Easy Firecracker Shrimp Stir Fry

This Easy Firecracker Shrimp Stir Fry is the perfect weeknight meal with tender shrimp, crisp vegetables, all smothered in a sweet and spicy sauce. Tastes way better than take-out! Serve over rice and have dinner on your table in under 20 minutes. 

Skip the take-out and make this flavor-packed Firecracker Shrimp Stir Fry in just 15 minutes! Loaded with colorful bell peppers, tender snap peas and juicy shrimp all tossed in the most delicious spicy sauce. This is the perfect easy dinner for those busy weeknights and I promise tastes better than your favorite takeout meal. Serve over fluffy rice and enjoy leftovers for lunch the next day. Think bang bang shrimp or kung pao shrimp, but healthier!

Why You’ll Love this Recipe

• High Protein – shrimp is an excellent source of lean protein! This stir fry packs in over 34 grams of protein per serving.
• Sweet and Spicy – the combination of honey and sriracha gives this stir fry a delicious sweet and spicy kick.
• Quick and Easy – you can easily whip up this spicy shrimp stir fry in just 15 minutes using minimal ingredients.
• Customizable – feel free to make this dish all your own! Swap out the protein, switch up the veggies and adjust the spice level to your liking.
• Great for Meal Prep – make a batch of this stir fry and divide it up into containers to enjoy throughout the week for lunches or dinner.

Ingredients

• shrimp – you can use fresh or frozen large shrimp that is thawed. Just make sure you use peeled and deveined shrimp. Only use raw shrimp, not pre-cooked shrimp.
• veggies – I used a combination of red and yellow bell peppers with sugar snap peas (or snow peas) and green onions. Feel free to use whatever veggies you’d like such as broccoli, asparagus, green beans, sliced zucchini, mushrooms, or even leafy greens.
• olive oil – I like to use a good olive oil that doesn’t have to be expensive, you just want to make sure to use an oil with a high smoke point. You could also use canola oil, vegetable oil or even a little peanut oil for extra flavor.

For the Firecracker Sauce

• soy sauce – I always use lower sodium soy sauce as I personally think regular soy sauce is just too salty for my taste, but feel free to use what you have on hand! You can also swap the soy sauce with coconut aminos or tamari to make this gluten-free.
• sesame oil – this adds even more depth of flavor, but if you don’t have sesame oil on hand you can easily leave it out and this stir fry will still taste great!
• honey – this adds a little sweetness without using refined sugars to balance out all the spice, but feel free to swap the honey with maple syrup or other natural sweetener. 
• sriracha – I love the spicy flavor of sriracha and it’s what makes this finger-licking sauce so good! You could also use chili garlic sauce or other type of spicy sauce.
• tomato paste – this is taking the place of ketchup in this recipe and adds some depth of flavor to the sauce while thickening it up a bit.  No need for corn starch!
• rice vinegar – adds a touch of acidity that helps balance all these flavors, but if you don’t have rice vinegar, feel free to substitute with white vinegar, apple cider vinegar or even a little lemon juice or lime juice with zest.
• garlic – adds a boost of flavor to this stir fry and fresh minced garlic is always best!  If you don’t have fresh garlic cloves, you can use a 1 teaspoon garlic powder in a pinch.
• seasonings – combination of crushed red pepper flakes (if you like more heat), a bit of salt and black pepper.

How to Make Firecracker Shrimp

1. Cook shrimp. In a large skillet over medium high heat, drizzle a little olive oil and cook shrimp in a single layer until it just starts to turn pink, about 3 minutes. Transfer shrimp to a plate lined with paper towels and set aside.
2. Sauté the veggies. Drizzle another tablespoon of olive oil onto the hot skillet and add the peppers and sugar snap peas. Cook the vegetables until tender, about 4 to 5 minutes over medium heat, stirring frequently.
3. Make the sauce. While the veggies cook, make the sticky sauce. In a small bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, sesame oil, honey, sriracha, tomato paste, rice vinegar, garlic, crushed red pepper flakes and black pepper. Set aside.
4. Stir fry. Once the veggies are nice and tender, add the shrimp back into the pan and toss together. Pour the spicy firecracker sauce over top and mix well. Make sure everything is coated and bring the sauce to a boil. Turn down the heat and simmer until sauce has thickened up and everything is incorporated. 
5. Serve and enjoy. Garnish with sliced green onions (aka scallions), sesame seeds and serve over white rice or brown rice.

How to Thaw Frozen Shrimp

• Overnight – If you know you’re making this ahead of time, thaw the frozen shrimp in the refrigerator 24 hours before you need to cook them. Place shrimp in a bowl or a plastic bag to thaw – this is my preferred method.
• Day of thaw – If you are short on time, the best way to defrost the shrimp is transferring them to a sealed plastic bag and submerging under cold running water. Keep the shrimp in the cold water for about 45 minutes until thawed.

Tips, Tricks and Substitutions

• Adjust spice level – if you like your stir fry even spicier, add in extra sriracha or other hot sauce. Alternatively, if the sauce is too spicy for you, feel free to cut the sriracha in half or swap it with something less spicy like sweet chili sauce.
• Veggie options – feel free to swap or add other veggies, like mushrooms, carrots, or broccoli, depending on what you have on hand.
• Make it gluten-free – swap out the soy sauce with coconut aminos or tamari to make this gluten-free.

How to Serve

• Serve over rice – enjoy this firecracker shrimp and veggies as a main dish over a bed of white rice, brown rice or even cauliflower rice for a low carb option.
• Pair with noodles – serve over lo mein noodles or rice noodles to change things up. The noodles will absorb the sauce, making each bite even more flavorful!
• With a salad – pair this firecracker shrimp with a side salad such as this crunchy Thai chicken salad or this Chinese chicken salad.
• Make egg rolls – using spring roll wrappers, wrap up the shrimp and either bake them in the oven on a baking sheet or fry them up in a pan until golden brown.
• As an appetizer – instead of a stir fry, whip up this shrimp and serve with toothpicks or small skewers and your favorite dipping sauce for the perfect appetizer everyone will love.

Prepping and Storage

To Store: I always like to keep a bag of raw frozen shrimp in my freezer for recipes like this and just thaw the bag in the fridge overnight. You can also use fresh shrimp as well.  Leftover firecracker shrimp will last up to 3 or 4 days in the fridge stored in a sealed, airtight container. Use your best judgment of course!

To Freeze: You can also freeze this meal for up to 2 months.  When wanting to reheat, I suggest thawing the frozen shrimp first and re-heating everything in a skillet rather than a microwave for best results. Just a reminder, please don’t freeze shrimp that you previously thawed out.

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Hope you all enjoy the BEST Firecracker Shrimp recipe and if you love it as much as we do, please leave me ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ below and don’t forget to tag me on Instagram using the hashtag #eatyourselfskinny! I love seeing all your delicious recreations!