- No products in the cart.
Vietnamese Garlic Fried Shrimp
Rated 5.0 stars by 1 users
Cuisine
Vietnamese
Servings
2
Vietnamese Garlic Fried Shrimp (Tôm Cháy Tỏi) is a simple yet incredibly flavorful dish that lets sweet, juicy shrimp shine. The shrimp are lightly coated in tapioca starch and fried until crisp, then tossed with Red Boat Fish Sauce, black pepper, and an abundance of golden, crunchy garlic. Every bite is packed with savory umami, fragrant garlic, and a satisfying contrast of textures. Finished with a sprinkle of crispy garlic and fresh green onion, it's a restaurant-worthy seafood dish that's surprisingly easy to make at home.
Recipe Source: MMBonAppetit
Ingredients
-
1¼ lbs head-on shell-on shrimp or prawn
-
1 head of garlic
-
2 tbsp Red Boat Fish Sauce
-
1 tsp bouillon
-
½ tbsp white granulated sugar
-
1 tsp ground black pepper
-
¼ cup vegetable oil
-
2 tbsp tapioca starch
-
1 stalk green onion (optional- for garnish)
Directions
Rinse the shrimp well, then strain.
Optional, but recommended: Use scissors to trim off the antennae and walking legs (the legs under the head that are tougher than the swimming legs under the abdomen).
Use scissors or a sharp knife to cut along the back of the shrimp, from head to tail, and remove the intestine.
Add the shrimp to a bowl along with the sugar, ground black pepper, and half the amount of fish sauce. Toss well to coat and set aside.
Cut to remove root end, peel, and mince garlic. Try to keep the bits of garlic as uniform in size as you can, so they will fry at the same rate.
Chop the green part of the green onion for garnish, if using.
Add the garlic and vegetable oil to a cold frying pan on the stove, using a spatula to create an even layer of garlic.
NOTE: we will use the same pan to cook the shrimp later, choose a pan that will fit at least half of the shrimp in a single layer.
Turn the heat on medium. Once the oil starts to bubble, stir the garlic frequently to ensure it fries evenly.
Place a sieve over a small bowl and set aside in reach. The garlic will finish cooking quickly towards the end.
When the garlic begins to turn golden (about 8-10 minutes), reduce heat to medium low and continue cooking until everything is golden and crispy. This will happen quickly, take care to not burn the garlic- which will make it bitter.
Pour the garlic and oil through the sieve into the bowl. Lift the sieve and shake gently to remove excess oil and set both aside.
Transfer the shrimp into a large clean bowl and sprinkle in half the tapioca starch. Mix or toss to coat, then add in the remaining tapioca starch and mix/toss.
Pour the garlic oil back into the pan and heat on medium.
Add shrimp to the pan in a single layer, you can do this in multiple batches.
Fry the shrimp until the bottom side turns red and the meat on the bottom half is no longer translucent (about 2 minutes), then flip and cook until the other side turns red (another 2 minutes).
If you're cooking the shrimp in multiple batches, remove the first batch to a plate and repeat with the second batch.
Once the last batch of shrimp is done cooking, add all the shrimp back into the pan along with bouillon and the remaining fish sauce. Stir to fully coat all the shrimp in the sauce.
Add in most of the crispy garlic- reserving a spoonful for garnish, and stir to combine.
Remove everything to a plate and garnish with the remaining crispy garlic and green onion.
