Shrimp with Garlic and Sweet Peppers
Pad Prik Yuak sai Goong
Shrimp and mild sweet wax peppers stir-fried in garlic and light savory sauce
- Prep
- 10 min
- Cook
- 5 min
- Serves
- 4
- Heat
- mild
This dish flips the usual protein-and-vegetable ratio: it's built around a generous quantity of mild, sweet wax pepper, with shrimp playing a supporting role rather than being the main event. Garlic fried low and slow keeps its flavor sweet rather than sharp, and the shrimp cook gently in that oil before a simple combination of oyster sauce, fish sauce, and a little sugar seasons everything. The peppers go in last and only need a brief toss, since they keep cooking a little from residual heat even after the pan comes off the stove.
Ingredients
- 8 Large shrimp (prawn) (peeled and deveined)
- 9 Wax peppers (sliced diagonally)
- 1-2 Thai long chili (sliced diagonally)
- 3 Green onions (cut into pieces)
- 3-4 Garlic, large cloves (chopped)
- 1 1/3 teaspoons Sugar
- 1 1/3 tablespoons Oyster sauce
- 2 teaspoons Light soy sauce
- 1 1/3 teaspoons Fish sauce
- 1/3 teaspoon White pepper, finely ground
- 2 tablespoons Vegetable oil
Directions
- Slice the peppers diagonally, cut the green onion into pieces, and chop the garlic.
- Heat the oil in a wok over low-medium heat and add the garlic. Cook slowly for about 30 seconds so it doesn't burn.
- Add the shrimp and toss gently in the garlic over low heat, letting them cook for about a minute until mostly pink and white.
- Add the oyster sauce, fish sauce, light soy sauce, white pepper, and sugar. Stir carefully until well blended.
- Add the peppers and green onion. Toss until coated in the sauce, adding a splash of water if the pan looks dry to build a light gravy. Cook for about a minute — the peppers don't need to cook through completely, as they'll continue softening on the plate.
- Serve on a shared platter or over jasmine rice as a one-dish meal.
Notes
Don't fully cook the peppers in the pan — residual heat keeps softening them after plating, so pulling them off while still a little firm keeps them from turning mushy by the time they're eaten.
Substitutions
Pork or chicken can replace the shrimp using the same ratio of sauces. Any mild, locally available sweet pepper can substitute for wax peppers.