
- FISH SAUCE or shrimp paste (optional) – Umami blast! A little bit goes a long way for salt, savory, umami flavor that compliments the shrimp. Cook and mix very well into the rice.
- RICE VINEGAR – adds texture and tang to the shrimp flavor
- SCALLIONS – cut very thinly and it gets added in at the end for mild zesty onion flavor that releases when mixed into the hot rice
- SALT AND PEPPER – Taste the recipe first, then add a pinch of salt if needed. Mix well. I usually do not add much more salt to this recipe.
Garnish Suggestions: jalapēnos or whole Sichuan red chili peppers for lots of heat
Ensure your ingredients are set out and ready to go. Premix the wet sauces.
When the crispy shrimp is done, set aside on the wire cooling rack, sprinkle a pinch of salt, and before it goes in the pan with the rice, cut the shrimp in two or three pieces for lots of crispy shrimp morsels.
You can keep whole if you prefer big bites. I like shrimp in every bite so I cut mine up into three parts for each shrimp.
Add the crispy shrimp at the very end, right before serving. Fold and mix it in the rice very well for one minute. Then serve and enjoy.
Add-ins and Options for Crispy Shrimp Fried Rice
- For a healthier variation, simply sauté the shrimp in the side pan with a little olive oil and salt, and set aside. Be sure to remove the shrimp from the pan and into it’s own bowl so it will not continue cooking. Chop the shrimp up and sprinkle with a pinch of salt before adding to the rice.
- You can add some dark soy sauce for color and deeper soy flavor. A tablespoon is good enough. Do NOT add more salt to your dish until the end, after tasting first, because dark soy sauce tends to be saltier.
- Add eggs. Nothing worse than overcooked eggs. If you add eggs, scramble them separately and remove from heat BEFORE they are totally well done. Then add the eggs at the end to the rice, before the shrimp, and chop them up with the spatula or chopsticks and let the eggs finish cooking in the heat of the rice. THEN, add the shrimp last.
- Add vegetables. If you like peas, try adding fresh snow peas. Remove the fiber and ends and cut them in halves, or into threes. You can add fresh English peas. If you have frozen peas, then just make sure they are separated as much as possible for less water from the ice to get into the rice. Add veggies towards the end so they stay green and crisper.
- Make it spicy. Sauté, same time as the garlic and ginger, a few dried Sichuan red chili peppers. Just don’t do too much as not to overpower the shrimp.
- Add sesame oil. A teaspoon is perfect. Be sure it is toasted sesame oil and add at the very last minutes to ensure maximum flavor.
Yes, freeze in an airtight container. Be sure it’s airtight to avoid ice and freezer burn.
No. Use tamari for a gluten free option that is still very delicious. Rice is gluten free!
Cut your ingredients before hand and refrigerate till ready. Thaw the shrimp and keep them cold.
Crispy Shrimp Fried Rice
Equipment
- wok or large non stick pan
- frying thick bottomed pot
- slotted wire spoon
- deep spoon spatula
Ingredients
- 3 cups leftover, cold rice
- 10-15 medium shrimp cleaned, patted dry, shell or no-shell is fine
- ¾ cup potato starch or cornstarch
- 2-3 cups neutral oil for frying, add enough to submerge the shrimp
- 2 tbsp butter
- 3 cloves of garlic minced
- 1½ tbsp ginger grated
- ¼ cup carrots fine diced
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp oyster sauce
- ½ tsp rice vinegar
- ¼ tsp fish sauce
- ¼ cup scallions sliced, for garnish
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Prep ingredients and have them out ready to go. Premix the wet sauce ingredients in a small bowl. Pat fully dry the thawed shrimp. Be sure no water is on the shrimp. The shrimp needs to still be cold, just not frozen.
Make Crispy Shrimp
- Heat about 2½-3 inches of oil in a thick bottomed pan to 375 F – 380 FUse enough oil to submerge the shrimp.
- Dunk your shrimp in cornstarch or potato starch and coat them evenly.
- When the oil is ready, fry your shrimp in small batches for 3-4 minutes until golden brown. Remove from oil with a slotted ladle and place the shrimp on an elevated, wire cooling rack. Sprinkle with some salt. Set aside.
Make Crispy Shrimp Fried Rice
- Add butter to your wok or deep pan and sauté the garlic and ginger.
- Add the carrots, mix for one minute, and then add the cold, leftover rice. Fold and mix once.
- Then gently press and create a layer of rice over the pan, gently breaking up some of the rice grains from clumps, and once this layer is done, let the rice sit there for three minutes. This allows the rice to heat up, soak in aromatics, and begin to heat up.
- Medium to high heat, fold and mix your rice. Let the rice sit again for another minute. Then toss, fold, and mix the rice more. Let the rice sit for a few seconds then toss, fold, mix again so that the rice grains are becoming more and more separated.
- The rice grains should be almost completely separated the more the rice heats up and is tossed around. Now add the sauce comprised of soy sauce, oyster sauce, fish sauce, and rice vinegar. Immediately toss, fold, mix and gently incorporate the sauce to coat every grain of rice.
- The rice color should be getting more brown and coated. Sprinkle the salt and pepper. Toss, fold, and mix very well. Ensure all the rice is separated and coated very evenly.
- Lower the heat and during this time, quickly cut your shrimp and add all the pieces on top of the rice. Turn off the heat.
- Add in very thin sliced scallions and fold and mix in for just one minute.
- Serve with some garnish of chopped chilis or chili sauce, and Enjoy!
Notes
- serve with garnishes such as lemon, chili oil, or Sriracha sauce
- add in dried, red Sichuan chilis for spicy. Not too much.
- add in snowpeas or shitake mushrooms
- add in toasted sesame oil
- serve with a side of baby bok choy
LEAVE A COMMENT