Honey Garlic Shrimp
Large shrimp seared in a hot pan and tossed in a four-ingredient honey garlic butter sauce that coats every piece and goes glossy in under two minutes. Serve over rice. Fifteen minutes, one pan, better than takeout.
Ingredients
Meat & Protein
- 1.5 lb large shrimp peeled, deveined, tails removed — fresh or thawed from frozen
Produce
- 5 garlic cloves minced
- 3 green onion thinly sliced, for garnish
Dairy
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
Pantry & Canned Goods
- 3 tbsp honey
- 3 tbsp soy sauce low sodium
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 2 cup white rice cooked, for serving
Seasonings & Spices
- 0.5 tsp black pepper
- 0.25 tsp kosher salt
- 0.25 tsp crushed red pepper flakes optional
Instructions
- In a small bowl, whisk together the honey, soy sauce, and sesame oil. Set aside — this is your sauce and it goes in all at once at the end, so having it ready before you touch the shrimp matters. Shrimp cook fast and the window between perfect and overcooked is narrow.
- Pat the shrimp completely dry with paper towels. Season with salt, black pepper, and crushed red pepper flakes if using. Dry shrimp sears. Wet shrimp steams. The paper towel step takes ten seconds and determines the entire outcome of this recipe.
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the shrimp in a single layer — work in two batches if needed to avoid crowding. Sear without touching for 60 to 90 seconds until the bottom edges are pink and the contact side has a slight golden color. Flip each shrimp and cook another 60 seconds. They should form a loose C shape. Remove from the pan and set aside — they are not fully done yet and will finish in the sauce.
- Reduce heat to medium. Add the butter to the same pan. Once melted, add the minced garlic and cook for 60 seconds, stirring constantly, until fragrant and just starting to turn golden at the edges. Do not let it burn — burnt garlic is bitter and will tank the sauce.
- Pour in the honey-soy mixture and stir to combine. Let it bubble and reduce for 60 to 90 seconds until the sauce thickens slightly and coats the back of a spoon. It should look glossy, not watery. Return the shrimp to the pan and toss to coat, cooking another 30 seconds just until the shrimp are fully heated through and coated in the glaze.
- Serve immediately over cooked white rice. Scatter sliced green onion over the top. The sauce will continue to thicken as it sits — serve right away for the best coating consistency.
Notes
The butter goes in after the shrimp is removed, not at the start. Butter burns at high heat, which is exactly the heat you need for a proper shrimp sear. Olive oil first for the sear, then butter for the garlic and the sauce. The butter is what makes the sauce glossy and rich — it emulsifies with the honey and soy and coats every shrimp evenly instead of sliding off.
Five garlic cloves is not too much. The honey tempers the raw garlic intensity and the soy sauce adds enough umami to balance it. This is a garlic-forward sauce and it should taste that way.
The C vs O shape rule applies here exactly as it does in the shrimp taco recipe: loose C means done, tight O means overcooked. Pull the shrimp from the pan at the C stage — they finish in the sauce.
Frozen shrimp is a completely legitimate choice here. Buy frozen, thaw under cold running water for 10 minutes, pat dry, cook. The result is identical to fresh and the frozen shrimp is often fresher than what's labeled "fresh" at the seafood counter.
Leftovers keep refrigerated for 2 days. Reheat gently in a pan over low heat with a splash of water to loosen the sauce. Microwave makes the shrimp rubbery — avoid it.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!