Honey-Garlic Shrimp
Updated Sep 23, 2025
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A handful of ingredients turns a pound of shrimp into a terrific, quick, and easy weeknight dinner in under 30 minutes.
Honey-Garlic Shrimp is the type of weeknight recipe you’ll want to keep on repeat. With only a handful of ingredients and less than 30 minutes from start to finish, this dish balances irresistible sweet-savory flavors with quick, flexible prep.
I suggest using jumbo shrimp for a splurge (smaller shrimp works too, granted you watch the timing). The shrimp are briefly marinated in a punchy blend of honey, soy sauce, lemon juice, garlic, and a sprinkle of red pepper flakes, then seared in butter for maximum flavor. Serve it over rice and shower generously with scallions, and dinner is ready!
This family favorite is equally ideal for last-minute company or a cozy meal at home — and it’s flexible: you can make it ahead, swap in oil for butter, or keep it classic and simple. It’s all about good food, no fuss, and big flavor. Serve this with rice for sure, and maybe some sautéed broccoli, sautéed broccoli rabe, or sautéed spinach.
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What's In This Post?
Ok, just because I couldn’t stop trying to remember the whole Bubba Gump shrimp quote, here it is:
“Anyway, like I was sayin’, shrimp is the fruit of the sea. You can barbecue it, boil it, broil it, bake it, saute it. Dey’s uh, shrimp-kabobs, shrimp creole, shrimp gumbo. Pan-fried, deep-fried, stir-fried. There’s pineapple shrimp, lemon shrimp, coconut shrimp, pepper shrimp, shrimp soup, shrimp stew, shrimp salad, shrimp and potatoes, shrimp burger, and shrimp sandwich. That- that’s about it.”
Oh, Bubba, don’t forget about Honey Garlic Shrimp.
Ingredients
- Jumbo shrimp – You can use frozen, fresh, tail-on, or tail-off. Check out the notes below for more information.
- Honey – For a touch of sweetness.
- Soy sauce – For umami and just a hint of saltiness. Try to use less-sodium soy sauce because the other option can be too salty.
- Lemon juice – Freshly squeezed lemon juice, of course, for a pop of acidity and brightness.
- Garlic – The aromatic that makes this dish so irresistible.
- Red pepper flakes – For a bit of spice.
- Unsalted butter – The flavorful cooking fat.
- Rice – To serve; read tips to time out your cooking accordingly.
- Scallions – For serving.
What to Know About Honey Garlic Shrimp
Absolutely! Frozen Shrimp defrost quickly and are high quality — just make sure you’re working with raw shrimp, not pre-cooked, for the best flavor and texture.
Totally up to you. Leaving tails on makes for a dramatic presentation and a handy little “handle,” but removing them makes it easier to eat with a fork. There’s no wrong answer here, only what works for you.
If you’re in a rush, 15 minutes at room temp is perfect. You can also marinate the shrimp in the fridge for up to 4 hours if you want to prep ahead.
You sure can! Use olive oil instead of butter, or even a little of both, if you want. It’s all about what you like and what you’ve got on hand.
How To Cook Honey-Garlic Shrimp
- Make the marinade: Combine the honey, soy sauce, lemon juice, garlic, and red pepper flakes in a medium bowl.
- Marinate the shrimp: Reserve half of the marinade in a measuring cup, add the shrimp to the remaining marinade, and let sit for 15 minutes.
- Sauté the shrimp: In a large nonstick skillet, melt the butter over medium-high heat, strain the marinade from the shrimp, add the shrimp to the pan, and sauté for 2 minutes until the shrimp start to turn pink. Pour the reserved half of the marinade into the pan and continue cooking.
- Serve: Serve the shrimp and sauce over the hot rice, with the scallions sprinkled on top.
Timing the Rice and the Shrimp
- If you are marinating the shrimp for longer than 15 minutes, put them in the fridge. They can marinate for up to 4 hours if you want to get that part done ahead of time.
- White rice only takes 20 minutes to make, so you can start that before or after you get the shrimp in the marinade, and it won’t affect your timing too much. Just make sure not to start cooking the shrimp until the rice is 5 minutes away from being done.
- If you are making brown rice, and time is of the essence, start the rice before getting the shrimp into the marinade, since the rice will take about 40 minutes.
Storage
This will stay well in an airtight container in the fridge for about 3 days.
What to Serve With Honey Garlic Shrimp
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Honey-Garlic Shrimp
Ingredients
- 1 pound jumbo shrimp (peeled and deveined; leave tails on or off, your choice)
- ⅓ cup honey
- ¼ cup lower-sodium soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon finely minced garlic
- Generous pinch red pepper flakes
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- Hot cooked white rice (or brown rice; to serve)
- Thinly sliced scallions (to serve)
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, combine the honey, soy sauce, lemon juice, garlic, and red pepper flakes. Pour half the marinade into a measuring cup. Add the shrimp to the remaining marinade and let sit for 15 minutes.
- Spray a large skillet with nonstick cooking spray, or grab a large nonstick skillet. Melt the butter over medium-high heat, and while the butter is melting, strain off the marinade from the shrimp. Add the shrimp to the pan once the butter is hot and melted, and sauté for 2 minutes until the shrimp starts to turn pink. Pour the reserved half of the marinade into the pan and continue cooking until the shrimp are cooked through and the marinade has reduced slightly.
- Serve the shrimp and sauce over the hot rice, with the scallions sprinkled on top.
Another winning stir-fry recipe that will be in our family’s regular rotation. We really do love garlic, and always add more than a recipe suggests…a few extra cloves still provides a balanced taste, so go for it!
Excellent !
Great Flavor…The sauce was so tasty..Easy too. Would not change a thing
This is a fast and flavorful recipe. Served over rice with a salad makes a complete dinner.