Shrimp ranks among the easiest, leanest proteins to cook for a speedy weeknight meal. Set the skillet over high heat, add a modicum of oil, and then stir-fry to tenderness in less than 4 minutes. That’s it.

When those shrimps are peeled and deveined before cooking, we serve them warm simply with a dish of horseradish-spiked cocktail sauce and a side salad and call it dinner. Or we pile them into a soft bun, drizzle with chipotle mayo and a tuft of finely shredded lettuce, for a weekend lunch.

If you choose to cook the shrimp in their shell (the most flavorful option), slather with spicy barbecue or teriyaki sauce. Pass the napkins.

Cold shrimp turns a simple salad into a main meal. The tender pink seafood always makes a splash at an appetizer party.

A skillet full of shrimp with stir-fried vegetables and a quick sauce of bottled curry paste and tinned coconut milk, offers a complete meal in less than 30 minutes. No fancy kitchen skills required; just a bit of organization.

Gather all ingredients near the stove. Start by heating oil in a skillet. Add the shrimp and stir-fry until just cooked, then remove and set aside. Next, add vegetables to the skillet and stir-fry until tender. Return the shrimp to the skillet. Stir in some bottled curry paste and tinned coconut milk until heated through.

Always buy the best shrimp you can afford. Avoid imported shrimp unless it’s considered acceptable by sources such as The Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch program. They have an app that helps a cook make good, sustainable seafood choices at the store.

The cook has lots of options here too. Bok choy and pea pods cook quickly and add a crunchy texture. Small broccoli florets, asparagus segments, and shelled peas can take their place. So, too, could a trio of colorful bell peppers cut into thin strips.

Look for small bottles of Thai-style green curry paste in the Asian section of large supermarkets. Taste a little bit before adding to the dish to gauge your spice tolerance. A mild paste allows you to use more for a deeper flavor. Guests can always spice up their individual dish with hot sauce.

For coconut milk, look for tinned milk. Organic varieties will be free of additives and stabilizers — resulting in a better-tasting, better-for-you dish.

The toothsome texture of bucatini pasta pairs well with the shrimp and vegetables. For a gluten-free dish, swap the wheat pasta for thin rice noodles. Simply soak rice noodles in hot water until softened. You can also serve the skillet full of shrimp, veggies and coconut green curry over white or brown rice.

Bucatini Pasta with Stir-fried Shrimp and Coconut Green Curry

Makes 4 to 5 servings

1 1/2 to 2 pounds peeled, deveined large shrimp, 31-40 count per pound

3 tablespoons vegetable oil for high-heat cooking, such as avocado oil, sunflower oil, expeller pressed canola oil

1 pound dried bucatini pasta or linguine

1 bunch green onions, trimmed thinly sliced included most of the green

1 small head bok choy or 3 baby bok choy (total 12 ounces), ends trimmed, well rinsed, chopped into 1 1/2 inch pieces, about 4 cups

2 cups (4 ounces) fresh snow peas, ends trimmed

3 large cloves garlic, thinly sliced

1/2 can (13 to 14 ounces) unsweetened organic coconut milk

2 to 3 tablespoons Thai style green curry paste to taste

4 teaspoons soy sauce or tamari

1 can (15 ounces) baby corn, drained, halved crosswise, optional

Chopped fresh cilantro

Fresh mint sprigs, for garnish

Sriracha hot sauce, if desired

1. Remove tails from shrimp if necessary. Pat shrimp dry with paper toweling. Have all ingredients prepared and near stove.

2. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until a drop of water sizzles on contact. Add 2 tablespoons of the oil, then shrimp in a single uncrowded layer. (Work in batches if necessary.) Cook, stirring often, until just pink but still not all the way cooked, about 3 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon to a plate. Reserve the skillet without cleaning it.

3. Bring a large pot of generously salted water to boil over high heat. Add pasta and cook, stirring occasionally, until al dente (tender but with a bit of bite in center), about 10 minutes. Reserve 1 cup of the cooking water, then drain the pasta and return it to the pan. Cover to keep warm.

4. While the pasta cooks, reheat the skillet from the shrimp. Add another tablespoon oil and add green onions; cook and stir 1 minute. Add bok choy. Cook and stir until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Stir in snow peas and garlic; cook 1 or 2 minutes.

5. Stir in coconut milk, curry paste and soy sauce. Boil to reduce to a thickish sauce, about 2 minutes. Stir in reserved shrimp, and baby corn if using.

6. Pour the contents of the skillet into the pasta and toss to coat pasta. Add a few spoonfuls of reserved pasta cooking water if needed to loosen things up a bit. Sprinkle with cilantro and mint. Serve with hot sauce, if desired.

(JeanMarie Brownson is a James Beard Award-winning author and the recipient of the IACP Cookbook Award for her latest cookbook, “Dinner at Home.” JeanMarie, a chef and authority on home cooking, Mexican cooking and specialty food, is one of the founding partners of Frontera Foods. She co-authored three cookbooks with chef Rick Bayless, including “Mexico: One Plate at a Time.” JeanMarie has enjoyed developing recipes and writing about food, travel and dining for more than four decades.)

©2026 JeanMarie Brownson. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.