• Skip to main content
  • Skip to header right navigation
  • Skip to site footer
Sprouting Fam

Sprouting Fam

Gardening, Home Remedies, Recipes, Family Blog

  • Home
  • About
  • Recipes
  • Blog
    • Family
    • Gardening
    • Home Remedies
    • Natural Home
    • Recipes
  • Contact
easy thai shrimp recipe

Easy Thai Shrimp Recipe: Spicy, Garlic Stir-Fry

A spicy and sweet, easy stir fry recipe.

Sprouting Fam - Recipes - Easy Thai Shrimp Recipe: Spicy, Garlic Stir-Fry

February 22, 2020 | Last Updated: November 29, 2020 | by John | Affiliate Links: ✔
This Easy Thai Shrimp Recipe is one of the many we make. As tasty as it is healthy, it uses sweet basil, Thai chili peppers, garlic, kaffir lime, and fingerroot that help burn fat internally. The Thai name is "Gung Pad Cha."
Jump to Recipe Jump to Video Print Recipe
easy thai shrimp recipe sprouting fam

Looking for an easy Thai shrimp recipe? Here’s one to surely spice you up. It can also be called a Thai Basil Shrimp Recipe because of the herb’s flavor, but the chili peppers and garlic are just as highlighted in this one. So if you’re in search of Thai spicy shrimp recipes, this is one to have on your list.

Generally, if we cook with shrimp, we’d put the shrimp or prawns in last. But in this recipe, we chose to put the shrimp in first because we want the garlic to soak inside the shrimp throughout the whole cook time.

You can leave out the Thai chili peppers. The fresh peppercorn will still make it internally hot (and give it a slight kick) to retain its healthy fat burning benefits. Traditionally in Thailand, fresh peppercorn herb is known to help burn fat. And sure enough, recent studies confirm it.

The herbs used (fingeroot aka Chinese ginger, peppercorn, Thai Sweet Basil, garlic, Thai chili peppers, Kaffir lime leaves) also give it its signature zesty flavor.

Spicy Thai Shrimp Recipe Details

It burns fat (not just your tongue). And it reduces gas and bloating thanks to the spicy herbs that create a healthy internal heat that is said to help burn fat.

  • Health benefits: This recipe helps burn fat. It makes your gas and bloating go away with the spicy herbs that heat you up from the inside, out.
  • Main herbs: Fresh peppercorn, garlic, and Sweet Basil.
  • Suitable for: Cold weather & if you have gas or bloating.
  • The Smell (scent is important in Thai cooking): Basil and Kaffir Lime give it a perfect smell when blended with the scents of fried garlic (the shrimp tastes just as the scent.. no fishiness at all in the shrimp).

Download & Print!

easy thai shrimp recipe sprouting famPin

Easy Thai Shrimp Recipe: Spicy, Garlic Stir-Fry

John
This Easy Thai Shrimp Recipe is one of the many we make. As tasty as it is healthy, it uses sweet basil, Thai chili peppers, garlic, kaffir lime, and fingerroot that help burn fat internally. The Thai name is "Gung Pad Cha."
5 from 2 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 5 minutes mins
Cook Time 8 minutes mins
Resting Time 2 minutes mins
Total Time 15 minutes mins
Course Main Course
Cuisine Thai
Servings 4 people
Calories 386 kcal

Equipment

  • Cast iron skillet

Ingredients
  

  • 500 grams Shrimp Or Prawns (equivalent to 1/2 lb kilo or 1 lb.)
  • 3 tbsp Coconut oil Tasteless, for cooking
  • 3 whole Garlic cloves Sliced into small pieces
  • 4 whole Thai chili peppers To taste (4 will make it very spicy)
  • 3 whole Peppercorns Fresh, whole (Piper nigrum)
  • 1 gram Thai Sweet Basil A large pinch of fresh leaves
  • 1 gram Kaffir Lime leaves A large pinch of fresh leaves (sliced in the recipe)
  • 3 whole Fingerroot 3 whole sticks of it
  • ½ whole White onion Half of an onion
  • ½ tsp Sea salt Or regular salt
  • ½ tbsp Ground pepper Fresh ground pepper is always best
  • 1 tbsp Oyster sauce Any oyster sauce
  • ½ cup White rice Boiled, served on the side.

