Shrimp and snow pea stir fry is a super simple and tasty stir fry with shrimp, snow peas, green peas and spinach. It's veggie-packed and ready in just 10 minutes!
Stir fry is the ultimate in easy last-minute dinners.
By its nature, a stir fry is quickly cooked. So that's really helpful. No stirring and simmering for an hour.
And we're speeding things up even more today because sometimes, dinner needs to happen now, if not 5 minutes ago. And because shortcuts are a glorious thing on a busy night.
Shrimp and snow pea stir fry uses precooked shrimp and veggies that only need a very quick sauté to get nice and hot and all combined with the sauce.
The stir fry portion comes together in about 5-6 minutes. I mean, can you even believe it?!
Plus, if you use leftover rice and just warm it through, this would be ready in under 10 minutes. Or use some microwave rice, like the Trader Joe's brown rice that I keep in the freezer for dinner emergencies.
Or you could serve this shrimp stir fry over whole wheat noodles or quinoa - both cook up pretty quickly.
I don't know, this recipe might even give my easiest ever stir fry a run for its money.
Cause sometimes, 10 minutes is about all the time you want to spend on dinner.
And how wonderful that you can throw this together in less time than it would take to order and get take-out!
Home-cooked really can be faster, as well as better. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.
OK, let’s get cooking.
Now, I’ve got some notes and substitutions coming up on how to make shrimp and snow pea stir fry. Just tryin’ to be helpful.
If you want to jump on down to the recipe, simply scroll right on through the rest of the text. The recipe card is near the bottom of the page, above the comments section.
Ingredient Notes:
- Shrimp size: I use a pound of shrimp, the 41-50 a pound size. You can substitute another size shrimp, but you’ll need to adjust your cooking time.
- Shrimp type: The shrimp need to be completely thawed (more on that in a minute) as well as peeled and deveined for this recipe. Please plan accordingly. (You can ask your seafood counter to prep these for you if needed. Or buy the deveined easy-peel frozen shrimp that are almost ready to go for you.)
- Vegetables: I'm using tons of veggies cause that's how I like it. Feel free to leave one off if you'd prefer. Or, swap out something else if you want to add things like bell peppers or mushrooms to your stir fry.
- Soy sauce: I use and recommend low-sodium soy sauce to control the amount of sodium in this recipe. Want to make this gluten-free? Just sub some gluten-free tamari for the soy sauce.
Lots of ways to make this work for you.
OK, let's tackle the frozen shrimp thing.
Fun fact: Buying frozen seafood is often the best way to get it super fresh if you don’t live right by the coast. That’s because the seafood is flash frozen right after it’s off the boat, preserving it at peak freshness.
And in some places, the “fresh” seafood in the grocery store counter has actually already been thawed, so its shelf life is ticking down.
But we need to have it completely thawed for this recipe, and here are my best tips for that.
How to thaw frozen shrimp:
– You can place frozen shrimp in the refrigerator (in a well sealed container) overnight to thaw.
– You can thaw frozen shrimp quickly by placing them, frozen, in a colander and rinsing them in the sink with cold water for 2-3 minutes, until they are completely defrosted.
Since the first option takes a little more planning and foresight, I’m often in camp option number two. And it works great every time.
OK, let’s get ready to eat.
As mentioned, you can serve this stir fry a number of different ways.
Serving Ideas:
- Serve over steamed brown or white rice. Or choose basmati rice.
- You can even use a microwave or quick-cook rice to make this whole dinner ready for the table in a flash.
- Or serve this over thin noodles, like spaghetti or linguine.
- You could also mix this with some rice noodles.
- Serve with quinoa or another grain instead of rice or noodles.
Last thing, I've got a couple of topping ideas for you. Because I so love toppings.
Topping Ideas:
- Sliced green onions
- Sesame seeds
- Red pepper flakes (add while cooking or at the end)
- Hot sauce or sriracha
- Chopped peanuts
Mix and match any of your favorites and make this stir fry your own.
I hope you give this stir fry a try soon for a light, bright Asian dinner that's ready in no time.
Happy cooking and enjoy!
XO,
Kathryn
P.S. If you love shrimp like I do, check out this honey garlic shrimp and spicy roasted shrimp for two more ways to enjoy this fantastic seafood.
Shrimp and Snow Pea Stir Fry
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- 2 cups snow peas, trimmed
- 1 cup green peas (I used frozen)
- 2 cups spinach leaves
- 1- 1 ½ pounds shrimp, peeled and deveined, and thawed if frozen
- 3 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
Instructions
- Heat a wok or large saute pan over medium-high heat.
- When hot, add 2 teaspoons sesame oil.
- Add snow peas and saute for 1-2 minutes.
- Add green peas and shrimp and stir until no longer frozen.
- Add spinach and toss until everything is combined and warmed.
- Add soy sauce; start with 3 tablespoons and add more as needed. Mix well.
- Serve hot over rice, quinoa or whole wheat noodles.
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