• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Curry Trail

Simple Flavorful Recipes For The Home Cook

  • Recipe Index
  • Side Dish
  • Chicken
  • About Me
Home > Asian Recipes > Shrimp Fried Rice

Shrimp Fried Rice

Published: Jun 29, 2023

Jump to Recipe Rate this Recipe Print Recipe
rice fried with shrimp with text

Forget the takeout make restaurant-quality shrimp fried rice in 30 minutes. Made with fresh shrimp, garlic, ginger, shallots, leftover rice, carrot, peas, and eggs in amazing savory Asian flavors. Made in one pan, packed with flavors.

shrimp fried rice in bowl

Chinese shrimp fried rice

Any day is a good day for fried rice. It’s quick and easy to make. Usually made with leftover rice tossed with carrots, peas, and eggs, it can also include proteins like chicken, shrimp, or pork. A meal by itself, it works as a side dish too for any Asian meal.

Like any fried rice recipe, the secret to making the best shrimp fried rice is by using leftover chilled (in the refrigerator) rice that can be tossed with other ingredients in a wok, skillet, or griddle. Freshly cooked rice will turn mushy.

Also using fresh shrimp tastes amazing when cooked with fresh shrimp instead of frozen shrimp.

It’s cooked in one pan, with amazing savory Asian flavors. You’ll need 30 minutes or less to make it, and trust me it’s so much better than the take-out version. A perfect weeknight meal.

Ingredients

Here’s what you’ll need –

  • Day old rice
  • Shrimp
  • Eggs
  • Canola oil
  • Garlic
  • Ginger
  • Shallots
  • Carrot
  • Peas
  • Sesame oil
  • Soy sauce
  • Dark soy sauce
  • Oyster sauce
  • Rice vinegar
  • Cornstarch
  • Green onion
all ingredients for shrimp fried rice

All ingredient’s exact measurements in mentioned in the recipe card below.

  • Day-old cooked rice – the secret to successful fried rice that tastes amazing is to use a day-old rice chilled in the refrigerator. Long-grain white rice is best for shrimp fried rice recipes. If you don’t have leftover day-old chilled rice, cook rice and spread it on a tray, and pop it in the freezer for 45 minutes. Then break down the rice with gentle hands.
  • Shrimp – for best-tasting fried rice use fresh jumbo shrimp over frozen shrimp. Jumbo-sized prawns/shrimps are best. If you can’t find jumbo shrimp, get the medium-sized shrimp, peeled and devein, the tail removed.
  • Eggs – use large eggs, if you love eggs add more. I find fried rice with eggs tastier.
  • Aromats – garlic, ginger, shallots.
  • Vegetables – I used carrots and frozen peas. Add anything that is your favorite. Diced carrots, shredded cabbage, chopped broccoli, snow peas, bok choy, diced mushrooms, and frozen corn.
  • Sauce – there’s more than just soy sauce. Oyster sauce, regular soy sauce, dark soy sauce, Chinese cooking wine or rice vinegar, and white pepper go in the sauce.

How to make shrimp fried rice

Making shrimp fried rice is quick and easy. Once you begin cooking, you’ll move quickly so make sure you have all ingredients measured and ready near the stove.

Marinate shrimp:

In a bowl whisk all ingredients mentioned under the marinade for shrimp. Add peeled and deveined shrimp to the sauce ingredients. Mix. Let shrimp marinate in the sauce for 5 to 10 minutes.

marinating shrimp in sauce

Whisk eggs with ⅛ teaspoon of salt and ⅛ teaspoon of ground white pepper. Set aside.

whisk eggs

Make the sauce:

To a bowl add regular soy sauce, dark soy sauce, oyster sauce, ground white pepper, and sesame oil. Mix well and set aside.

picture collage of making sauce for fried rice

In a large wok heat 1 tablespoon oil. To hot oil add marinated shrimp. Toss in between. Once the shrimp is cooked 50% remove it from the wok and set aside.

cooking shrimp for fried rice

Clean the wok with a kitchen paper towel (be careful the wok will be hot). Cook whisked eggs in 1 tablespoon oil until just set. Remove and set aside. This is an optional step. You can cook eggs along with the vegetables instead of cooking them separately.

picture collage of making scrambled eggs

Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil. On high heat sauté minced garlic, minced ginger, and diced shallots for 1 minute.

