Savory fried rice packed with succulent shrimp, vegetables and aromatics - made easy in one-pan with simple ingredients! This quick and easy Chinese shrimp fried rice recipe is ready in 30 minutes. It's family-friendly and restaurant-quality!
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Shrimp fried rice is a Chinese restaurant classic that features fluffy jasmine rice stir-fried with tender shrimp, carrots, peas, garlic and shallots in a savory sauce!
It's a satisfying dish that uses any leftover rice or ingredients sitting in the fridge. I love cooking this as a main dish or meal for busy weeknights!
My best tip for fluffy fried rice: use cold, day-old cooked rice from the fridge. The cold grains are drier, which keep them separated when stir-frying and prevent clumping.
If you're using freshly steamed rice, I recommend drying it out by evenly spreading it on a large baking tray, freeze for 1 hour and break it up.
Why you'll love this recipe:
- Ready in 30-minutes.
- Made with simple ingredients!
- Customizable - swap in your favorite protein or vegetables (see substitutes below).
- Better-than-takeout and cheaper!
- Family-friendly.
- Great for busy weeknights and meal prep.
Ingredients & Substitutes
Please scroll to the below recipe card for exact measurements.
- Cold Day-Old Cooked Jasmine Rice or Long-grain White Rice: cold day-old rice is recommended as it contains less moisture (excess moisture leads to soggy fried rice).
- Shallot: or substitute with ¼ of a small onion.
- Garlic Cloves
- Carrots: fresh or frozen work or substitute with corn or finely diced bell peppers.
- Peas: fresh or frozen work or substitute with chopped green beans, broccoli florets, or edamame.
- Large Eggs
- Neutral Oil: like avocado oil, sunflower oil, grapeseed oil, peanut oil, vegetable oil, or canola oil. Avoid olive oil or any low-smoke point oil.
- Green Onions
Shrimp Marinade
- Jumbo Shrimp: or substitute with large shrimp.
- Regular Soy Sauce: or substitute with low sodium soy sauce, light soy sauce, tamari sauce, or coconut aminos.
- Shaoxing Wine: or substitute with dry sherry wine, dry white wine, or chicken broth.
- Cornstarch: or substitute with potato starch, tapioca starch or arrowroot starch.
- Neutral Oil: see examples above.
Sauce
- Regular Soy Sauce: see substitutes just above.
- Dark Soy Sauce: or substitute with dark mushroom soy sauce or season with more regular soy sauce at the end of the stir fry process.
- Sesame Oil: or substitute with sesame seeds (omit if you're allergic).
- Chicken Bouillon Powder (aka Chicken Stock Powder)
- White Pepper: or substitute with black pepper.
Variations
- For a gluten-free version: swap both soy sauces with tamari sauce, coconut aminos or a gluten-free soy sauce and the chicken bouillon with a gluten-free version.
- For a vegan or vegetarian version: omit the shrimp, chicken bouillon powder and eggs and add cooked tofu and more veggies.
- Not a fan of shrimp? Swap with chicken, beef, or pork. Or add tofu or eggs but skip the marinade.
Note: Asian ingredients are typically available at most Asian grocery stores or check online, like on Amazon.
Expert Tips
- Use cold day-old rice for fluffy fried rice as the grains are drier and less likely to stick together.
- Break up the cold rice to separate the grains to prevent clumpy fried rice.
- Rinse the peeled, deveined shrimp with cold water to remove shells or dirt.
- Own a steel wok? Use it to get that smoky flavor (or ‘wok hei’) found in Chinese takeout.
- Use medium-high heat to prevent moisture build-up in the pan.
- Pour the sauce around the rice, so it can toast and add more flavor!
Instructions
Below are step-by-step instructions on how to make shrimp fried rice:
- Marinate the shrimp. In a large bowl, marinate the shrimp with marinade ingredients as listed above for 5 minutes and set aside.
- Prepare the sauce. In a small bowl, combine the sauce ingredients as listed above. Set aside.
- Cook shrimp. Heat 3 tablespoon or 45 ml of vegetable oil in a large pan or wok on medium-high heat. Fry shrimp until halfway cooked. Remove the shrimp from the pan and set aside.
- Cook aromatics and vegetables. Sauté garlic and shallots for 10 seconds until fragrant. Add peas and carrots and stir fry for 10 seconds. Push to the side of the pan.
- Scramble the eggs. Add remaining vegetable oil into empty space. Add beaten eggs and let them set for 10 seconds before scrambling. Then toss everything together.
- Mix in shrimp, rice and sauce. Add shrimp and toss together. Add rice and pour sauce along edges of the pan, letting it toast for 5 seconds. Then toss until rice is evenly coated and there's no sauce left in the base of the pan. Remove off heat and garnish with green onions.
Storage & Reheating
- Shrimp fried rice will last up to 4 days stored in an airtight container in the fridge, once cooled. To reheat: microwave or reheat on the stovetop until hot throughout.
- Shrimp fried rice can be frozen in a freezer-safe bag, once cooled, for up to 3 months. To reheat, defrost overnight in the fridge and reheat on the stovetop until hot throughout.
Pairing Suggestions
Shrimp fried rice serves well with:
- starters like egg rolls, crab rangoons, egg drop soup, or hot and sour soup.
- noodle dishes like chow mein, lo mein, or soup noodles.
