Spicy Shrimp Fried Rice
Spicy Shrimp Fried Rice made healthier using leftover cooked brown rice, a delicious whole grain that’s high in fiber, so it fills you up.
Spicy Shrimp Fried Rice
Fried rice is definitely on my favorite foods list, I absolutely love it! Sure, sometimes I go low-carb with Cauliflower Fried Rice, which is fine but when I go all out, I much prefer making it with leftover brown rice (see How To Cook Perfect Brown Rice).
Fried rice is the ultimate leftover food because it requires using leftover rice. Otherwise it won’t be dry enough to fry and come out a but mushy. Therefore, this weeknight dish comes together really fast. Almost any protein and veggie can be tossed into this. Swap out shrimp for chicken or tofu and feel free to toss in whatever veggies are in your fridge like shredded carrots, mushrooms, corn, edamame, all work great.
This healthy shrimp fried rice def has some kick to it, and if you really like it hot feel free to add hot sauce to serve later!
Tips on How to Make Shrimp Fried Rice:
- As mentioned, start with leftover rice. I prefer brown but white works just fine. The drier the rice, the better it is for frying. You can even use riced cauliflower.
- Cook on high heat. It’s important to make sure the pan is hot when frying the veggies, protein and rice. Works best with a wok but a large pan will work as well.
- For extra crunchiness, once cooked, you can let stand in pan for an extra 30 seconds or so until desired cook.
More Shrimp Recipes You Might Enjoy:
- Buffalo Shrimp Lettuce Wraps
- Lime Shrimp and Avocado Salad
- Mexican Shrimp Diablo
- Honey Garlic Shrimp
- Shrimp Scampi
Spicy Shrimp Fried Rice
Ingredients
- 3 cups leftover brown rice cooked
- 1 lb large shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 1/2 tsp each of chili powder, paprika and garlic powder
- 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper, or more to taste
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
- fresh black pepper, to taste
- 2 large egg whites, beaten
- 1 large whole egg, beaten
- 1/2 medium onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, diced
- 5 medium scallions, chopped, whites and greens separated
- oil spray
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes, or more to taste
- 4 tsp soy sauce, or more to taste
- 1 tsp Asian fish sauce, (or more soy sauce)
Instructions
- In a bowl, season shrimp with cayenne pepper, chili powder, paprika, salt, pepper and garlic powder.
- In a hot wok, over medium high heat, spray a little oil and cook the eggs, when cooked, remove from pan and set aside, 1 to 2 minutes.
- Increase the heat to high, when hot add the sesame oil and saute onions, scallion whites, garlic and hot pepper flakes for about 1-2 minutes.
- Add shrimp and saute until no longer translucent, 2 to 3 minutes.
- Add rice and leave in the skillet to let the bottom brown, 2 to 3 minutes, stir and add the egg, soy sauce and fish sauce, mixing well for about 2 minutes.
- Add greens of the scallions and serve.
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This was so good and easy!!
Seriously SO delicious!! I did 1 cup of brown rice and a bag of cauliflower rice, literally could not tell the difference between the two when it’s all mixed together. So flavorful and perfect for meal prepping!!
Yum! Made this with brown rice and mixed vegies. Also had no fish sauce or sesame oil, so spiced it up with some sweet red chili sauce. Had to follow the directions the first time, but could make it again without the step by step!
Whoo, this is SPICY! Delicious, though. I love that it’s only 1 point on Purple. I added some edamame while sauteeing the shrimp. I also didn’t have leftover rice, so I cooked the rice first then everything else, and it came out fine.
I found this a little on the bland side.
Would add a little hoisin sauce and diced pineapple.
The wife loved it, though.
This lived up to it’s name but oh so tasty! This came together fast. I added soaked raisins for a little sweetness and break up the spicy. I made this as a main meal and it was filling.
The perfect use for leftover rice, and quite delicious!
So good! I use day old brown rice. My batch tonight was extra spicy with a heavy hand on the cayenne! But I love making it for my family about once a month. Good and healthy.
This was so delicious. I used 2 cups of rice and a little more red pepper flakes than the recipe calls for and it was perfect. I will definitely be making this again.