Add carrots and peas. Add a big pinch of salt and ground white pepper – this is optional. Stir and toss.

making shrimp fried rice

Add back half-cooked shrimp and eggs to the wok. Toss/stir well.

Pour prepared sauce and leftover chilled rice into the wok.

fried rice using shrimp in wok

Quickly toss everything together.

Turn off the heat and pour 1 teaspoon of sesame oil and sprinkle green onion on top.

picture collage of making shrimp fried rice

Serve and enjoy with more green onion as a garnish on top.

Tips to make the best shrimp fried rice

  1. Day-old rice is best because the grains are dry and crumbly. Freshly cooked rice will be wet and have surface moisture which will make it too sticky and might turn fried rice into mush.
  2. Useful hack. No leftover rice? Need some for an emergency to make fried rice? Cook rice, spread on a large tray and cool it and then pop it in the freezer so it’s dry. Note rice triples in volume when cooked. 1 cup of medium or long-grain rice will yield 3-4 cups of rice.
  3. Mise en place. The most important step in any stir-fried dish you get all the ingredients chopped, measured, and ready near the stove to be thrown into the pan and tossed.
  4. Large pan. Use a wok or a big wide skillet. The surface area should be big so you can toss rice around so it can stir-fry and not steam in the pan.
  5. High heat. Cook everything on high heat moving it quickly and frequently.
  6. Keep tossing. Do not let the ingredients sit for long while cooking. Do not let veggies sit in a wok to steam cook.
  7. Best quality sauce. Use the best quality oyster sauce, soy sauce, and if available Chinese cooking wine. Shrimp fried rice recipe taste depends on it. Choose low-sodium soy sauce, it’s less salty and better for health.

What goes with shrimp fried rice

It’s a meal by itself or can be served as a side with any Asian dishes.

Here are some of the serving suggestions-

Serve with Chinese egg drop soup

with garlic bok choy or Mongolian chicken

Storage

To refrigerate: Any leftover shrimp fried rice can be stored in an airtight container and placed in a refrigerator. It will keep for 3-4 days.

To freeze: you can also make a large batch of shrimp fried rice and store it in the freezer. Transfer to a freezer-friendly dish and store in the freezer for up to 3 months.

To reheat: toss it in a wok until heated and serve.

fried rice with shrimp with wok

Common questions

What’s the best rice to use for shrimp fried rice?

I recommend long-grain white rice. You can use any white rice variety short, medium, or long-grain rice. Any cooked cold rice will be fine, white, and brown.

Why does the rice have to be cold or day old?

The rice needs to be cold so every grain is dry and it’s perfect when you stir fry. Freshly cooked rice is warm and it will be soft. When you stir fry freshly cooked rice it will turn gluey.

MORE FRIED RICE RECIPES

  • Chinese bacon fried rice cooked in wok

    15 Minutes Bacon Fried Rice

  • close view of fried rice

    Hibachi Fried Rice

  • Korean spicy fried rice made using kimchi served in bowl

    Easy Kimchi Fried Rice

  • low carb riced cauliflower rice

    Cauliflower Fried Rice

  • Thai pineapple fried rice in pineapple hollow/pineapple bowl

    Thai Pineapple Fried Rice (Khao Pad Sapparot)

Don’t forget to Subscribe to CurryTrail  Recipes below to get our newest recipes delivered straight to your inbox.

LOVE THIS RECIPE. KEEP IN TOUCH AND DON’T MISS OUT ON ANY OF CURRY TRAIL RECIPES! FOLLOW ME ON INSTAGRAM, PINTEREST, AND FACEBOOK.

HAVE YOU TRIED ONE OF MY RECIPES? I’D LOVE TO SEE WHAT YOU’VE MADE! TAKE A PICTURE AND USE THE HASHTAG #CURRYTRAIL ON INSTAGRAM SO I CAN SEE! I’LL DO A HAPPY DANCE IF YOU TRY MY RECIPE AND SHARE IT WITH US!

fried rice with shrimp
No ratings yet

📋Shrimp Fried Rice

Jyothi Rajesh
Forget the takeout make restaurant-quality shrimp fried rice in 30 minutes. Made with fresh shrimp, garlic, ginger, shallots, leftover rice, carrot, peas, and eggs in amazing savory Asian flavors. Made in one pan, packed with flavors in 30 minutes.
Prevent your screen from going dark
Print Recipe Pin Recipe Rate this Recipe
Prep Time 20 minutes mins
Cook Time 8 minutes mins
Course Dinner, Lunch, Main Course
Cuisine Chinese
Servings 4 servings
Calories 417

