Shrimp Stir Fry

Shrimp Stir Fry

I love shrimp. I love food. I love flavorful, pretty food. This stir fry was too pretty to not take a picture. This fed 3 kids, 3 adults, plus a leftover serving for lunch.

Note: If there's a certain brand I like I noted it. I also like to use the same pans for different steps to reduce dishes, so this was all done in steps in a wok. I just ate the stir fry, but the rest of the fam put this on top of some brown basmati rice that I found at Aldi! Cauliflower rice is another option, which I've found in the fresh and frozen aisles of Trader Joes.

Here's my take on a shrimp stir fry: 

Ingredients

• 1.5 lb thawed, raw shrimp (I get the "Gulf Shrimp" USA caught and packaged from Walmart)
• Oils of choice (EVOO, butter, coconut - I used a combination)
• 1 large head of broccoli (cut into florets)
• 1 can pineapple chunks (save the juice)
• 1 red bell pepper (chopped)
• 1 package baby bella mushrooms (sliced)
• Salt, pepper to your taste
  
  Sauce
• Reserved pineapple juice
• 1/8 cu coconut aminos (or gf soy sauce, note coconut aminos are sweet, not as salty)
• 2 Tbs arrowroot powder (or corn starch)
• 1 tsp minced ginger or paste (I like getting the tubes in the produce section)
• 2 tsp garlic powder
• Salt and pepper to your taste

Instructions

1. If you're cooking rice, start that first. Brown basmati takes about 40-50 minutes.
2. Preheat wok or large saute pan to medium with approx 2 Tbs EVOO and 2 Tbs butter. This might seem like a lot, but we're cooking the broccoli first, which will absorb much of it. Add the broccoli florets, stir and coat well with the oil. I like using a wooden spatula or spoon. Cover the wok and let cook about 5 min. They'll be bright green and pretty  :)
3. Add your peppers and mushrooms. Stir well. Cover again for 3-5 min.
4. Add your pineapple chunks, combine well. You might need to add a little more oil at this point if the pan seems to be drying out. I used 1 Tbs coconut oil. 
5. As the veggies continue to cook, make your sauce.
6. In a separate bowl combine pineapple juice, coconut aminos, ginger, approx 1 tsp salt, pepper, 2 tsp garlic powder or to taste), and arrowroot powder. Whisk well, add sauce to veggies, combine. 
7. Make a large well in the center of the veggies, add the shrimp. Cover for a couple minutes at a time, checking the shrimp. When they begin to turn pink, stir with the veggies. When they all turn pink they're done. 
8. At this point either serve, or turn off heat and cover until you're ready to eat. Letting the sauce sit and thicken made it better, though.
9. Top with fresh cilantro and lime. Mmm. Enjoy!

*Note - I've found that the steam from covering keeps more of the moisture in for cooking vs open stir-frying. Also, arrowroot will make the sauce slimier than with cornstarch, but once you add the shrimp it'll even out. You can also add some more coconut aminos if needed.