Sesame Shrimp: A Quick 20-Minute Weeknight Dinner

Name: Weeknight Dinner Sesame Shrimp
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 20 min
Ingredients: ¼ cup reduced-sodium soy sauce (or a gluten-free alternative); ¼ cup unsweetened ketchup; 1 tablespoon honey; 1 tablespoon rice vinegar; 1 tablespoon cornstarch; 1 teaspoon fresh garlic (minced); 1 teaspoon fresh ginger root (minced); 2 tablespoons avocado oil; 1 ½ pounds raw shrimp (large, peeled, and deveined); ½ teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt; ¼ teaspoon black pepper; 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil; 1 tablespoon sesame seeds; 2 tablespoons green onions (sliced )

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These succulent sesame shrimp with a wonderful sauce of honey and garlic are ready in 20 minutes, including prepping the ingredients. They are delicious over cauliflower rice or raw spinach leaves - they wilt the leaves just enough to slightly cook them.

Sesame shrimp are served with chopsticks.

If you like shrimp and enjoy Asian-style dishes, you will love this quick weeknight recipe. This sesame chicken recipe is great, too, but my family loves seafood, so when I have shrimp on hand, I make these sesame shrimp. As long as you don't overcook the shrimp, they come out succulent and plump, and the sauce is packed with flavor.

Ingredients

The full list of ingredients and their measurements is included in the recipe card below. Here are my comments about some of those ingredients:

Light soy sauce: Or a gluten-free alternative. I rarely use traditional soy sauce in my recipes. I find it too salty.
Unsweetened ketchup: I like the one by the Primal Kitchen brand.
Honey: Just a tablespoon. It doesn't make the dish sweet. It merely balances out the other flavors. You can use a sugar-free alternative if you wish.
Cornstarch: Just a little to help thicken the sauce. You can use a low-carb alternative, but as you can see, a serving of this recipe, as written, only has 6 grams of carbs.
Shrimp: I usually use large shrimp, peeled and deveined. The tails can be on or off - it's up to you.

Variations

Maple syrup is an acceptable substitute for honey, although I prefer honey.
You can use white wine vinegar instead of rice vinegar.
Add ½ teaspoon of red pepper flakes to the sauce for some heat. Mu husband loves this version!
Sometimes, I cook the shrimp in ghee or refined coconut oil instead of avocado oil.
Chopped cilantro is a nice addition. Sprinkle it on top of the finished dish.

Instructions

Scroll down for the recipe card for detailed instructions. Here are the basic steps for making this recipe:

In a small bowl, whisk together the sauce ingredients.

Partially cook the shrimp in oil. This should take 3-4 minutes.

Add the sauce to the pan and finish cooking the shrimp until they're opaque, for about 2 more minutes.

That's it! Dinner is served.

Recipe Tip

If you forgot to thaw your shrimp overnight in the fridge, simply place them in a bowl of cool water and let them defrost, replacing the water once. It should take about 7 minutes for them to thaw. Place them on paper towels to drain, then proceed with the recipe.

Recipe FAQs

Can you make a low-carb version?

It's actually easy. Simply use unsweetened ketchup and a sugar-free honey substitute. Even with cornstarch, a serving of this recipe has just 6 grams of carbs. You can slightly reduce the carb count further by using a low-carb thickener instead of cornstarch.

How do I avoid overcooking the shrimp?

Shrimp are small and can become overcooked quite easily. When they're overcooked, they're dry and stringy. You'll notice that in this recipe, we slightly undercook them at the first stage of cooking, then finish cooking them after adding the sauce.

As a general rule, most stir-fried shrimp are ready after about 5 minutes of cooking on medium-high heat. But you do need to make sure that they're fully cooked - they should be opaque rather than translucent.

Should I use sesame oil for cooking this recipe?

I prefer avocado oil, which has a reliably high smoke point. With sesame oil, it depends. Refined sesame oil can be used for cooking, but cold-pressed unrefined sesame oil, especially toasted, has a relatively low smoke point and is not suitable for high-heat cooking. That's why I prefer to drizzle sesame oil on the finished dish rather than use it to cook the shrimp.

Serving Suggestions

Sesame shrimp is a saucy dish. I like to serve it on something that would absorb the delicious sauce. So, I often serve it on top of any of the following:

As for a vegetable side, I like to serve these shrimp with any of the following:

Storing Leftovers

You can keep the leftovers in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat them covered in the microwave at 50% power. You can also freeze the cooled leftovers in a freezer-safe container for up to three months. Thaw them overnight in the fridge before reheating them.