Spicy Orange Shrimp Stir-Fry

I finally saw The Vow this weekend – such a tear jerker. I cried like a baby the entire movie. I’m a hopeless romantic so I cry at all the happy parts in movies as well as the sad.

And Lance and I also went on a date on Saturday! We had dinner at Arrogant Butcher in Phoenix (their Brie was soo good) followed by a comedy show at Stand Up Live at CityScape to see Mitch Fatel. It was so nice to get out of the house and so something with just the two of us :)

On Sunday I had coffee with a friend and did some work on a new project. Then Lance and I headed over to dinner at my friend Sheena’s house. She made us a really delicious meal and we wrapped up the evening by playing a game of Settlers of Catan. Now this is the first time I have ever played this – but I really like board games so I was in (plus I am super competitive) aaand there was a recent episode of The Big Bang Theory where they talk about the game so I was intrigued. Here is the hilarious clip:

A little long, but around the 2:00 mark its pretty funny

The game was actually really fun (once you get past all the confusing directions – to make it easier for me to remember we called the pieces “little houses” and “big houses”). Its kind of like Monopoly but old school since its with trading instead of money. I lost, big time, but Lance did really well and almost won!

It was such a fun weekend and I am finally starting to feel better and up to my usual shenanigans :)

Shrimp is one of those things that I hardly ever make, but enjoy when I do. This dish is one of our favorites and I really like the sweet/spicy combination. I go a little easy on the chili garlic sauce, but feel free to increase it if you like your food really spicy! I love to mix in veggies and serve it along with some brown rice – it makes a really nice light & healthy meal with lots of flavor!

Spicy Orange Shrimp Stir-Fry

Ingredients:

½ tsp orange zest

½ cup fresh orange juice

3 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro

1 tablespoon, plus ½ teaspoon sugar

1 ½ tsp Asian chili-garlic sauce

1 ½ pounds extra-large shrimp, peeled and deveined

Salt and pepper

6 teaspoons canola oil

1 small bunch of broccoli (about 1 cup) cut into 1 inch florets

3 tablespoons water

½ cup carrots and snow peas

Cooked rice for serving

 

Directions:

Wisk the orange zest, orange juice, cilantro, 1 tablespoon of the sugar, and chili-garlic sauce together in a bowl.

 

Pat the shrimp dry with paper towels and season with salt, pepper and remaining ½ teaspoon of sugar. Heat 2 teaspoons of oil in a 12 inch nonstick skillet or wok over high heat, until just smoking. Add half of the shrimp and cook until curled and lightly browned, about 2 minutes.

 

Transfer shrimp to a bowl and cover with aluminum foil. Repeat with 2 more teaspoons of oil and remaining shrimp. Add the remaining cooked shrimp to the bowl, covering to keep warm.

 

Add the last two teaspoons of oil to the skillet and return to high heat, until shimmering. Add in broccoli and water, cover and steam for 2 minutes or until broccoli is tender. Uncover and add carrots and snow peas to the pan. Stir fry for about 2 minutes, or until all vegetables are crisp and tender.

 

Return shrimp to the skillet, add the orange juice mixture and toss to coat. Stir in skillet for about 1 minute or until well heated and evenly coated in sauce. Serve over rice.

 

Recipe adapted from America’s Test Kitchen Healthy Family Cookbook