Shrimp Tacos
Yewande Komolafe
2244 ratings with an average rating of 5 out of 5 stars
2,244
35 minutes
Kung Pao Shrimp
- Total Time
- 15 minutes
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
Yield:4 servings
- 1pound peeled and deveined medium shrimp, thawed if frozen
- 2tablespoons Shaoxing wine or dry sherry
- 2teaspoons cornstarch
- Salt
- 2tablespoons granulated sugar
- 3tablespoons soy sauce
- 2tablespoons Chinkiang (black) vinegar or balsamic vinegar
- ½teaspoon Sichuan peppercorns, coarsely ground, plus more to taste
- 1red or orange bell pepper
- 5garlic cloves
- ¼cup neutral oil, such as grapeseed
- ½cup unsalted roasted peanuts
- ¾cup small dried red chiles (23 grams; see Tip)
- 3large scallions, cut into ½-inch lengths
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
406 calories; 24 grams fat; 2 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 13 grams monounsaturated fat; 7 grams polyunsaturated fat; 21 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams dietary fiber; 12 grams sugars; 30 grams protein; 809 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Powered byPreparation
- Step 1
Mix the shrimp, Shaoxing wine, 1 teaspoon cornstarch and a pinch of salt in a bowl until the shrimp are evenly coated. Let stand while you prepare the other ingredients.
- Step 2
Stir the sugar, soy sauce, vinegar, Sichuan pepper and remaining teaspoon cornstarch in a separate bowl. Dice the bell pepper and thinly slice the garlic. Have all your ingredients ready next to the stove.
- Step 3
Heat the oil in a wok or large skillet over medium-high heat for 15 seconds. Add the peanuts and stir until browned in spots, 30 to 60 seconds. Add the bell pepper and garlic, and sprinkle with salt. Cook, stirring, until the pepper is bright and the garlic starts to become translucent, about 30 seconds. Add the chiles and stir well, then add the shrimp with its marinade. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the shrimp are curled and just opaque, 2 to 3 minutes.
- Step 4
Add the scallions and stir until glossy, about 15 seconds, then add the sauce. Cook, stirring, until the sauce thickens and coats everything evenly, about 1 minute. If any of the starchy sauce has stuck to the bottom of the pan, add a splash of water and scrape up any browned bits. Taste and add more Sichuan pepper if you’d like. Immediately transfer to a dish and serve hot.
Tip
- The small dried red chiles typically used in kung pao dishes are available in Chinese markets. Any small dried red chiles work, though they do range in heat. For a similar spice level, use chiles de árbol.
Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
Surele
Here’s the most important direction for any Chinese dish: first, start the rice.
ez
A quick soaking of the shrimp in a baking soda and salt solution before coating make them more crunchy GOOGLE "brined shrimp for stir-fries"
José Moreno
The recipe looks quite good, except for just one thing: grated fresh ginger is (in my opinion) an essential ingredient.
Tim
This was delicious! Made pretty much as written (added some additional veg and used balsamic and chiles de arbol as suggested). Super easy. Try it!
Bob @ the beach
Needs 1-inch ginger root minced and sautéed with the pepper and garlic. Additionally, 1 teaspoon of sesame oil and 1 or 2 tablespoons of Sichuan Chili oil added to the sauce.
jerseybiker
This was quite sweet. The recipe for Kung Pao Chicken calls for 2 teaspoons of sugar -- this called for 2 tablespoons. I would recommend the lesser amount, or omit the sugar entirely. Also, don't stint on the chiles.
S
Technique is a great guide, thank you! Agree with some others that this recipe calls for too much sugar. 2 tablespoons must be a mistake, 2 teaspoons is closer to what I’ve seen other Chinese cooks use, though 2t is still a little too sweet for my taste. The version I first encountered used around 1 teaspoon sugar. Also prefer it with fresh ginger, grated and cooked with the garlic.
Equilibrist
Yes. Kung pao does not need any sugar.
