Stir-Fried Sesame Shrimp and Spinach
- Total Time
- About 15 minutes
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
Yield:3 to 4 servings
- 1pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined
- Salt to taste
- ⅛teaspoon sugar
- 2tablespoons canola oil or light sesame oil
- 1tablespoon minced ginger
- 1tablespoon minced garlic
- ¼ to ½teaspoon crumbled dried red chili
- 2tablespoons sesame seeds
- 1generous bunch spinach (about 1 pound), stems trimmed at the end, rinsed in 2 changes water
- 2teaspoons dark sesame oil
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
235 calories; 13 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 6 grams monounsaturated fat; 4 grams polyunsaturated fat; 6 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams dietary fiber; 1 gram sugars; 27 grams protein; 568 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
Place the shrimp in a large colander and rinse with water. Sprinkle generously with salt and toss together for about a minute. Rinse with water and repeat. After rinsing one more time, drain on paper towels. Pat dry with more paper towels.
- Step 2
Combine ¼ to ½ teaspoon salt (to taste) and the sugar in a small bowl and place close to your wok.
- Step 3
Heat a 14-inch flat-bottomed wok over high heat until a drop of water evaporates within a second or two when added to the pan. Swirl in 1 tablespoon of the oil by adding it to the sides of the pan and swirling the pan, then add the garlic, ginger and chili flakes and stir-fry for no more than 10 seconds. Push to the sides of the pan and add the shrimp in one layer. Let cook undisturbed for 1 minute, then add the remaining oil and stir-fry for 1 minute.
- Step 4
Add the sesame seeds and spinach and stir-fry for 1 minute, until it has begun to wilt but the wilting is still uneven. Add the salt and sugar, sprinkling it evenly over the spinach, and continue to stir-fry until the spinach has wilted but is still bright and the shrimp are cooked through and bright pink, about 2 more minutes. Remove from the heat, drizzle on the sesame oil, toss together and serve, with rice, noodles or other grains.
Tip
- Advance preparation: You can prepare the shrimp through Step 1 several hours ahead.
Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
Linda
This recipe sounds intriguing. But I worry about how to source "shrimp". Most vendors In Canada and definitely the US import farmed shrimp from Thailand which is "farmed Shrimp", grown in the dirtiest foul water, and subject to vast amounts of chemicals, etc. Horrifying.
What are some healthy shrimp sources? Here in Vancouver, we have spotted shrimp which are seasonal delicacy. What sources can we trust to provide healthy wild shrimp?
Amilia
I've made this recipe 3 times and it's fantastic - delicious and healthy and I feel great after eating it! I use the pre-packaged baby spinach and add extra garlic and ginger for more flavor. I serve it over rice with a bit of soy sauce and some chili oil. It is just as good the next day as leftovers. What I like best is that I've eaten an entire container of spinach when I'm done. What a great way to get your winter greens!
Sandy Camargo
I didn't bother with the salt soak. I used baby spinach, which was fine. I did use roasted sesame seeds rather than the plain ones, which enhanced the flavor. Oh, I also made another change: I misread the recipe and added all the oil at the start. So, when I got to the end of Step 3, instead of adding more oil, I added a splash of the sesame oil, which I think I might do as a regular thing. I cooked some soba noodles and mixed them into the mixture once the spinach had wilted.
Sara J Cook
What is the point of the saly treatment at the beginning of preparation?
Pat Brownlie
Really, really liked this dish, but I did change it. When I went to make it, I realized I'd forgotten to buy spinach so I decided to use asparagus instead. Cut the spears into half inch pieces and added them when the spinach was supposed to be added. Worked wonderfully and I think I liked it better than I would have liked the spinach since I really like asparagus. Love the crunchyness of the ginger/garlic/sesame seeds.
Jim
Awesome! Added two handfuls of fresh bean sprouts. Next time will add a few mushrooms, too.
janis
This is an easy and delicious recipe. I loved it and will make it again.
I think 2 pound of fresh spinach would have done fine too to stretch the shrimp! LOVED it
Zack
I made this for my wife (served over rice noodles), and it was great. My thawed, frozen shrimp released a lot of liquid, though. At first I was worried it would ruin the flavor, but it still tasted good even though the shrimp didn't really brown.
Karen
Lemongrass & scallions with the ginger & garlic. Fish sauce with dark sesame oil. And yes, more spinach, garlic & ginger.