My favorite recipe from this site! Make this twice per month and it’s my husbands new favorite meal!
Glad you both enjoy it! 🙂
Another hit in our house from Skinny Taste! Delicious! Tossed in some frozen peas and carrots with the onions, otherwise followed recipe. Quick, yummy, and filling!
Wow that was spicier than expected and love it! Thanks for this recipe. Enjoyed it tonight as part of the meal plan.
I’m thinking of making this recipe with some scallops that I have – can you think of any adjustments that I might want to make?
I loved this!
Used 1/2 brown rice, 1/2 cauliflower rice
Simple to make and so good
Thanks Gina
How do you freeze this rhen serve?
In case anyone was wondering – because I know I was. It is ok to go ahead and use “fresh” brown rice instead of leftover. I didn’t have leftover rice and went ahead and made the boil in the bag brown rice a little ahead of time. It was still completely delish. I will try with leftover rice next time but didn’t have any issues making rice at the same time. So yummy!
Love this recipe! It’s super easy, however, I always omit the eggs when having this dish, so I did leave them out, otherwise great
I doubled the recipe because I knew it was going to be a big hit! So glad I did! This will be a regular in the rotation for sure. Thank you Gina for sharing your amazing recipes. Tomorrow is CILANTRO LIME FISH TACOS, another fan favorite.
This made for a really nice dinner. I made adjustments like using a lot of cauliflower since I didn’t have enough leftover rice and had run out of frozen peas and corn. The nice thing about this dish is that lots of different vegetables work perfectly well in it. My husband liked that it’s healthy. I’ll be making it regularly now.
how come the points dont match up in the weight watchers app? I’m on purple points and its showing In the app this is 8 points but you have 1 (when I enter it in).
Are you using the recipe builder? The only accurate way to determine any recipe’s SmartPoints® value is to plug the ingredients into the recipe builder on the Weight Watchers website (Click on “My Foods,” select “Recipe,” and click “Create a recipe.”) which does not count fruits and vegetables in recipes in the calculations as they are now 0 points.
The SmartPoints® calculator isn’t meant for recipes and will often give you the wrong points (usually higher) because it’s counting the fruits and vegetables. So if you see a recipe with a SmartPoints® value that’s different from what the calculator tells you, now you know why.
Spicy Shrimp Fried Rice is delicious!
This is easy to make, and great if you have left over rice. However, I felt like it was really lacking in flavor. It may be because I used white rice, rather than brown (my husband refuses to eat brown rice) but it seemed like the flavor disappeared. We had it as leftovers tonight, and I added additional soy sauce & fish sauce, and refried it in sesame oil which helped the flavor out. I also topped it with gochujang stir fried veggies, which greatly amped the flavor.
If using frozen shrimp, should I defrost fully before cooking or just put the shrimp in frozen?
I would defrost first and pat dry. Frozen shrimp tend to let out a lot of moisture as they thaw.
I started with 1 lb, 9oz. Frozen shrimp. After they thawed and I removed the shells, I had exactly 1 lb. of shrimp. The ice frozen shrimp are encased in weighs a lot.
Wow this was absolutely amazing. Better than takeout. Even more flavor the next day! Very spicy so make adjustments if you’re not into that.
Made this tonight with riced cauliflower and it was amazing!! Just enough kick where it wasn’t too spicy!
Made this for the second time last night at the demand of my teenage son. This is one of his favorites. Because I use a heavy-bottomed stainless steel skillet (I don’t have a wok and I gave up non-stick coatings), I made two small adjustments. First, I made sure the pan had a very thin coating of Olive oil before adding eggs (I use a silicon brush). Once I poured the eggs in, I swirled them to coat the pan and then did not touch/move them until set. This gave me a thin omelette that slid nicely out of the pan. I also added a bag of frozen Mixed veggies to the sauteed onion mkxture, before I added the shrimp. This cooked the veggies and seasoned them well after adding the shrimp. It is a great clean out the fridge/freezer meal. Thanks Gina!
