Honey Garlic Shrimp cooks until tender with clean, bright flavor—an easy win for lighter dinners and meal prep.
Weeknight Honey‑Garlic Shrimp Bowls
A glossy, ginger‑bright honey‑garlic glaze coats quick‑cooking shrimp for a protein‑forward weeknight dinner that pairs perfectly with brown rice and crisp veggies.
This is the kind of dinner that feels polished without fuss: shrimp seared until just opaque, then tossed in a sticky honey, garlic, and fresh ginger sauce brightened with lime and rice vinegar. The cornstarch in the sauce gives you that clingy, restaurant‑style glaze that hugs each piece of shrimp, while red bell pepper and broccoli add crunch and color so every bite has texture. It’s sweet, savory, and a little tangy — very satisfying but still on the lighter side of things.
Timing-wise it’s a one‑two punch: start the brown rice first (it needs the longest simmer), then mince garlic and ginger and whisk the sauce while the rice cooks. Shrimp only take 2–3 minutes per side in a hot skillet, so you’ll cook them, set them aside, quickly sauté the veggies until crisp‑tender, then return the shrimp and simmer the sauce to a glossy finish. A sprinkle of sliced green onions and a squeeze of lime at the end wakes everything up.
This recipe is meal‑prep friendly — cook a double batch of rice and shrimp, portion into containers with steamed broccoli for grab‑and‑go lunches, or swap the rice for cauliflower rice or noodles if you want to change the carb. If you like heat, add a pinch of red pepper flakes or a drizzle of chili oil. Serves four and scales easily when you need extra protein for the week.
Ingredients
How to Make Honey Garlic Shrimp
- Start the brown rice: rinse 1 cup dry brown rice, combine with 2 cups water and a pinch of salt in a medium saucepan, bring to a boil, reduce to low, cover and simmer 35–40 minutes until tender; remove from heat and keep covered.
- While rice cooks, make the sauce: mince the garlic and ginger, then whisk together honey, low-sodium soy sauce, rice vinegar, lime juice and cornstarch in a small bowl until smooth; set aside.
- Prep shrimp and vegetables: peel and devein the shrimp if needed; cut the bell pepper into 1/2-inch strips; trim broccoli into bite-sized florets; slice green onions (separate whites and greens).
- Heat a large nonstick skillet or sauté pan over medium-high heat and add 1 tablespoon olive oil; season shrimp lightly with 1/4 tsp salt and 1/8 tsp pepper and cook in a single layer 2–3 minutes per side until just opaque; transfer shrimp to a plate.
- In the same pan add the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil, add broccoli florets and bell pepper and sauté 4–5 minutes until crisp-tender; season with remaining salt and pepper and push vegetables to the side.
- Stir the prepared sauce again (cornstarch settles), pour into the empty center of the pan, bring to a gentle simmer for 1 minute until it thickens slightly, then return the cooked shrimp to the pan and toss to coat evenly in the honey-garlic glaze; simmer 1 more minute so flavors meld.
- Taste and adjust: add 1/4–1/2 tsp red pepper flakes for heat if desired and toss in half the sliced green onion whites; remove from heat and sprinkle sesame seeds and the remaining green onion greens over the top.
- Assemble meal-prep plates or containers: divide cooked brown rice into 4 portions, top each with equal amounts of honey-garlic shrimp and vegetables, let cool slightly then refrigerate for up to 4 days or freeze for longer storage.
Recipe Card
Honey Garlic Shrimp
Honey Garlic Shrimp cooks until tender with clean, bright flavor—an easy win for lighter dinners and meal prep.
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 35 min
- Servings
- 4
Ingredients
Instructions
- Start the brown rice: rinse 1 cup dry brown rice, combine with 2 cups water and a pinch of salt in a medium saucepan, bring to a boil, reduce to low, cover and simmer 35–40 minutes until tender; remove from heat and keep covered.
- While rice cooks, make the sauce: mince the garlic and ginger, then whisk together honey, low-sodium soy sauce, rice vinegar, lime juice and cornstarch in a small bowl until smooth; set aside.
- Prep shrimp and vegetables: peel and devein the shrimp if needed; cut the bell pepper into 1/2-inch strips; trim broccoli into bite-sized florets; slice green onions (separate whites and greens).
- Heat a large nonstick skillet or sauté pan over medium-high heat and add 1 tablespoon olive oil; season shrimp lightly with 1/4 tsp salt and 1/8 tsp pepper and cook in a single layer 2–3 minutes per side until just opaque; transfer shrimp to a plate.
- In the same pan add the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil, add broccoli florets and bell pepper and sauté 4–5 minutes until crisp-tender; season with remaining salt and pepper and push vegetables to the side.
- Stir the prepared sauce again (cornstarch settles), pour into the empty center of the pan, bring to a gentle simmer for 1 minute until it thickens slightly, then return the cooked shrimp to the pan and toss to coat evenly in the honey-garlic glaze; simmer 1 more minute so flavors meld.
- Taste and adjust: add 1/4–1/2 tsp red pepper flakes for heat if desired and toss in half the sliced green onion whites; remove from heat and sprinkle sesame seeds and the remaining green onion greens over the top.
- Assemble meal-prep plates or containers: divide cooked brown rice into 4 portions, top each with equal amounts of honey-garlic shrimp and vegetables, let cool slightly then refrigerate for up to 4 days or freeze for longer storage.
Nutrition
- Carbohydrates
- 54
- Saturated Fat
- 1.5
- Sodium
- 525
- Fiber
- 5
- Unsaturated Fat
- 8.8
- Protein
- 41
- Fat
- 11
- Cholesterol
- 276
- Trans Fat
- 0
- Calories
- 470
- Sugar
- 10