Howard
Extraordinary and simple. Added roasted slivered almonds, slices of grape tomatoes and even slivered brussel sprouts. Once you have the basics the rest is art work.
Foodgal
Delicious but too salty - next time I’ll rinse longer. And don’t use black sesame seeds - makes everything turn black!
LKP
Excellent dish and quick to cook once prep and everything on hand to stir-fry. I substituted flax seed oil instead of light sesame and it worked just fine -- I did not have the 'proper' wok, but aside from finding it was done about 30 seconds or more before the recommended end-time, very little difference. Definitely recommended and one to try again or prep in advance for guests, as it's a quick cook.
David Look
From Martha: If you use tough greens like collards I suggest you blanch first, then cut into thin slivers.
Kate
Dark sesame oil has a rich umame scent and flavor. Worth ordering on-line if necessary.
Sally
LOVED this. I doubled the garlic and ginger, and would use a 1 lb. of baby spinach next time.
Constance
Wow. The first round I found frozen shrimp, used baby spinach, and made it in my cast iron with dried spices. Threw it away. Bought fresh ingredients from WF with fresh larger shrimp and cooked it in ScanPan. Better. Perfection is leftover and reheated.
IM
From this recipe's intro: "The classic Chinese way to clean shrimp and *ensure a succulent flavor and crisp texture*... is to use a combination of salt and water." Delicious, fairly quick, and extremely satisfying! Made as outlined in recipe, except for: subbed red pepper flakes for chili, used only light sesame oil (no dark on hand), did not treat shrimp with salt/water (will do so in future to try for more crispness). Next time, would def double ginger. Served over rice. Mmmmmmm.
traci
Loved this recipe! Fresh and healthy! I reduced the salt and it was still a little too much for us. I’m excited to make it again soon!
stephanieDC
I added mushrooms and asparagus, and the mushrooms in particular were superb. I cooked the shrimp two minutes, removed from pan, and then added back in once the vegetables were done. I look forward to using this recipe framework to use up whatever I have on hand (with edamame, tofu, fried egg in place of the shrimp?).
Giul
This was delicious. Will definitely use that salt/rinse/dry technique every time I cook shrimp! I had collard greens on hand and used those instead of spinach, which gave a nice flavor and a bit more bite - I did sauté the collards on their own a bit first since they are much heartier than spinach.
shirmp and spinach stir fru
Makes enough for 3. Go ahead and use almost a pound of spinach
Cindy of CA
A great tasting fast and easy weeknight recipe! I cook a lot of shrimp, but being on the west coast it may be easier to get good and sustainably harvested seafood. The salt bath appears to make the cooking more even and the shrimp more tender, unless of course you cook it too long. A lot of good ideas about additions definitely keep this a vibrant healthy weeknight meal: more garlic & ginger, lemon grass, leeks, baby kale, asparagus, roasted sesame, roasted almonds, pistachios etc.
Karen
Couldn't be much easier to prepare and quick, too! Good fresh flavors. I didn't change a thing in the preparation. A huge hit for my family!
pamela
I have recently found myself widowed, so cooking for one is a new world for me. Shrimp recipes seem to be easier to manage paring down, so I have dozens of shrimp recipes. This one was fairly easy, but I feel that I didn’t have enough spinach which I really wanted. Saying a bunch was difficult to judge. The spice was good and the shrimp was wonderful with the salting and rinsing. Loved that! Like I said how much is a bunch?
ginger shrimp
Add asparagus, shallot and scallions Lemon squeeze
Katherine
4 stars for being fast, easy and healthy. Not 5, because the flavor was just meh. I’ll prob make it again next time I find myself with a bunch of greens to use up (I always have frozen shrimp), but I won’t go out of my way to get the ingredients to make it again.
peter
In place of dried chili, add chili oil.
Nice flavors but dry … no sauce.
Will make again but will have to come up with some kind of sauce.
Jessica M.
I often miss the mark when it comes to executing recipes, but this is one I nailed and it was SO DELICIOUS. Easy and tasty. I also needed a recipe that helped me use up my spinach and this was a great one. I will be adding this to my rotation.
Portland
Made this pretty much according to recipe except I cooked the shrimp with chard instead of spinach. Shocked chard in boiling water for 1 minute then added to bowl of ice water. Dried well and chopped to cook with shrimp. In the same chard water, I cooked soba noodles to al dente. After cooking chard and shrimp I added noodles to reheat. Added extra sesame seeds and toasted sessme oil.
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