From: Woks of Life Cookbook

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1 pound peeled and deveined jumbo shrimp, with the tails intact

1½ tablespoons cornstarch

1 medium garlic clove, minced

⅓ cup hot water

1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine

1 teaspoon sugar

2 teaspoons light soy sauce

1 teaspoon ketchup

1 teaspoon oyster sauce

½ teaspoon toasted sesame oil

½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

¼ teaspoon dark soy sauce

⅛ teaspoon white pepper powder

1 cup neutral oil for frying

3 (⅛-inch-thick) slices fresh ginger

2 scallions, white parts cut into 2-inch pieces and halved lengthwise, and green parts chopped

1 tablespoon roughly chopped fresh cilantro

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1. Pat the shrimp dry with a paper towel. In a large bowl, toss the shrimp with the cornstarch until evenly coated.

2. In a medium bowl, combine the garlic, hot water, Shaoxing wine, sugar, light soy sauce, ketchup, oyster sauce, sesame oil, Worcestershire sauce, dark soy sauce, and white pepper.

3. Add the neutral oil to a wok over high heat and stir until the oil begins to smoke lightly.

4. Carefully lower half the shrimp into the hot oil all at once, shallow-frying them for about 5 seconds. Flip them and cook for another 5 seconds. Scoop them up with a spider or metal strainer and let the excess oil drain back into the wok. Set the shrimp on a plate and let the oil heat back up until it's just beginning to smoke once again. Repeat with the second batch of shrimp.

5. Repeat the flash-frying two more times to give the shrimp a crispy coating.

6. Turn off the heat and scoop the oil into a medium heatproof bowl, leaving about 1 tablespoon in the wok.

7. With the wok over medium heat, add the ginger and white parts of the scallions. Cook for 30 seconds, until fragrant and caramelized. Add the sauce mixture and turn up the heat, bringing the sauce to a simmer. Stir for 30 seconds to sear the sauce against the hot wok, creating wok hei and reducing the liquid slightly.

8. Add the shrimp, scallion greens, and cilantro to the wok and stir-fry for 15 to 20 seconds, until there is little to no standing sauce. Serve.