Garlic Butter Shrimp Scampi is a quick, 10-minute meal that feels incredibly fancy. Simply sauté jumbo shrimp in a garlic butter sauce, add lemon slices for a pop of freshness, and serve over angel hair pasta with parmesan and red pepper flakes. Impress your dinner guests with this tasty dish!
Shrimp is one of my favorite proteins to cook with. It's lean, easy to make with lots of variety, and comes together in no time. This meal is done in about 15 minutes, so spend less time in the kitchen and more time doing what you want to do! For another easy dish featuring shrimp, try my Grilled Bang Bang Shrimp recipe!
The Coined Breakdown
- Total Cost per serving: $4.76
- Total Cost (about 2 servings): $9.52
- Those Other Guys: $16.99 per serving
Ingredients
- Jumbo Shrimp - Grab the jumbo pack of shrimp or prawns from the grocery store. I know it's a pain to get your hands a little dirty, but definitely keep the shell on the tails! They'll have much more flavor and look like a restaurant-quality meal this way.
- Butter and Olive Oil - Butter (and a bit of olive oil) makes up the base of this scampi sauce. Use unsalted so you can control the overall sodium levels in the dish.
- Garlic - Don't be shy with the garlic - it pairs so well with the rest of the ingredients in this meal!
- Lemons - Sliced lemons add a bit of fresh zest and flavor to the meal, plus it makes the entire dish look so fancy!
- White Wine - You can either use a cooking wine or regular (cheap) white wine that you would pour up in a nice glass! Make sure it's a dry wine and not sweet.
- Seasonings - We use staple seasonings like salt, black pepper, and smoked paprika to really let the ingredients shine. At the end, top with a bit of grated parmesan and crushed red pepper for spice.
- Pasta & Garlic Bread - Shrimp scampi goes so amazing over pasta - try angel hair, linguine, or thin spaghetti. I also serve this with buttery garlic bread for a crispy texture!
How to Make Garlic Butter Shrimp Scampi at Home
Step 1: Peel your shrimp (I recommend leaving the tails on) and season with salt, pepper, and smoked paprika.
Let marinate while you continue with the other steps - if you are serving over pasta, begin cooking the noodles now.
Step 2: Melt your butter and olive oil in a large skillet with deep sides.
Sauté the minced shallots and garlic until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes.
Pour in the white wine and lemon juice, then stir and let the sauce come to a boil.
Step 3: Place your seasoned shrimp in the pan and cook for about 5 minutes, flipping once.
In the last few minutes of cooking, sprinkle chopped parsley and place lemon slices on top.
Step 4: Optional, but a bit of grated parmesan and crushed red pepper is delicious on top as well.
Serve over pasta or with toasted bread!
Recipe Pro Tips
- Mise en place. This is a French term that translates to "everything in place". Essentially, you want to make sure all your ingredients are organized and prepared before cooking. You don't want to accidentally burn your garlic or overcook the shrimp by trying to prep other ingredients at the same time!
- Mince your shallots and garlic well. To have a nice, cohesive sauce, you don't want huge chunks of garlic or shallot. Try and mince both into small pieces as evenly as possible.
- Store smartly. I also state this in the recipe notes below; but because the sauce is so light, if you store in the refrigerator with the shrimp and pasta it will absorb into the noodles overnight. I recommend storing separately for best results.
Recipe FAQs
You can use a cast-iron skillet or a non-stick pan with deep sides to hold the shrimp and scampi sauce. Be sure to use a rubber or wooden utensil to avoid scratching.
The base recipe is not spicy at all. I add crushed red peppers for a bit of a kick- but you can leave them out if you prefer.
No, I did not develop this as a copycat recipe.
I personally think this is better than the scampi you can find at Red Lobster, Olive Garden, etc. And the best part is, you can make this exactly to your liking.
I recommend storing the sauce separately from the shrimp and pasta so it doesn't absorb overnight! This meal will keep in the refrigerator for about a week.
Other Quick Dinner Meals You'll Love!
If you tried this Garlic Butter Shrimp Scampi Recipe, or any other recipe on my website, please leave a star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. I love hearing from you! Thanks for visiting!
Garlic Butter Shrimp Scampi
Equipment
- Chef's Knife
- Large Skillet with Deep Sides
Ingredients
Seasoned Shrimp
- 1 pound jumbo shrimp peeled and deveined (leave the tails on)
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
Garlic Butter Scampi
- 6 ounces angel hair pasta
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon minced shallots
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- ⅓ cup white wine dry (pinot or riesling)
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice plus a whole lemon, below
- 2 tablespoons freshly chopped parsley
- 1 count lemon sliced
- grated parmesan optional
- red pepper flakes optional
- sourdough bread optional, for serving
Instructions
- Season the shrimp with salt, black pepper, and smoked paprika. Set aside.1 pound jumbo shrimp, 1 teaspoon sea salt, 1 teaspoon black pepper, 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- Bring a pot of water and salt to a rolling boil. Add the angel hair pasta and cook through until al dente; drain and set aside.6 ounces angel hair pasta
- In a large skillet, add the butter and olive oil and heat on medium-high heat.3 tablespoons unsalted butter, 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- Add the shallots and garlic. Sauté for 1-2 minutes until fragrant.1 tablespoon minced shallots, 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- Pour in the white wine and lemon juice. Stir until combined.⅓ cup white wine, 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- As the mixture begins to boil, add the seasoned shrimp. Cook shrimp for about 5 minutes, flipping once.
- In the last few minutes of cooking, add in the chopped parsley and lemon slices. Baste the shrimp in the garlic butter sauce.2 tablespoons freshly chopped parsley, 1 count lemon
- Garnish with optional lemon zest, parmesan cheese, and red pepper flakes.grated parmesan, red pepper flakes
- Serve the shrimp over your pasta or with crusty bread. Enjoy!sourdough bread
Kayleigh says
this is one of my favorite recipes to make whenever i have guests over! it’s really impressive to look at and eat; but it is easy to make so i can spend more time enjoying company.
Shani W. says
Great choice for hosting, Kayleigh! Thank you for commenting 🙂