Skip to main content

Weekend Recipe: Stir-Fried Shrimp with Snow Peas and Red Bell Pepper in Hot and Sour Sauce

Support Provided By

Want to make your own restaurant-style Chinese food? "America's Test Kitchen" has your hot and sour sauce right here!

Photo courtesy America's Test Kitchen
Photo courtesy America's Test Kitchen

Stir-Fried Shrimp with Snow Peas and Red Bell Pepper in Hot and Sour Sauce
Serves 4

2 medium garlic cloves, 1 minced or pressed through garlic press, 1 thinly sliced
1 pound extra-large (21-25) shrimp, peeled, deveined, and tails removed
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1 teaspoon soy sauce
3 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons white vinegar
1 tablespoon Asian chili-garlic sauce
1 tablespoon dry sherry or Shaoxing wine
2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
1 tablespoon ketchup
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 large shallot, sliced thin (about 1/3 cup)
1/2 pound snow peas or sugar snap peas, stems snapped off and strings removed
1 medium red bell pepper, seeded and cut into 3/4-inch dice

Combine minced garlic with shrimp, ginger, 1 tablespoon vegetable oil, and salt in medium bowl. Let shrimp marinate at room temperature 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, whisk soy sauce, sugar, vinegar, chili-garlic sauce, sherry, sesame oil, ketchup, and cornstarch in small bowl. Combine sliced garlic with shallot in second small bowl.

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet over high heat until just smoking. Add snow peas and bell pepper and cook, stirring frequently, until vegetables begin to brown, 1½ to 2 minutes. Transfer vegetables to medium bowl.

Add remaining tablespoon oil to now-empty skillet and heat until just smoking. Add garlic-shallot mixture and cook, stirring frequently, until just beginning to brown, about 30 seconds. Add shrimp, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook, stirring frequently, until shrimp are light pink on both sides, 1 to 1½ minutes. Whisk soy sauce mixture to recombine and add to skillet; return to high heat and cook, stirring constantly, until sauce is thickened and shrimp are cooked through, 1 to 2 minutes. Return vegetables to skillet, toss to combine, and serve.

Support Provided By
Read More
A black and white photo of an adult dressed as the easter bunny with a giant costumed head, holding a little girl on their left who gives it a kiss on the cheek and, with his right arm, holding a little boy who brings his hands to his eyes as though wiping away tears.

Behold the Bunnies and Bonnets of L.A.'s Past Easter Celebrations

The onset of the spring season heralds the arrival of fragrant flowers in bloom — and all the critters that enjoy them, including the Easter bunny and families who anticipate his arrival with egg hunts, parades and questionable fashion choices.
A black and white image of an elephant holding a broom with its trunk. A man is seen near the elephant, walking towards the animal.

Lions and Tigers and Cameras! How the Movies Gave Los Angeles a Zoo

The early days of the movies in Los Angeles inadvertently allowed visitors to experience the largest collection of animals in the western United States. When animals weren't appearing in a movie, they were rented out to other film companies, performed for studio visitors, or in the case of filmmaker William Selig's collection — an opportunity to create one of Los Angeles' first zoos.
A vertical, black and white portrait of a blonde woman wearing a sparkly four-leaf clover costume as she holds her arms out and extends a leg as though in a curtsy.

Irish for a Day: L.A.'s History of 'Going Green' on St. Patrick's Day

Whether it was a parade, dance, tea party, home celebration or just enjoying a good ol' wee dram of whisky, here's a photo essay of how Los Angeles donned its green apparel to celebrate St. Patrick's Day and embrace the luck o' the Irish over the years.