What did I do wrong? The bottom of my pan got crispy but my rice didn’t. Should I have put more oil in between cooking the veggies and the shrimp? I used a stainless steel heavy bottom large sauté pan instead of a wok.
Hi Allison,
It sounds like a couple of issues got in the way:
1. that heavy bottomed saute pan may have prevented the heat from crisping things up. Woks are thinner and can flash heat things better
2. Could be the rice was not as dry as you thought?
🙂
I made this this past week and I absolutely love it!!! Even my 2 yr old daughter ate it. Making it again this weekend!!!! I didmt have sesame oil and I only used 1 egg, still came out good!!
This was a nice twist on Fried Rice. I have been stashing extra rice in the freezer so I had a mix of brown and white rice. I also had a mix of shrimp and scallops and a single chicken tender. I used the seasoning mix on all. I added two cups of frozen mixed vegetables, and doubled the recipe. It was great to make a meal with items on hand during this pandemic. Thank you Gina!
Sounds great!
This was delicious. A little spicy and a huge hit with the family. Even my picky eater had seconds. I’ve never made anything like this and it was easy.
Great!
Delicious and easy to make!
This is listed under the freezer meal section but I didn’t see and info in how to prep this to freeze and reheat.
Thanks!
My wife says I have to do all the fried rice recipes after I made this tonight!😏
I added mixed veggies and threw in leftover diced skirt steak to the recipe. Outstanding balance of flavor. A family hit.
Thank you💚
Loved this! Such a hit even though it really stuck to my pan! Thank you so much for these smart and WW friendly recipes. Making a lot of different things go keep us healthy and entertained during this terrible crisis. BEST OF HEALTH TO YOU AND ALL YOUR READERS!
I am absolutely obsessed with with recipe! I was slightly nervous to start with since the amount of soy sauce/fish sauce didn’t seem to be a lot for the amount of rice, and thought it may be bland – consider me an idiot! I’ve tried making my own healthier fried rices in the past and I’ve always been disappointed, but I’ve already made this recipe 3 times! The fact that I can throw this together in 15 mins if I already have the rice cooked is a miracle for busy weeknights!
I saw the instructions called for garlic powder, but it wasn’t in the ingredient list to I added 1/2tsp to the chili powder and paprika and it was perfect!
Stopped my Chinese food delivery cravings in their tracks! This is spicy and GOOD. I will definitely make again.
Great!
I think I may have doubled up on the spices by accident or something.. it is really spicy! This lived up to its name, though!
I will make it again but will probably cut back on the spice.
OMG! Made this last night and this may very well be my favorite Skinnytaste recipe yet. Delicious!
Thanks Helen!
This is very tasty and satisfying!
How much garlic powder do you use? It’s not in the ingredients list but is mentioned in Step 1.
Delicious and filling. Perfect Weight Wathers friendly recipe.
Awesome. I added edamame and green beans. Great flavors and so easy
Oh man! This was awesome! I added a half cup of frozen peas and a bag of bean sprouts! My husband even liked it and I haven’t told him yet that it was brown rice, which he calls paper rice! Thanks Gina this is a keeper!
You don’t have to tell….lol
Made this last night. Super easy to put together. My husband and I enjoyed it but it was a bit dry and it lacked that fried rice taste. Maybe next time I’ll add some chicken broth and more fish sauce, sesame oil ? I also added veggies.
Overall a good recipe.
Tasty but too hot for my son & I! Would try again without the red pepper flakes. Love how easy it was to prepare!
I just prepared the spicy shrimp fried rice for my husband and I and it was FANTASTIC!!! That recipe will be repeated over and over! I added peas to it which gave it a bit of sweetness. Also, I used left over jasmine rice.
Thank You
This was amazingly excellent! I loved the taste of the shrimp and using the “old” rice really did give it that fried rice touch. It did take longer than 5 minutes to prep, honestly more like 20, but the payoff was worth it.
This ! I added a bunch more veggies to it to try to stretch it out but it still only served 3 at my house. Still, it was only 1 point since I didn’t use any additional oil. This is definitely a keeper!
Made this for dinner tonight. My boyfriend loved it!! It was so good! Thank you!!
