Stir-Fried Shrimp and Long Beans with XO Sauce

Keep a bottle of funky, bacony XO sauce at the ready.

Serves
serves 2
Cook
25 minutes

PHOTOGRAPHY: LINDA PUGLIESE; FOOD STYLIST: MARIANA VELASQUEZ; PROP STYLIST: ELVIS MAYNARD

Updated on November 27, 2021

This funky and complex shrimp stir-fry owes its deep flavor to Cantonesestyle XO sauce . For this recipe, chef Dan Holzman and cookbook author Matt Rodbard learned to make a homemade version of the flavor-packed condiment— using traditional ingredients including dried scallops, shrimp, and chiles—from Californian chef Jack Lin, but jarred versions are available online and from many Asian grocery stores. Check out 27 other Chinese recipes better than takeout.

Featured in: "The Secrets of Making XO Sauce, the Magic Condiment of China."

Ingredients

2 tbsp. vegetable oil, divided
2 oz. long beans, trimmed and cut into 6-inch pieces (or substitute green beans, trimmed)
3 shiitake mushrooms, stems removed, quartered
1 baby bok choy, trimmed, leaves separated
Kosher salt
8 oz. head-on shrimp (about 12)
¹⁄₄ cup XO Sauce

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Instructions

Step 1

In a large wok, heat 2 teaspoons oil over high heat. Add the long beans and cook, tossing frequently, until blistered, about 3 minutes. Add the remaining 4 teaspoons oil along with the mushrooms and bok choy leaves, season with salt, and cook, stirring, until the bok choy has wilted, about 3 more minutes.

Step 2

Add the shrimp and cook, tossing frequently, until just cooked through, about 4 minutes. Stir in the XO sauce, remove the wok from the heat, transfer the contents of the wok to a platter, and serve immediately.