Ingredients
  

  • 4 cups of day-old cooked rice
  • 1 pound shrimp peeled and deveined
  • 3 large eggs
  • 3 tablespoons canola oil or vegetable oil
  • 3 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 teaspoon ginger minced
  • 1 shallot diced
  • ½ cup carrot
  • ½ cup frozen peas
  • 1 teaspoon sesame oil
  • 3 green onions
  • Salt & ground white pepper – if needed add after tasting

For shrimp marinade

  • 1 teaspoon soy sauce
  • 1 teaspoon rice vinegar best use Shaoxing cooking wine if you have
  • 1 teaspoon cornstarch
  • 1 teaspoon ground white pepper

For sauce

  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • ½ tablespoon dark soy sauce
  • 1 ½ tablespoons oyster sauce
  • ½ teaspoon ground white pepper
  • 1 teaspoon sesame oil

Instructions
 

  • Marinate shrimp:
    In a bowl whisk all ingredients mentioned under the marinade for shrimp. Add peeled and deveined shrimp to the sauce ingredients. Mix. Let shrimp marinate in the sauce for 5 to 10 minutes.
  • Whisk eggs with ⅛ teaspoon of salt and ⅛ teaspoon of ground white pepper. Set aside.
  • Make the sauce:
    In a bowl whisk all ingredients mentioned under the marinade for shrimp. Add peeled and deveined shrimp to the sauce ingredients. Mix. Let shrimp marinate in the sauce for 5 to 10 minutes.
  • To a bowl add regular soy sauce, dark soy sauce, oyster sauce, ground white pepper, and sesame oil. Mix well and set aside.
  • In a large wok heat 1 tablespoon oil. To hot oil add marinated shrimp. Toss in between. Once the shrimp is cooked 50% remove it from the wok and set aside.
  • Clean the wok with a kitchen paper towel (be careful the wok will be hot). Cook whisked eggs in 1 tablespoon oil until just set. Remove and set aside. This is an optional step. You can cook eggs along with the vegetables instead of cooking them separately.
  • Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil. On high heat saute minced garlic, minced ginger, and diced shallots for 1 minute.
  • Add carrots and peas. Add a big pinch of salt and ground white pepper – this is optional. Stir and toss.
  • Add back half-cooked shrimp and eggs to the wok. Toss/stir well.
  • Pour prepared sauce and leftover chilled rice into the wok.
  • Quickly toss everything together.
  • Turn off the heat and pour 1 teaspoon of sesame oil and sprinkle green onion on top.
  • Serve and enjoy with more green onion as a garnish on top.

Notes

Nutritional Info – Please keep in mind that the nutritional information provided is only a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on the products used.

Nutrition

Calories: 417kcalCarbohydrates: 54gProtein: 12gFat: 17gSaturated Fat: 2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 5gMonounsaturated Fat: 9gTrans Fat: 0.1gCholesterol: 140mgSodium: 966mgPotassium: 291mgFiber: 3gSugar: 3gVitamin A: 3104IUVitamin C: 11mgCalcium: 66mgIron: 2mg
Did you make this recipe?Follow @CurryTrail and tag #CurryTrail to share your creation!

Recipe Notes

  1. Day-old rice is best because the grains are dry and crumbly. Freshly cooked rice will be wet and have surface moisture which will make it too sticky and might turn fried rice into mush.
  2. Useful hack. No leftover rice? Need some for an emergency to make fried rice? Cook rice, spread on a large tray and cool it and then pop it in the freezer so it’s dry. Note rice triples in volume when cooked. 1 cup of medium or long-grain rice will yield 3-4 cups of rice.
  3. Mise en place. The most important step in any stir-fried dish you get all the ingredients chopped, measured, and ready near the stove to be thrown into the pan and tossed.
  4. Large pan. Use a wok or a big wide skillet. The surface area should be big so you can toss rice around so it can stir-fry and not steam in the pan.
  5. High heat. Cook everything on high heat moving it quickly and frequently.
  6. Keep tossing. Do not let the ingredients sit for long while cooking. Do not let veggies sit in a wok to steam cook.
  7. Best quality sauce. Use the best quality oyster sauce, soy sauce, and if available Chinese cooking wine. Shrimp fried rice recipe taste depends on it. Choose low-sodium soy sauce, it’s less salty and better for health.