Fried rice
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How much garlic powder, salt & pepper to add to the shrimp before cooking [step#1]?
Love this Recipe!
Delish! I served it with roasted green beans. Will make it a gain. Thanks Gina!
In wondering if I did something wrong because it came out tasting like dry rice with shrimp. Only thing I did did was no fish oil. I added a little sweet chili sauce to it and that brought all of the flavors together and was delicious. On its own though I thought it needed something else.
I don’t have any fish sauce and was hoping to make this tonight. If I leave out the “1 tsp Asian fish sauce”, will it still be good or will it be missing something? Is there anything that I can use as a substitute that I might have on hand?
Add soy sauce
I think the recipe is written incorrectly. Step 1 says to add the spices, but they are not listed on the ingredient list. Cayenne is likely a separate spice, not sesame oil with cayenne. I added what I thought was the correct amounts and it was delicious!
Excellent recipe! I did not have sesame oil with cayenne, so I used plain. I added 2 cups frozen mixed veggies that I zapped in microwave. I got 1 1/2 cups for 6 points! Yum!
This recipe is AMAZING! It tastes like you ordered take out. It is just so tasty. I love it with shrimp, but when I feel lazy and need dinner quick, I cut up chicken breast and substitute that. Both ways, this dish is a WINNER!! Thank you for these amazing recipes!!
Thank you for this recipe. I wish I could leave a picture of how this turned out. I added a few more veggies to the mix but all in all I used your recipe. I was told that is tastes better than the Chinese restaurant!!!! I like the addition of the fish sauce. I think I’m gonna like this site!
So glad!
This was absolutely delicious!! My entire family loved this and I have some picky eaters!! My daughter said it tastes exactly like it would from a restaurant!! Gina you did it again! I am in awe of you . I don’t think there has ever been a recipe that I have tried from you where I was disappointed! Keep doing what you do, because you make my life so much easier!!
Just made this recipe tonight and it was amazing! Just the right amount of heat to it. I believe my husband’s exact words were “This is ridiculously good!” I used Uncle Ben’s steam in a bag chicken flavored brown rice which added a nice twist to the taste. Served alongside steamed brocolli. This is a great new option for a shrimp dinner. Will definitely try adding some more veggies to the rice next time.
Tried this winging it. Added zucchini, carrots, hoisin sauce. Added Chicken instead of shrimp. On step #1 just added a teaspoon of everything. Was wonderful. Please Gina-redue this with exact amounts of all ingredients-I’m so sure it will taste better with your flare.
This is yummy. I added mushrooms, carrots and snow peas for some extra veggies and subbed garlic for the ginger. So good!!!!!
PS I have lost 15 lbs primarily using your recipes for dinners and I
haven’t felt deprived at all. Well fed and happy, thank you Gina!
That’s great Karen! Thank you!
What type mushrooms did you use?
I am an experienced cook but I was somewhat confused with this recipe. I looked at the ingredients and went shopping. When I got to the directions it stated Chili powder, Paprika, Garlic Powder (not mentioned in the ingredients) but did not say the amount needed. The rice turned out great but a beginner cook would be VERY confused.
I will look into this, this is an older recipe, I think I will remake it!
Gina-I’m this beginner cooker Lynne is referring to. I totally lean on your exact measurement of ingredients and steps to follow. People tell me how good I cook and I tell them “its not me, its my new best friend and all her books- Gina”.
🙂
I agree with this! One of the reasons I love Gina’s recipes is the exact measurements. I’d love to know the amount of garlic powder, salt and pepper :).
Sorry guys! It is updated now! 🙂
The recipe calls for 3 cups of rice cooked. Does that mean to cook the amount of rice to get 3 cups or cook 3 cups of rice?
3 cups of cooked rice. To get three cups rice, cook one cup raw rice
I made this recipe tonight. It was absolutely delicious!! The only change I made was substituting hoisin sauce for soya sauce (realized too late I was out of soya sauce). Hoisin gave it more of a sweetness which worked beautifully with the heat of the pepper. Will add to our menu planner for sure!
