Shrimp Stir Fry with Green Beans and Tofu
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There’s never enough time in a day. I’m sure you’re just as swamped. We all live in constant motion, running off to meetings, events, or whatever is on the calendar. But what is a constant is the fact that dinner must get done or we don’t eat. This was a lifesaver of a dish for me. I took stock of what was available in my kitchen and what I just bought at the market. The shrimps were jumping with freshness and the green beans were beautiful. I knew that putting them all together with the tofu I had on hand was going to make a fast and easy stir fry.
Fresh shrimps are one of the best ingredients for a fast dinner. There are numerous Filipino dishes that use shrimps as ingredients due to its availability. When you buy shrimps, try to cook them the same day. The fresher they are, the better tasting your dish will be. Shrimps are so versatile you can also combine them with just about any vegetables or ingredients in the pantry.
A stir fry dish is one of my favorite methods of cooking for weeknights. I just chop, drop and stir. In a few minutes, the dish is done. Once the ingredients all came together, the savory aroma of shrimps, the crisp green beans and soft-textured tofu cubes blended well with the thickened soy sauce base. It’s such a fabulous dish which cooks in no time. We poured large portions of this shrimp stir fry on steaming jasmine white rice and it was just sublime. Oh, did I mention this dish was scrumptious with corn on the cob? Have a go at it. The family will keep asking for more!
Shrimp Stir Fry with Green Beans and Tofu
Equipment
- large skillet or wok
Ingredients
- 1 pound fresh shrimps large sized, peeled, deveined, heads removed
- block (3 ounces) extra firm tofu liquid drained
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil divided, use half for pan frying tofu, rest for stir fry
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 whole medium-sized onion chopped
- 1/2 inch piece fresh ginger, peeled, minced
- 2 tablespoons Japanese soy sauce
- 1 Tablespoon Xiao Xing rice wine
- 1 cup vegetable or chicken broth
- 2 cups green beans trimmed, sliced in 2-inch pieces
- 2 Tablespoons cornstarch
- 1/4 cup water for adding to cornstarch
- 1/8 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1/2 cup chopped scallions for garnish
- for serving boiled white rice
- 2 whole boiled sweet corn for serving
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper powder
Instructions
- Peel and devein fresh shrimps. Remove and discard the heads. Rinse the shrimps, drain and set aside.
- In a large skillet, add the cooking oil. Over medium high heat, pre-fry the whole slab of tofu. Brown each side for 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from pan and drain on paper towels to remove excess oil. Place on a platter and cut up into 1-inch sized cubes. Set the tofu aside for later.
- Using the same skillet,discard excess oil and leave about 4 tablespoons in pan. Over medium high heat, add the garlic, onions, ginger and cook for 1 to 2 minutes till onions get soft.
- Add the shrimps to the skillet. These will cook in 2 to 3 minutes and the shrimps turn to pink. Stir around together with the other ingredients to flavor the skillet.
- Add the soy sauce, rice wine and broth to the skillet. Then add the green beans which will cook in about 2 to 3 minutes. Stir around the pan to blend with the rest.
- Separately, in a small bowl, mix the water and cornstarch till there are no more lumps. Add this liquid to the skillet. In about 1 to 2 minutes, the sauce will boil and thicken. Stir all around. Season with sesame oil, salt and pepper. Arrange shrimps and green beans on a large platter, pouring the sauce over it. Add the cubed tofu on top. Garnish with scallions if desired. Serve with boiled white rice and corn on the side.
I love this, a very healthy version of my pork and green beans.
Thanks, Raymund! This was one of the easiest dinners to put together. Glad you came by 🙂
I love all the combination of ingredients you put in this dish. The tofu, shrimp, and the crunch of green beans. Rice and sriracha with this delicious stir fry. Thank you, Elizabeth! 🙂
Thanks, Chef Ray! What a great idea to put sriracha in this dish – my boys will love that. Thanks for the kind comments which always encourage me to keep going 🙂
Thanks, Chef Ray! What a great idea to put sriracha in this dish – my boys will love that. Thanks for the kind comments which always encourage me to keep going 🙂
My son started to really like tofu, and every time we go to Chinese restaurant he orders tofu dish just like this! I mostly make Japanese style tofu dish but now I’m inspired to make stir fried with tofu!
Thanks, Nami. This was a delightful stir fry and the tofu really stood out. My family loves this everytime I make it. Hope you get to enjoy it, too!
Unfortunately this was rather more work than it was worth. The broth was good, but I didn’t like the green beans in there. I think I would try it again with broccoli or possibly snow peas.