- cooked vegetables like bok choy, spicy garlic bok choy, choy sum, gai lan, garlic green beans or stir fried snow pea leaves.
- protein dishes like Szechuan Chicken, String Bean Chicken, Mongolian Beef,
Beef Mushroom Stir Fry, Honey Walnut Shrimp, Shrimp Omelet, Soy Garlic Tofu, and more!
FAQ
Can I make this in advance?
Shrimp fried rice can be made up to 4 days in advance and stored in an airtight container in the fridge, once cooled. To reheat, microwave or reheat on the stovetop until hot throughout.
Why is my fried rice soggy?
Soggy fried rice can be caused by a few different factors, such as: using freshly cooked or warm rice, not using cold day-old rice, not breaking up the rice beforehand or in the pan, or not using a high enough heat like medium-high heat.
Can I use freshly cooked rice?
Freshly steamed rice can be used but you'll need to dry it out first or it'll result in clumpy fried rice. To do this, thinly spread it out on a baking sheet, freeze for 60 minutes uncovered until cold, and break it up with a rice paddle.
📖 Recipe
Quick & Easy Chinese Shrimp Fried Rice
Savory rice fried with tender shrimp, garlic, shallots, carrots and peas. This quick and easy shrimp fried rice is made with leftover rice and simple ingredients! Ready in 30 minutes, family-friendly and restaurant-quality!
Ingredients
- 4 ½ cups cooked jasmine rice or white long-grain rice, cold day-old (or see below Notes if you're making rice for this recipe)
- 1 lb jumbo shrimp or large shrimp, peeled & deveined
- 1 shallot or ¼ small onion, finely diced
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- ½ cup carrot small diced, or sub with frozen
- ½ cup peas fresh or frozen
- 3 large eggs beaten
- 4 tablespoon vegetable oil or any neutral oil
- ½ green onion finely chopped
Shrimp Marinade
- 1.5 teaspoon regular soy sauce or light soy sauce
- 1.5 teaspoon Shaoxing Cooking Wine or dry sherry / dry white wine / chicken broth
- 1.5 teaspoon cornstarch or potato starch / tapioca starch
- 1.5 teaspoon vegetable oil or any neutral oil
Sauce
- 2 tablespoon regular soy sauce or light soy sauce
- ½ tablespoon dark soy sauce
- 2 teaspoon sesame oil toasted kind
- 1 teaspoon chicken bouillon powder
- ⅛ teaspoon white pepper or black pepper
Instructions
- Break up the cold day-old rice with a rice paddle or a wooden spatula to separate the grains and set aside.
- In a large bowl, marinate shrimp with marinade ingredients as listed above for 5 minutes and set aside.
- In a small bowl, combine the sauce ingredients as listed above. Set aside.
- Heat 3 tablespoon or 45 ml of vegetable oil in a large pan or wok on medium-high heat. Fry shrimp until halfway cooked. Remove the shrimp from the pan and set aside.
- Sauté garlic and shallots for 10 seconds until fragrant.
- Add peas and carrots and stir-fry for another 10 seconds. Push to the side of the pan.
- Add remaining vegetable oil into empty space. Add beaten eggs and let them set for 10 seconds before scrambling. Then toss everything together.
- Add shrimp and toss together.
- Add rice and pour sauce along the edges of the pan, letting it toast for 5 seconds. Then toss until rice is evenly coated and there's no sauce left in the base of the pan.
- Remove off heat and garnish with green onions.
Notes
If you're cooking rice for this recipe
- Rinse 1 ½ cups or 300 grams of jasmine rice or white long-grain rice with cold water to make 2 cups of cooked rice.
- Cook rice in your rice cooker or on the stovetop.
- Evenly spread out the hot or warm cooked rice in a single layer on a large baking sheet.
- Place the baking sheet in the freezer, uncovered for 60 minutes so the cold air can dry out the rice.
- Once the rice is cold and dry, break up the rice with a rice paddle or spatula.
Enjoyed my recipe?Please leave a 5 star review (be kind)! Tag me on social media @christieathome as I'd love to see your creations!
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Nutrition
Calories: 431kcal | Carbohydrates: 60g | Protein: 28g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.03g | Cholesterol: 282mg | Sodium: 1584mg | Potassium: 405mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 3274IU | Vitamin C: 10mg | Calcium: 122mg | Iron: 2mg
Ralph
My wife loved it! I used the jasmine rice, cooked it the previous day, and incorporated it with everything else. This recipe was very flavorful and joins roughly five other recipes of yours that i have tried which have been successful.
Christie Lai
Thanks for making my recipe and sharing this positive review, Ralph! Super happy to hear that this worked out well for you and your wife. I appreciate your constant support in making so many of my recipes.
Charlene
I love it. The shrimp fried rice is lovely. Restaurant quality actually.
Christie Lai
Thank you so much for making my recipe and for the positive review! Glad you enjoyed it!
Mimi
This was so beautiful and I used this menu and I’m so proud of it and myself. Thank you ☺️
Christie Lai
Thanks so much for making my recipe Mimi! Glad you enjoyed it and glad you felt confidence in making it 🙂 Have a wonderful day!
Liz
Made this for dinner on a whim. This is hands down the best recipe I’ve tried for Shrimp Fried Rice! It was absolutely delicious and it tastes better than take out!!!
Christie Lai
Aww this makes me so happy to read! So glad you enjoyed my recipe, Liz!