Created by Jyothi Rajesh

Thank you for stopping by.

I’m Jyothi Rajesh (Jo for short) and i’m the founder of the food blog, Curry Trail where I share my culinary Adventures. I live in Bangalore, India. I’m a mom of two beautiful kids. My passion is creating and sharing delicious and easy recipes for the home cook. I have been blogging since 2007 and many of my recipes have appeared in both online and print publications over the years. Learn more about Jyothi Rajesh.

Pin This Shrimp Fried Rice Recipe
Pin For Later!

More Asian Recipes

  • chicken thighs and drumsticks with potatoes and carrots in tomato-based stew.
    Chicken Afritada (Filipino Chicken Stew)
  • spicy chili garlic noodles in a bowl with scallions and toasted sesame seeds.
    Spicy Garlic Chili Oil Noodles
  • saucy cashew chicken cooked in a wok
    Cashew Chicken (Better-Than-Take-Out)
  • Asian spicy sweet chili sauce in 3 glass jars.
    Irresistible Spicy Sweet Chili Sauce
94 shares
  • 4
Previous
Spicy Garlic Edamame
Next
Classic Pea Salad With Bacon And Cheese

Reader Interactions

    Leave A Reply! Cancel reply

    Share your thoughts!
    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked with *

    Recipe Rating




    Comments & Reviews

  1. Kani says

    March 02, 2025 at 3:56 pm

    This was great! I made it last night. I made a double batch! I can’t wait to have it for lunch!

    Reply
    • Jyothi Rajesh says

      March 05, 2025 at 9:05 am

      So glad to hear you loved the recipe, thank you for sharing your feedback.

      Reply

Primary Sidebar

Jyothi - Author of Curry Trail.

Welcome, I'm Jyothi

My food philosophy is simple, fresh and full of flavors! I love ‘spicy’ food. In fact so much so that I can skip dessert for extra spicy savory food!

More About Me
Subscribe

Recipes In Your Inbox

Sign up to receive all our latest recipes straight to your inbox.

    🥗 Salad Recipes

    • healthy arugula beetroot and feta cheese salad on white plate
      Healthy Arugula Beet Salad With Feta Cheese
    • close up view of spinach and strawberry salad in a wooden bowl.
      10 Minutes Strawberry Spinach Salad with Poppy Seed Dressing
    • 3 bean salad in bowl
      3 Bean Salad
    • close view of Asian chicken salad
      Chinese Chicken Salad
    • pea salad with cheese, bacon and red onion in ceramic bowl
      Classic Pea Salad With Bacon And Cheese
    • classic egg salad in a bowl.
      Easy Classic Egg Salad Recipe

    🍲 Soup Recipes

    • chicken and gnocchi soup in a bowl.
      Chicken Gnocchi Soup with Bacon
    • spicy sriracha ramen noodles soup topped with soft-boiled eggs.
      20 Minutes Spicy Sriracha Ramen Noodles Soup
    • chicken detox soup in a pot.
      Healthy Immunity Boosting Chicken Detox Soup
    • leek and potato soup served in ceramic soup bowl with bacon
      Creamy Potato Leek Soup (with no added cream)
    • instant pot chicken noodles soup in white bowl
      Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup
    • easy egg drop soup in bowl
      Easy Chinese Egg Drop Soup
    Featured on:
    Yummly Logo.
    Tastewise Logo.
    Plattershare Logo.
    parade Logo.
    Greatist Logo.
    Foodgawker Logo.
    Buzzfeed Logo.
    Subscribe

    Recipes In Your Inbox

      Curry Trail Submark Logo.

      Connect With me

      Categories

      • Starters/Appetizers
      • Breakfast
      • Lunch/Dinner
      • Main Dishes
      • Side Dish
      • Desserts

      About

      • About Me
      • Contact Us
      • Privacy Policy
      • Accessibility
      • Latest
      ©2025, Curry Trail. All Rights Reserved. Accessibility About Privacy Policy
      Back To Top
      Design by Pixel Me Designs
      ×
      Subscribe

      Recipes In Your Inbox

      Sign up to receive all our latest recipes straight to your inbox.

        94 shares
        • Pinterest
        • 4Facebook
        • Flipboard
        • Email

        Rate This Recipe

        Your vote:




        A rating is required
        A name is required
        An email is required