The optionals (extra veggies in the fridge)

  • ½ whole Carrot Optional, to taste
  • 1 grams Mushroom Optional, to taste
  • ½ tsp Sugar Optional, to taste (this recipe does not use sugar)
  • 2 small eggplant Optional, sliced

Instructions
 

  • First, put in the coconut oil in the skillet and chop the garlic and chili and put it on the coconut oil. Then put in the garlic on the fried chili and coco oil. Fry a bit to get the smell going the garlic and chili alone.
    frying garlic and chilis in cast iron skilletPin
  • Then put the shrimp in and cook the shrimp over medium heat with the garlic and chilis in the coconut oil.
  • Once the shrimp starts to turn orange, put in the fresh peppercorn and sliced white onion. You'll want to chop up the fresh peppercorn just a bit to open it up. Then put it in alongside the onion. (onion for sweetness, peppercorn for heat)
    easy thai shrimp recipe spicy garlic stylePin
  • At this point you can place in the optional ingredients, the mushroom, vegetables and sugar.
  • Once the carrot got soft, we sliced the finger root and put it in. Then at this point is when you put in the salt, ground pepper, oyster sauce and stir it for 30 seconds. (if you want to add a sweet taste to the dish, at this point you would add some sugar)
    easy thai prawn recipePin
  • The recipe ends with a quick stir in the fresh herbs. These give the finishing touch smell. If you put the leaves in too early, the smell won’t come out later. Put the chopped kaffir and fresh, and whole basil leaves in around 10 seconds before you turn off the flame.
    easy thai basil shrimp recipePin

Video

YouTube video

Notes

*To be served with a side of freshly made white rice.
  • Natural sweetness comes from the white onion, so we don’t add sugar. But adding sugar would blend nicely with the spicy shrimp. 
  • Usually, in Thai food, we’d use fish sauce instead of salt and pepper, but my wife knows me and my preference of salt and pepper:)
  • If the dish is starting to look dry, put more water to increase the juiciness. It won’t lessen the flavor, rather will enhance it.

The optional parts:

We put added ingredients only for the nutritional value as we ate this for lunch that day. Usually, the optional ingredients from this recipe are not in the standard Thai version of it.
  • Sugar (not in this recipe): to taste (optional)
  • Small Eggplant: 2 whole, chopped (optional)
  • Mushroom: type & amount to taste (optional)
  • Carrots: (optional)

Nutrition

Serving: 512gCalories: 386kcalCarbohydrates: 44gProtein: 31gFat: 12gSaturated Fat: 9gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 201mgSodium: 580mgPotassium: 1216mgFiber: 10gSugar: 13gVitamin A: 1887IUVitamin C: 118mgCalcium: 133mgIron: 2.43mg
Keyword spicy shrimp recipes, thai prawn recipes, Thai Shrimp Recipe
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

Easy Thai Shrimp Recipe Step By Step With More Images

The actual bullet point step by step directions are written above, but here is another quick breakdown of the recipe directions. The first images show all of the ingredients we used, laid out so you can easily see the ingredients in this easy Thai shrimp recipe. Over medium heat in a cast iron frying pan, just cook the coconut oil for a minute before adding in the sliced garlic and chili peppers.

  • Pin
  • Pin
  • Pin
  • frying garlic and chilis in cast iron skilletPin

You’ll notice the wonderful, strong smell coming out and at this point you’ll add the raw shrimp or prawns. If you’re indoors, you’ll want to get the ventilation going because the fresh Thai chili peppers sliced then stir-fried will make everyone in the room cough up a storm. It’s no joke.

  • Pin
  • Pin
  • easy thai shrimp recipe spicy garlic stylePin
  • Pin
  • Easy Thai Shrimp Recipe 9Pin

The carrots, mushrooms and small eggplants are only in this recipe because we had them in the fridge and needed to use them. But normally, this recipe would not have these. However, it’s such an easy Thai shrimp recipe that you can throw random vegetables you also have in the fridge and you may find they blend in perfectly like the carrots and mushroom do. Sugar is another optional ingredient that would pair well with the spice.

  • easy thai basil shrimp recipePin
  • Pin
  • Pin
  • Pin

The last steps: add fingeroot aka Chinese Ginger (Boesenbergia rotunda) along with oyster sauce, sea salt and ground pepper.

And the very last steps are the Thai Sweet Basil and Kaffir Lime Leaves. Add these in when the dish is finished. Stir them in for a second, turn off the flame, and then serve..

Ling topped off the dish with a bit of sliced Kaffir Lime garnish. If you do this, you can eat the Kaffir Lime raw no problem.

