Each bite of honey walnut shrimp is sweet, savory, crispy and creamy. It's a Chinese banquet dish that's simple enough for weeknights. Make it a full meal with broccoli and rice.
Honey Walnut Shrimp
Updated Jul. 15, 2024
Growing up, I had the pleasure of attending extravagant Chinese banquets. Some were in celebration of weddings, while others marked milestone birthdays or honored major holidays like Chinese New Year. The menu at each banquet had similarly elaborate dishes, and each dish had its own meaning. Hand-pulled noodles brought longevity, post-meal oranges signified fertility for new couples, and a fish with its head and tail intact represented completeness of life.
Though honey walnut shrimp may not have a specific meaning, it’s popular at banquets nonetheless because it’s so decadent. Most Chinese banquet dishes are daunting to make at home, but I was surprised when I learned how to make honey walnut shrimp how simple it was to recreate.
Honey Walnut Shrimp Ingredients
- Walnuts: For this recipe, look for walnut halves, rather than walnut pieces. The larger size looks great when paired with the shrimp. The similar size helps with even baking.
- Honey: Honey adds a different kind of sweetness to candied walnuts. Use a mild-flavored type of honey like clover honey.
- Brown sugar: This will caramelize and create a toffee coating around the nuts.
- Butter: Just a pat of butter stops the crystallization of the sugars when baking, giving them more of a caramel texture.
- Shrimp: I like large shrimp (25-30 count) for this recipe to match the size of the walnut halves. Be sure to clean the shrimp before cooking them.
- Cornstarch: A cornstarch coating makes the shrimp extra crispy by removing moisture.
- Broccoli florets: Broccoli fills out the dish with a pop of color and some crunch. Cut the florets all to the same size so that the broccoli cooks evenly.
- Rice vinegar: Acid helps balance the sweetness of the sweetened condensed milk and the creaminess of the mayonnaise.
- Mayonnaise: This makes the sauce smooth and velvety.
- Sweetened condensed milk: This gives honey walnut shrimp the creamy sweetness that it’s well-known for!
Directions
Step 1: Candy the honey walnuts
Preheat the oven to 350°F. In a medium bowl, mix the honey, light brown sugar, melted unsalted butter and salt.
Stir in the walnuts.
Transfer the walnuts to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and spread them out evenly. Bake them until they’re golden brown, 15 to 17 minutes, stirring once halfway through. Remove the walnuts and stir them again, then place the pan on a wire rack and let them cool for 10 minutes.
Separate the coated walnuts from the caramelized mixture (discard or save the caramel for another use) and allow the nuts to cool completely.
Editor’s Tip: To cleanly measure honey, spray the measuring spoon with nonstick spray. The honey will slide right off.
Step 2: Blanch the broccoli florets
In a small saucepan, bring 6 cups of water to a boil. Add the broccoli, oil and salt to the water and cook the broccoli, uncovered, just until it turns bright green, one to two minutes.
Drain the broccoli and immediately drop it into ice water. Once it has cooled, drain the broccoli and pat it dry.
Editor’s Tip: Don’t overcook the florets; they should still have some crunch.
Step 3: Cook the shrimp
Peel and devein the shrimp, leaving the tails on. Butterfly the back of each shrimp to maximize the area that will get coated with sauce. Dry the shrimp well with paper towels.
In a large bowl, combine the cornstarch and salt. Add the shrimp and toss to coat them. Shake off any excess.
In a deep skillet or cast-iron pan, heat 1/2 inch of oil to 375°. Deep-fry the shrimp in two batches until they’re crispy and lightly browned, two to three minutes on each side. Drain them on paper towels to transfer them to a wire rack.
Step 4: Make the sauce
Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine the mayonnaise, sweetened condensed milk, rice vinegar and salt.
Step 5: Plate the final dish
Add the cooked shrimp to the large bowl with the sauce and toss them well to coat. Lay the cooked broccoli florets on the bottom of a platter in a single layer. Place the coated shrimp on top of the broccoli bed and garnish the dish with honey walnuts. Serve with cooked rice.
Honey Walnut Shrimp Variations
- Sauce the walnuts: Mix the honey walnuts with the cooked shrimp in the sauce.
- Use different greens: Use Chinese broccoli (gai lan) instead of American broccoli. It has long, deep green stems and leaves, with a flavor similar to bok choi.
- Make air-fried honey walnut shrimp: Use an air fryer rather than deep-frying the shrimp. Spray the shrimp with cooking spray before placing them in the air-fryer basket. Cook the shrimp in batches according to your machine’s instructions.
How to Store Honey Walnut Shrimp
Leftovers can be stored together in an airtight container for up to four days. The texture of the shrimp will not be as crispy afterward though, so honey walnut shrimp is best eaten the day it’s made.
How to Reheat Honey Walnut Shrimp
Use a microwave to reheat the dish. Be aware that the sauce will be looser once reheated.
Can I make honey walnut shrimp ahead of time?
The honey walnuts can be made ahead of time and can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to five days. (The honey walnuts are so delicious as a snack, so you might want to make a double batch.) You can also buy candied walnuts as a shortcut.
Honey Walnut Shrimp Tips
Can I use larger shrimp?
Large shrimp (26-30 count) are the best size for this honey walnut shrimp recipe. You can use larger shrimp, but make sure all the sides of the shrimp are fried in the hot oil to ensure they’re cooked and crispy.
What other vegetables can I use?
Broccoli is the best vegetable to use as it stands up to the shrimp and walnuts. If you live near an Asian market, Chinese broccoli can be used instead of American broccoli.
What can I serve with honey walnut shrimp?
Rice is the best accompaniment! Of course, it’s delicious by itself, too.
Honey Walnut Shrimp
Prep Time
40 min
Cook Time
10 min
Yield
4 servings
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons butter, melted
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup walnut halves
- BROCCOLI:
- 3 cups fresh broccoli florets
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
- SHRIMP:
- 1 pound uncooked shrimp (26-30 per pound)
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Oil for frying
- SAUCE:
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
- 3 tablespoons sweetened condensed milk
- 1 teaspoon rice vinegar or lemon juice
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- Hot cooked rice
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350 °. In a small bowl combine honey, brown sugar, butter and salt. Stir in walnuts. Pour onto a parchment-lined 15x10x1-in. baking pan. Bake until lightly browned, 15-17 minutes, stirring once. Remove from the oven; stir and spread walnuts evenly in pan. Cool in pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Separate the coate walnuts from the plain caramelized sugar (discard or save caramelized sugar pieces for another use); cool completely.
- In a small saucepan, bring 6 cups water to a boil. Add broccoli, oil and salt; cook, uncovered, just until broccoli turns bright green, 1-2 minutes. Drain; Immediately drop into ice water. Drain and pat dry.
- Peel and devein shrimp, leaving the tails on. Butterfly each shrimp along the outside curve. Open shrimp flat. Pat dry with paper towels. In a large bowl, combine cornstarch and salt. Add shrimp; toss to coat, shaking off excess.
- In a deep skillet, heat 1/2 in. of oil to 375°. Fry shrimp in 2 batches until lightly browned, 2-3 minutes on each side. Drain on paper towels.
- Meanwhile, in a large bowl combine mayonnaise, sweetened condensed milk, vinegar and salt. Add shrimp; toss gently to coat.
- To serve, arrange broccoli on a serving platter; top with shrimp. Garnish with walnuts and serve with rice.
Nutrition Facts
1 serving: 655 calories, 47g fat (9g saturated fat), 163mg cholesterol, 1176mg sodium, 38g carbohydrate (25g sugars, 3g fiber), 25g protein.
