Chinese-Style Deep-Fried Salty Shrimp

Ingredients

• 3 cups peanut, canola, or vegetable oil
• 3 large cloves minced garlic
• 2 scallions, thinly sliced
• 1 teaspoon dried red chili pepper flakes, optional
• 12 to 16 whole jumbo shell-on, head-on shrimp, about 1 pound
• 1/2 egg, beaten
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon five spice powder, Old Bay, smoked paprika, Sichuan peppercorns, or a combination

Directions

1. Warm 2 tablespoons of the oil in a wok over medium heat until it starts to shimmer. Add the garlic and scallions, and cook until browned, giving them a stir now and then, 3 to 5 minutes. If you are using the chili pepper flakes, add them and stir just until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Scrape the garlicky oil into a large metal bowl, then wipe out the wok with a paper towel.
2. Pour the remaining oil into the wok and bring it to 375 degrees F over medium heat. While the oil heats, whisk the egg and cornstarch together in a medium bowl. Add the shrimp and toss until coated.
3. Once the oil is ready, cook half of the shrimp, lowering them in one by one. Fry for 2 to 3 minutes total, moving and turning the shrimp often, until crunchy and just cooked through. Transfer them to a paper towel-lined plate, then cook the remaining batch the same way.
4. Add the drained fried shrimp to the bowl with the browned aromatics. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and any optional additional seasonings. Serve immediately.