Important recipe notes worth repeating:

  1. The herbs give the finishing touch scent. If you put the leaves in too early, the smell won’t come out later.
  2. If you notice the cast iron pan getting dry as you are stir-frying, add in water. This will not water-down the flavor at all. There is so much flavor in this dish that it will just enliven it.

What’s the difference between shrimp and prawns?

Are they genuinely different species of sea creatures? Or are they just two different names for shrimp?

The two are genuinely different. Science-wise, prawns are in the Dendrobranchiata sub-order, and shrimp are in the “Pleocyemata sub-order, but they’re both “decapod crustaceans” with ten legs and an exoskeleton. They both swim around in salt and fresh waters, rummaging the ocean floors for food.

The easiest way to spot the difference is probably their legs. Prawn legs are longer than shrimp legs. And only on two pairs of those legs do shrimp have claws compared to prawn that has claws on three leg pairs.

If you ask the experienced chef, you’ll hear that prawns are more delicious, but for the most part, everyone thinks they taste the same. They can be used interchangeably in recipes like our easy Thai shrimp recipe here. Food & Wine has a good article that talks more about shrimp vs prawns.

Summary: Easy Thai Shrimp Recipe

It’s one of those recipes you can make on a whim using random things in the fridge you want to eat before they go bad.

Carrots, mushroom, onion, eggplant, all of these ingredients we added (except the onion, this one is important to add a sweetness that balances the spice of this dish). Many vegetables you can slice or chop and throw in the iron skillet cooking the shrimp and the tasteless coconut oil, chopped chili peppers, and fresh sliced garlic.

And there you have it. Ling gives up a few of her secrets here, and I hope I translated the making of this Thai shrimp recipe good enough from her explanations.

Thanks for visiting the Sprouting Fam blog!

Subscribe to our newsletter below if you’d like to get notified of our next recipes 🙂

NEXT RECIPE: Roselle Juice Recipe: a healthy liver-cleansing drink to help cool you down after eating this spicy shrimp!


Category: RecipesTag: garlic, shrimp

About John

My name is John and I run this blog with my wife, Ling. We have this blog to share about topics we like, gardening, natural remedies, recipes, and more. Sharing information helps us learn and hopefully helps others too. Nothing is more fulfilling than going through life in utter awe and amazement at the complexity and level of engineering in everything He’s created.

Previous Post:DIY aquaponics system growing towerDIY Aquaponics: Getting Started With Aquaponic Farming
Next Post:How To Dry Meat In The Sun – Moo Dad Deaw Recipe (หมูแดดเดียว)how to dry meat in the sun

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Supriya Kutty

    November 3, 2020 at 5:13 am

    Really thank you for sharing the step by step guide of this recipe along with the picture as it makes it much easier to understand. I hope that even I end up making the recipe as shown. I really loved this post and will surely try it out.

    Reply
    • John and Ling

      November 5, 2020 at 12:28 am

      Hi Supriya thanks for enjoying the recipe! I viewed your blog and you have excellent recipes! We will have to try some out as well and let you know how it goes.

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Sidebar

Connect With Us!

Search The Site

You May Also Like

  • How To Make A Bee Hotel From A Log (+ 3 Reasons Why You Should!)
  • Safe Non-Stick Pan Alternatives: The Best and Worst Pans
  • 19 Free Fertilizers For Your Garden (Better Than Store-Bought)
  • 14 Plants That Repel Aphids & How To Companion Plant Them
  • Coconut Aminos vs Soy Sauce (+ Top 5 Shoyu Substitutes)

Blog Categories

  • Family
  • Gardening
  • Home Remedies
  • Natural Home
  • Recipes
  • Survival

Disclaimer

Thanks for visiting Sproutingfam.com, where we mention and link to various products and ingredients or tools we love and use. Assume those links are affiliate links which means we may earn a commission if you click and buy. Sproutingfam.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.

Disclaimers

Sprouting Fam is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. *Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates.

†The information on this website has not been evaluated by the FDA and is not intended to diagnose, treat, prevent, or cure any disease.

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • Pinterest

Site Links

  • Home
  • About
  • Contact
  • Cookie Policy
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions

Blog

  • Recipes
  • Gardening
  • Natural Home
  • Survival
  • Home Remedies
  • Family

Copyright © 2023 · Sprouting Fam · All Rights Reserved ·

x
x