Almaden this tonight and it was fabulous! followed the recipe exactly except I added some peas and carrots. Thanks for a wonderful dish that Mt whole family loved
I just made this and it was so good. I made a few adjustments since it was just me and it was difficult to measure the spices accurately. I love a little ginger in my asian food too. I skipped the rice and made it with cauliflower rice and kicked in some peas and carrots to kick the veg up more. This is definitely a new favorite and I can't wait to make it again.
Made this last night and my family loved it! Even my super picky husband. Thank you! Great recipe.
This was WONDERFUL! I could only find plain sesame oil, and could not find fish sauce, but otherwise made according recipe. My very picky teenage soon said, "that was really good". High praise! Thank you 🙂
I opted for no cayenne and spicy sesame.My son loved it so much he asked for it tomorrow at school,my daughter didn't like the shrimp so she mixed edamame in it.AMAZING
Absolutely in love! Made this several times & it is perfect everytime! I have tried several recipes & they are no good but this is the BOMB!! Thumbs up Gina!
What would be the point value if I use white rice
Oh. My. God. SO good! My family loves spicy and this hit the spot! The hubs and most of the kids had seconds. 🙂
I made this tonight and it was delicious!! I love spicy foods and this is prob medium to extra spicy food lovers! I've made several skinny taste recipes and this is in the top 2 so far! Thanks for posting!! LOVE this site!
Hey, I want to try this tomorrow… but we are not big on spicy.. any rec's for making it less spicy? any substitutions?
thanks!
Made this for my fiance and I the other night. We love takeout but are trying to live a healthier lifestyle. We both loved it, but found it incredibly spicy! I knew it would be spicy, but not this hot! I really liked the recipe though and am considering making it again, though next time sans the red pepper flakes and the hot sesame oil. Perhaps using regular sesame oil and a little ginger may make a difference.
So tasty! I added broccoli and mushrooms for extra (low calorie) nutrients 🙂
Made this for the second time tonight, my boyfriend and I love it! I do add some shredded carrots and frozen peas, but other than that follow the recipe exactly. So much lighter than take out rice, and honestly I think Iike the taste more! Thanks Gina!
used sesame oil without cayenne pepper and it was spicy enough for us. added peas and carrots. awesome!
I made this recipe subbing quinoa for the rice (you can saute it for a few minutes after cooking to give it a bit more "bite") to make it even healthier and it still tasted absolutely delicious. Thanks!
The fish sauce, IMHO, really does make a nice different. If you can get some, do use it.
I made this for lunch yesterday and it was a hit, everyone loved it and wanted more. Great recipe! I did not have shrimp so I just left it out and it still tasted great. Thank you for the recipe 🙂
Made this tonight and it was amazing! I love fried rice and whenever I get a chance to use my wok, I'm a happy camper. Next time, I'm going to add peas and waterchestnuts. I don't like a lot of egg in my rice so I only used 1 egg white and 1 whole egg. I was nervous about this because of the chopped onions and the scallions. I do not like onions but to my surprise, it was great with the onions 🙂
This was amazing! Some of the best Fried Rice I've ever had!
Hi Gina, can this be frozen? I want to prepare some dinners for my husband while I am gone and wondered if I could freeze this with okay results?
Thanks
Where can you find fish sauce at the grocery store? I have looked everywhere and cannot find it anywhere.
This is fantastic!!! Used about six cloves of garlic and substituted ponzu for soy sauce. Will be making this again and incorporating peas.
I love this recipe and make it every couple of weeks. So tasty, spicy and filling. I also add in peas for a nice extra touch…..
Wow Gina! You've outdone yourself this time. Let me preface this review by saying I HATE fried rice. I made this mostly for my kids (ages 5 and 7) who like it from our local grocery store. I decided to surprise them and make this with roasted sugar snap peas. I was fully expecting my husband and I to hate it. It was PHENOMENAL! I did use 3 full Eggland's best eggs rather than the egg whites. I also increased the garlic a great deal and added a can of water chestnuts. I punched up the seasoning a made my brown rice in my rice cooker and then chilled it on a baking sheet to get it ready in time for dinner. HEAVEN! I ate WAY too much, which probably defeats the purpose of healthy. Will definitely be making this one again and again. My 7 year old son actually asked me to make this for our "special Christmas dinner"!!! That speaks volumes to me. Thank you for another winner!
