Irresistible seared shrimp glazed in a mouthwatering garlicky, sweet and spicy sauce. The perfect 15 minute, one pan meal for a hassle-free weeknight dinner! Serve this shrimp recipe with pasta, rice, or veggies to round out the meal! And seriously, this sauce is finger lickin’ good, and great on chicken or pork too!
Looking for other weeknight dinner ideas? Check out my Creamy Garlic Chicken, One Pot Spaghetti, Homemade Sloppy Joes, and Italian Wedding Soup!
HONEY LIME SHRIMP RECIPE
Ah, weeknight dinners. The bane of every busy person’s existence. We need to eat, and want to eat something delicious and wholesome, but don’t want to spend an hour in the kitchen.
I hear you; I’m with you. Solidarity sisters and brothers!
Shrimp are naturally quick-cooking, which makes them an easy choice for a weeknight recipe. Just 15 to maybe 20 minutes in the kitchen, and dinner is ready!
HOW TO MAKE HONEY LIME SHRIMP RECIPE
- Season shrimp
- Sear shrimp in skillet
- Remove shrimp to plate
- Add sauce ingredients and cook a minute or so
- Add shrimp back to the skillet and stir to coat
COOKING TIPS FOR THIS SHRIMP RECIPE
- Dry the shrimp – patting the shrimp dry on both sides ensures not only that the seasoning will stick to the shrimp, but that you’ll get a great, golden brown sear when cooking.
- Don’t overcook – shrimp cook very quickly, and can taste rubbery if overcooked. For me, 2 minutes per side was perfect, but watch your shrimp to make sure they’re pink and have curled up into “C” shapes, that’s when they’re done.
- Adjust the seasonings – if you want things spicier, add a more sriracha to the sauce, or increase the amount of cayenne. If you prefer a milder version, omit the sriracha and/or the cayenne. Use this recipe as a guide, but make the recipe to your tastes.
VARIATIONS OF HONEY LIME SHRIMP
- Citrus – try swapping out the limes for lemons for a slightly different, but still delicious, flavor.
- Grilled – if you’d prefer, skewer the seasoned shrimp and grill, basting with the sauce.
- Marinated – combine all ingredients (except butter) and marinate shrimp for 30 minutes, up to 24 hours. Heat butter in skillet and cook shrimp.
Additionally, this sauce is amazing on chicken and pork as well!
WHAT TO SERVE WITH HONEY LIME SHRIMP
I like to serve this shrimp recipe with some vegetables, like broccoli, snap or snow peas. Over rice is also a great option.
Here are some of our favorite side dishes to have alongside.
MAKING THIS SHRIMP RECIPE AHEAD OF TIME
I don’t recommend making this entire dish ahead of time, as I feel it tastes best when made fresh.
However, you can combine all ingredients, except butter, and marinate the shrimp overnight.
When ready to cook, heat 1 Tbsp butter in a pan over MED HIGH heat and cook marinated shrimp.
STORING HONEY LIME SHRIMP
Leftovers should be refrigerated in an air tight container and should be consumed within 3-4 days.
SPECIAL EQUIPMENT FOR THIS RECIPE
- Cast Iron Skillet – you want a skillet than gives a great sear, and cast iron is king in that department! Not the one pictured in the photos, but a good solid piece that will last you for years!
- Stainless Steel Skillet – if you’d prefer not to have to lift the heavy cast iron skillet, this stainless version is a great option.
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Ingredients
- 3 Tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 Tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 - 1 1/2 lbs peeled and deveined shrimp (16 or 20 count per pound is optimal)
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp chili powder
- 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
SAUCE
- 1/3 cup honey
- 1 1/2 Tbsp soy sauce (reduced sodium)
- 3 - 5 cloves garlic minced or grated
- 1 tsp sriracha sauce
- 1 - 2 limes juiced
Instructions
- Heat skillet over MED HIGH heat. Add oil and butter. Season shrimp with salt, pepper, chili powder and cayenne.
- Add shrimp to the skillet in a single layer (you may need to cook the shrimp in batches, depending on the size of your skillet). Cook, 2 minutes per side, until pink and golden brown. Transfer cooked shrimp to a plate.
- Reduce heat to MED. Whisk together sauce ingredients in a small bowl, then add to the hot skillet.
- Stir and let cook a minute or so, until bubbling. Add shrimp back to pan and stir to coat.
- Serve with lime wedges and minced cilantro if desired.
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Chef Tips
Video
Nutrition Disclaimer
The Chunky Chef is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
Marcia says
Fabulous. Added more siracha and garlic. Do not keep any sugar in my house so I used about 1/4 cup of honey. Very nice. Will have with green salad.
Becky says
This recipe is excellent and is in our regular weeknight dinner rotation! We made some adjustments: increased to 2 T of Siracha and we added some lightly sautéed red and/or orange bell peppers and onions…….these adjustments made an already amazing recipe shoot off the deliciousness chart!
Karen says
Delicious! Served it with your cheesy roasted broccoli. Enjoyed both and will make again.
Lisa says
Yummy! I sadly only used a pound of shrimp and kept the sauce ingredients the same because I love sauce so I knew it wouldn’t be as thick. It was still delicious but I would probably use cornstarch next time.
Dina says
Sounds yummy. I am excited to try it
Sarah says
My whole family loves this recipe. I usually add a little more Sriracha and cayenne to spice it up a little more.
The sauce is great on chicken too.
V Clark says
Excellent, quick, easy and DELIOUS!
Helene Lichtman says
PERFECT PERFECT PERFECT!! NEED I SAY MORE?!? I made the salmon version a million times over as well!! SUCCESS!! Now I need to try the chicken breast version!! Thank you for sharing your delicious recipes!! HUGS!!
Norma Hinderliter says
The honey garlic glazed salmon was a success, thank you!
Mary Brechler says
I’m sorry .. I posted this on your blackened shrimp recipe . . I meant it for this spicy honey lime shrimp!!
I made this today, along with your Cilantro Lime rice. I did saute some mushrooms and chopped green onions after browning the shrimp. Both recipes were absolutely amazing. I used my 13 inch braiser to cook the shrimp and the honey/garlic sauce deglazed the pan beautifully. I ended up taking the rest of the rice and mixing it with the few leftover shrimp and remaining sauce. It even looked beautiful in the bowl going into the fridge. I’m sure it will be gone by morning. 🙂 Thank you for the absolutely awesome recipes!
LeeLee6970 says
This was very good. I will definitely do the cornstarch next time to thicken the sauce. My other question for you is: what about cooking the shrimp in the sauce instead of just adding sauce at the end?
The Chunky Chef says
It could work that way, you’d just really have to watch that the sauce doesn’t burn. I developed the recipe this way so the shrimp can get a good sear, without the sauce burning.
Patti says
I was craving sweet and spicy shrimp. Came across this recipe. Oh my gosh… fabulous. I added mushrooms, green onion and spinach.
Yummy!!
Jeff Shultz says
This is a shrimptastic recipe, currently eating it right now, 3rd time making it and the I have to say the girlfriend approves! 5 stars.
Helen says
This is so special. It’s my new favorite shrimp recipe. Thank you!