Ang Pompano: Sweet and sour shrimp is one of my absolute favorite, easy-to-prepare meals. For some reason, the origins of which are completely lost to time, my family always has this dish on Halloween. But even though it’s only May, it’s way too good for me to wait until October rolls around to make it again. For this batch, I loaded mine up with chunks of pineapple and red and green bell peppers. Then as the sauce simmered, the kitchen filled with the incredible aroma of fried peppers, onions, and ginger.
Cooking it at home means the shrimp stay tender, while the homemade sauce strikes a perfect balance between tangy and sugary without crossing into candy territory. Personally, I think this version easily beats anything you can get from the takeout places.
Come to think of it, the fact that the dish comes together so fast may be exactly how our Halloween tradition started. Back then, we would both rush home from work and needed something fast and filling before the fun began. It’s also the kind of quick, easy meal that’s perfect for a busy weeknight when you’re short on time. In fact, if you’re anything like me, you’ll probably spend the last five minutes of cooking ‘taste-testing’ a few shrimp straight from the pan while pretending you’re just adjusting the seasoning.
Over to you: What’s your ultimate sweet-and-sour addition? Are you team pineapple, all about the peppers and onions, or are you one of those daring people who tosses in extra chili heat? Let me know in the comments! And don't forget to leave your email address to win a copy of When It's Time for Leaving.
Ingredients:
Red pepper flakes
Oil for frying or sautéing
1/2 cup pineapple juice
1/4 cup ketchup
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 red bell pepper, cut into 1/2-inch slices
1 green bell pepper, cut into 1/2-inch slices
1 small onion, sliced
1 cup pineapple chunks
How to Make It:
First, make the sauce. Whisk together the pineapple juice, ketchup, rice vinegar, brown sugar, ginger, soy sauce, and cornstarch in a bowl. Set it aside, but give it another stir before using it later so the cornstarch doesn’t sink to the bottom.
Season the shrimp lightly with red pepper flakes and set them aside.
Heat a little oil in a large skillet over low heat and cook the onion slices for about four to five minutes until they soften. Remove them from the pan and set aside.
Turn the heat up to medium-high and cook the peppers until they start to brown around the edges. Remove them and set them aside with the onions.
Add the shrimp to the pan and cook for about two to three minutes, just until they turn pink. Don’t overcook them unless you enjoy chewing rubber bands.
Return the onions and peppers to the skillet along with the pineapple chunks. Pour in the sauce and stir everything together well. Let it simmer for five to ten minutes until the sauce thickens and coats everything in that shiny sweet-and-sour glaze that makes you immediately reach for a second helping whether you planned to or not.
Serve over rice.
Ang Pompano is a mystery author, editor, publisher, and blogger. He writes the Blue Palmetto Detective Agency, and the Reluctant Food Columnist series, both published by Level Best Books. In addition to his writing, Ang is a co-founder of Crime Spell Books and serves as co-editor of the Best New England Crime Stories anthology. He lives in Connecticut with his wife, Annette, an artist, and their two rescue dogs, Dexter and Alfie.
Just Released!
Diet of Death
by Ang Pompano
The first in the Reluctant Food Columnist series.
Betty Ann Green is a beloved culinary icon…who doesn’t exist. She is the brilliant, beautiful illusion created by two unlikely collaborators. Behind the façade is Quincy Lazzaro, a culinarily challenged writer whose witty, sharp prose is the public face of Betty, while those flawless, genius recipes are all thanks to his octogenarian neighbor, Mary Ticarelli.
When the arrogant diet guru, Dr. Alan Tolzer, inventor of the Westport Diet, demands a face-to-face interview, Quincy reluctantly steps in as Betty’s frontman, only for Tolzer to drop dead. The police call it natural causes, but Quincy knows better. He sees it as the investigative break he’s been waiting for.
Now, caught between a crime-solving grandma, a no-nonsense detective girlfriend, and a killer who may be one step ahead, Quincy must unravel the mystery before the killer strikes again.
When It’s Time for Leaving
by Ang Pompano
Al DeLucia walked away from the police—and his past. But when his long-lost father leaves him a detective agency in Savannah, Al finds himself trapped between family secrets and a murder on the agency’s dock. Partnered with Maxine Brophy, a fierce detective who doesn’t trust him, Al is pulled into a deadly search through Savannah and the Okefenokee Swamp—where the truth about the case, and his father, may cost him everything.
Blood Ties and Deadly Lies
by Ang Pompano
Al DeLucia returns to Sachem Creek expecting a kayak race and a chance to confront his childhood bully, Abe Cromwell. Instead, he finds a dead lawyer, a web of deceit, and Abe claiming they’re brothers by DNA. Reluctantly joined by Maxine Brophy, his formidable partner and girlfriend, Al dives into a murder investigation that exposes land swindles, hidden maps, and buried family secrets. In a town where the past won’t stay buried, Al must face truths that could upend everything.
Snakeberry: Best New England Crime Stories 2025
Edited by
Christine Bagley, Susan Oleksiw, Ang Pompano, and Leslie Wheeler
Every year the anthology brings welcome surprises and satisfactions, and this year is no different, featuring stories by 21 of New England’s best crime writers.
Includes “Minnie the Air Raid Warden” by Ang Pompano.