Jim
This was really good. I added some fresh ginger as others have suggested. I ended up splashing water a couple of times towards the end and I’m glad I did. I wouldn’t have had a sauce otherwise
Emily
Really delicious! Added celery with the bell pepper and garlic.
Carol K.
Very good, spicy, and flavorful! I would agree that a touch of grated ginger, maybe a half teaspoon grated ginger would accent the dish nicely.
Nat
This was great. I used maple syrup (a bit less) instead of sugar because I was weirdly all out of sugar. Added a nice depth I think, and it wasn’t too sweet. The sauce thickened perfectly (I also swapped out the cornstarch for tapioca starch because again, I was out!) and the spiciness was spot-on. Very easy and fast weeknight dish (as long as you remember to put the rice on the boil in advance).
Kani
Useful Comments- brine shrimp first, in b soda/salt briefly, for crispier effect. 1” ginger julienned or minced. Less sugar.
Equilibrist
Actually, it isn’t traditional in Kung pao.
jerry
Added green beans after peanuts. Then added sliced carrots with the bell peppers. And grated ginger with the garlic.
Angi
Wonderful! Excellent sauce! A keeper!
Kd
Great feedback re adding ginger and decreasing sugar. Made with soy curls instead of shrimp. Turned out great!
Susan
My husband has made this a few times with balsamic vinegar, and it was pretty good. We finally got around to purchasing some Chinkiang (black) vinegar and used that this time. Oh my, what a difference it made in the depth of flavor.
Allison
Made this as is. Miss the ginger and honestly, too sweet. Will remake this with some adjustments including increasing the chillies and peppercorns, which is entirely my preference.
sally
This dish is a winner! I read the comments before I started so eliminated the sugar. Didn't miss it. I used 1/2 cup of dried chiles and my husband loved the heat but it was a bit much for me. I would add the peanuts 1/2 way through as they burned a bit. Also I didn't have sherry so i used dry white wine. A keeper!
Ekaterina
Add more szechuan peppers.
Spatula 2000
Maybe 1/4 cup of chilis
Susan B
As with a few others, I found the recipe to be far too sweet and the flavor profile didn't quite hit the mark. Perhaps it was the omission of ginger? But I often get Kung Pao chicken from Chinese restaurants and I was unimpressed by this homemade version and quite disappointed.
MJB
Just a word of warning: we bought red chilies at our Asian grocery, the only kind they had available, and they were so incredibly hot just one destroyed our palate. Maybe this is supposed to be extremely hot, but I wish we'd been more careful.
Kathy
This is very tasty and easy, a real winner that I will make again. My only note is a suggestion to use yellow or orange bell peppers rather than red so they can be easily distinguished from the spicy dried red chiles!
Daisy in SOCAL
Noted other comments and added 2T grated ginger and cut way back on the sugar. However, I found that the 2T of black vinegar overwhelmed the other flavors. Checking my Chinese cookbooks, many other recipes call for just 1/2 or 1 teaspoon of black vinegar. So that's my next try.
SarahT
This turned out great despite some changes I had to make. No Szechuan peppercorns, so just a lot of regular black pepper. No hot chilis, so red pepper flakes. Added some regular onion in with the peppers. And, I thought 1/2 cup of peanuts was skimpy, so I added more. The sauce was delicious and I’m planning to do this again with the correct ingredients!!
Renata
Halved the sugar and added celery and water chestnuts-tasty!
cooleddie
I have made this recipe a number of times and it is wonderful, BUT only if the ingredients are added in the proper (i.e. Effective) order. As written, the dried chiles add nothing of flavor or heat. They need to be seared to darken them and draw out heat. So, the "correct" order: Hot oil; Chiles Stir-fry and press them to the wok surface; then add the peanuts (cook briefly, you do not need to brown them): bell pepper, garlic, and salt; shrimp; scallions; sauce. Five stars!
Ada
Cook the shrimp first. This allows them to caramelise and form a bit of a crust. Remove them and then add them back in at the end. This is how my mother taught me to cook stir fries.
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