Are you looking for a delicious yet quick meal bursting with flavor? Look no further than our fiery Firecracker Shrimp! An incredible combination of sweet and spicy is ready in just 20 minutes.
I love easy meals that can be assembled in less than 30 minutes. My family loves meals with shrimp, so this shrimp recipe is a win for us all.
I made this recipe after being inspired by a recent trip to a Mongolian-style restaurant. Our family loves going to restaurants like this and trying to pile as much as humanly possible into those smaller-than-we-expected bowls, making the typical Mt. Everest-like combinations of vegetables, sauces, and unnatural amounts of meats.
We always leave with full bellies and smiling faces.
My Favorite Kitchen Tools To Make This Recipe
From trusty pots and pans to handy gadgets, I’ve curated a list of products I use and love.
What was different about this place was that they had pre-made menu ideas; of course, you could still create your combination, but they had some ready for you just in case you had trouble deciding.
My husband got the Firecracker Shrimp, and I did it too quickly after trying his. What I loved about this recipe was the amount of spice and the fact that the shrimp wasn’t breaded. It reminded me of Bang Bang Shrimp without all the breading and additional calories. We all loved the recipe so much that I came home and tried to replicate it.
Firecracker sauce
What can I serve with Firecracker Shrimp?
You will love this simple recipe, friend; the sweet & spicy combination is just perfection. And the fact that you can make it in 20 minutes means the Firecracker Shrimp will be a repeat offender in your home.
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Firecracker Shrimp
Ingredients
- 1 pound medium shrimp peeled and deveined (about 25 shrimp)
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 1/2 cup cornstarch
- 2 large eggs beaten
- 1/4 cup canola oil for frying
Sauce
- 1/2 cup sweet chili garlic sauce in the ethnic food aisle at the grocery store
- 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1-2 tablespoons lemon zest
- 1/2 teaspoon Sriracha
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
Instructions
- Heat canola oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat.
- In a large bowl, season shrimp with salt and pepper to taste.
- Lightly toss the shrimp in the cornstarch until coated. Dip them individually into the beaten eggs right before frying.
- Add shrimp about 4-6 at a time depending on your saucepan and cook until golden brown, about 2-3 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate. Repeat the process with the remaining shrimp, discarding any excess oil.
- Wipe out the pan you just used to cook the shrimp. Combine the sweet chili garlic sauce, lemon juice, and zest, honey, garlic salt ginger and Sriracha. and bring to boil over medium-high heat, about 2-3 minutes.
- Add the shrimp back in – into pan and toss to coat with the sauce. Serve immediately with rice or over fresh veggies.
This looks really easy and Delicious. In the instructions, you say to add the honey, lemon , etc. to a pan and heat. There is no honey in the ingredíents list. How much honey goes into the sauce pan?
2 tablespoons, thanks for catching that -updating it now.
San
I really like the recipe and your blog. It does need a little more liquid. That can be anything from shrimp stock to ketchup depending on what you’re looking for or have in the kitchen. My wife loved it! I just needed a little more fire in my cracker.
I meant before tossed together. Add that extra anything you choose to the sauce. And take 30 seconds to watch it bubble. It changes flavor drastically. An orange peel chopped?
These look so tasty and full of flavor!
Thank you!
How would some medium chunks of partially cooked carrots, celery and green onion in the sauce?
My husband will especially enjoy this, I’m looking forward to trying it!
I hope he likes it! Let us know what you think.
I know for sure this Firecracker Shrimp would be a huge hit in my house!
Enjoy!
You recipe says egg mixture but there’s not recipe for the mixture
Hi Joy! Sorry about that! It must have been a typo. I fixed the recipe to make it easier to follow. There is no egg mixture, just the beaten eggs. I hope you enjoy!
Thanks!
Amazing recipe, I will be making these this weekend!
One of my favorite shrimp recipes. With a little shredded lettuce at the bottom… it’s awesome.
Thank you! I’m so glad you enjoyed it.
This is such a great appetizer!! Everyone will surely love it!
Thank you, enjoy!
Served this for dinner last night and it has easily become a new family favorite dish! Even my picky eaters enjoyed it!
That’s awesome that they enjoyed it! Thank you for the review!
This shrimp is my favorite! Just the right amount of heat – so good!
I’m so glad you enjoy the recipe! Thank you!
You had me at 20 minutes! This was so quick to put together and so tasty too!
So happy to hear you enjoyed it!
The only challenge that I see is in ordering the right type of shrimps/prawns from the market because 5 years into self cooking I still haven’t figured them out. Is there a specific name you can use while shrimp shopping at the fish market? Also, the size here looks sufficient. I think I’ll go tomorrow and get my hands on a couple pounds. Some for the firecracker and rest I will roast.
Oh My! I’m drooling over this recipe. The meal is gorgeous! Dying to give it a go. My family would devour it!
Thank u so much for sharing such a fab idea with us. I’m so inspired! I will definitely be back for more of the awesome recipes. Your blog is incredible. You put so much love into what you’re doing.
Looks amazing! With honey and cornstarch in the recipe, I’m concerned it’s not keto-friendly. Any suggestions how to make it keto-friendly without sacrificing taste? I’d love to try this!!! Thank you!
Hi Kimberly! The honey does add flavor to the sauce and balances the sour lemon juice and chili sauce. You can definitely try replacing it with a keto-friendly sweetener or honey replacement if you have one you like! The cornstarch will just add a light crispy coating to the shrimp. You can definitely skip the frying step and just cook the shrimp in the prepared sauce without the corn starch. All that will change is the texture, but it should still taste as delicious. Let us know what you try and how it turns out!
I’m assuming raw shrimp?
You can use either raw or cooked! Just make sure it is thawed. If you are using raw, add to the sauce and remove from heat right when the shrimp are done. If they are already cooked, add to the sauce and turn off the heat. Stir with the sauce until the shrimp are just heated through to not overcook them. I hope you enjoy the recipe!
This dinner has stolen my heart! I love the heat that comes with it, but it’s not overbearing. Can’t beat how quickly it is on the table either!
So glad to hear that! Thank you!
I am so glad you all used the card! This is right up my alley. I love that I can control the heat.
Thank you!
How is there 18 grams of protein in about a serving which is about 4 shrimp seems very off?
Hi Max! Doing a quick search, 1 shrimp contains 3g of protein, so it will have about 12g per serving just from the shrimp. It is also calculating in protein from other ingredients such as the eggs used in the batter so it may be a little off!
Would “ Huy Fong Chili Garlic Sauce” work or do I need a sweet sauce? Thanks~
Hi! The Chili Garlic Sauce has no sugar added and is much hotter than the sweet chili sauce used in the recipe. I’m not quite sure exactly how it would affect the taste, but it will be less sweet and much more spicy.
Seemed easy to make but I was wondering why lemon juice and lemon zest? I always do the recipe as listed and if good modify the next time. This was over powered by the lemon smell and taste. Might try it again with just one of the lemon items instead of both.
How big was your lemon?
Amazing recipe I really loved this recipe thank you so much for sharing the steps as I am too going to try this for my husband as he really loves prawns.
I hope you both enjoy!
This Firecracker Shrimp looks totally awesome!
Thank you!
This is our family’s new favorite!
So glad to hear that!
Fast, good, very tasty too, yum. Used apricot jam and cayenne also, because did not have a lot of chili sauce.
Quite possibly the best way to enjoy shrimp! Loved the sweet and spicy flavors; my new favorite!
Thank you!!