Is the serving size 1 cup & a 1/2 cup? Or just a 1/2 cup? It's very confusing
1 1/2 cups is the serving.
If you are a wimp with spice, how would you alter it to make it less spicy? Just leave out the pepper altogether, or half it, or ??? I love the idea of this dish but do not do well with spice!
I've made this twice now & LOVE it! Of course I leave out the red pepper flakes and add my own spicy sauce in my own bowl. KEEPER!!
I made this last night for dinner and it was SOOO good! I added some sugar snap peas for crunch and veggie-action, but the spiciness was great! My boyfriend and I gobbled it up.
made this over the weekend! Great dish!! SUPER SUPER spicy! Boyfriend really loved it! thanks!
Loved this recipe. I didn't have fish sauce, so it was fine to leave out. I did add ginger, sugar snap peas, and mushrooms. Very good. My husband liked it too. Good size portion. I couldn't finish it.
Gina, thanks for all the wonderful recipes. I made this one tonight for dinner and it was absolutely scrumptious. I have made about 8 of your recipes and they have all been fabulous. You are simply the BEST. Thanks again for sharing your talents in the kitchen. I can't wait to try more of your recipes, I have to tell you, my husband is enjoying the great food just as much as me. 🙂
This is such a great recipe!!!! I've made it several times and it never fails to impress me. We love spice in my house and this definitely has a good kick to it, but not so much that it's overpowering. I also love that the serving size is so big!!!
Last night I made this with chicken (about 7 oz uncooked) instead of shrimp and it was equally awesome. I also added 1/2 c frozen peas and 1/2 cup frozen corn since I didn't have any scallions and feel like fried rice needs some green in it.
This was FANTASTIC!! I made this Friday night and my husband raved about it (and enjoyed it the next day and the next day!). It was extremely filling and I love the spices. Thanks again 🙂
Oh thanks for noticing, just shake it on. I don't measure when I add spices to meat, I just add what feels right.
Hi Gina,
I don't see chili powder, paprika and garlic powder in the ingredient list. How much should I use? This looks delicious
So good! Added carrots and peas since I had them in my freezer. Husband loved it.
This is absolutely delicious – we added zucchini to ours. It doesn't taste "healthy" at all! The only problem… it's hard to stop eating it! 🙂
This was so good…we love chinese so it definitely hit the spot! My husband couldnt believe it was actually healthy! Thanks so much!
Oh my this was SO good! My husband and I both gobbled it up. I added a little extra soy and fish sauce, but other than that followed the recipe. I will add a handful of frozen peas next time just because I think it would be a great addition! Thank you Gina 🙂
Yes, a large deep nonstick pan works.
I don't have a wok can i use a non stick pan to make this fried shrimp dish. thank
This was soooo good even my step daughter 12 year old loved it
@Lindsey- This recipe calls for the rice being measure cooked. 3 cups of uncooked rice would be too much for sure.
dumb question here: the rice, do you measure before or after cooking? I made the thai fried rice and it seemed like a lot for 4 servings!
You're welcome!
This dish was awesome if you like to pitch a little heat! A family favorite! Quick & Easy! Thanks so much for posting!
That's great Sarah. My daughter and husband are very suspicious as well if they think I am making something healthy so they never really know!!
Made this last night and it was great. I didn't tell my husband where I got the recipe because I knew he wold never try it. Well he loved it as well and was surprised it was WW friendly. I can't wait to try more
@Whitney- I think this is a perfect size portion to satisfy!
@bugs mom- your daughter sounds like a good eater!!!!
This is SO good! I have made it twice and my family was shocked that it was WW friendly! My 6 year old daughter just loves it!
Tried this recipe and loved it. Great that its such a large portion size. Next time I make it I plan on adding some more veges to it.
Made this tonight. Left out the cayenne and 1/2 chili powder and it was still spicy but perfect.. I remember from last time I couldn’t eat it , way to hot
Yum! We love fried rice, and I love that shrimp are so low in points. Thanks so much!