Shrimp Scampi with Angel Hair Pasta
You’ll love this shrimp scampi pasta recipe because it’s elegant enough for entertaining but easy enough for a weeknight meal!
Garlicky, buttery shrimp combine with a savory tomato sauce simmered in white wine and herbs to create a wonderfully flavorful pasta that is sure to be on your weekly rotation!
The Flavor Secrets:
- Use cherry tomatoes they are sweeter than regular tomatoes and less acidic, allowing them to pair beautifully with the shrimp. And if you have any leftovers, use them up in my Roasted Tomato Sauce Pasta with Angel Hair and Burrata Cheese.
- Roast the shrimp in the oven, separately from the sauce. This way the sauce and the shrimp each maintain their distinct flavors and aren’t diluted.
- Don’t use too much pasta! One half of a pound is all you need. Otherwise the pasta soaks up too much sauce and your scampi with be dry.
Roasting the Shrimp
- Place them on a rimmed baking sheet at 375F for just 5-6 minutes.
- It’s better if you take them out, just when they turn pink. They will cook through in the final stage when you add them to the sauce.
- This is also the technique I use to make my Yellow Tomato Gazpacho Soup with Spicy Shrimp and it works like a charm every time!
- It’s also easier to prepare the shrimp this way since roasting them in the oven allows you to work on the sauce at the same time.
Butterfly the Shrimp For Presentation
I also like to score them down the back before roasting so they plump up in the oven, they will also look prettier on the plate that way too!
Variations
If you don’t eat pasta and want to make some substitutions try this! You can also keep the shrimp and pasta separate when serving if kids aren’t so crazy about the shrimp!
- Rice Option -Make the shrimp and sauce and serve over buttered rice
- Grilled Bread – Serve with grilled ciabatta bread, drizzled with olive oil
- Polenta – Spoon the shrimp scampi over creamy, buttery polenta
Easy Shrimp Scampi Recipe
A delicious and easy shrimp scampi recipe that is elegant enough for entertaining, but easy enough for a weeknight meal.
Ingredients
- 1 lb of shrimp, Tail-on, Shelled (thawed and patted dry)
- 4 Tbsp olive oil
- salt and pepper
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 4 Tbsp flat leaf parsley, chopped
- 1-2 pinches red pepper flakes
- 1 Tbsp butter
- 1/2 tsp fresh lemon zest
- 1 lb cherry tomatoes
- 2 Tbsp dry white wine (Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Grigio)
- 1/2 tsp dried basil
- 1 Tbsp capers, drained
- 1/2 pound Angel Hair Pasta
Instructions
- Add 2 Tbsp olive oil, 2 cloves of garlic, salt, and pepper, 2 Tbsp of parsley and the red pepper flakes. Add the shrimp and toss to coat. Transfer to a sheet pan.
- Roast shrimp at 375F for 5-6 minutes. Then set aside and while the pan is still hot, add butter and lemon zest. Toss to coat and set aside.
- In a large skillet, add 2 Tbsp of olive oil, add the cherry tomatoes, and add the wine. Cover and simmer until tomatoes soften and pop. Then mash them with a potato masher until saucy. Then add the final clove of garlic, dried basil, capers and the final 2 Tbsp of parsley. Set aside.
- Boil the water for the pasta. Drop the pasta in and stir.
- Meanwhile, reheat the sauce, add cooked shrimp, toss to cook, and to ensure the shrimp is cooked through.
- Drain pasta, and slowly add a little bit at a time, until the sauce until coated. Garnish with more chopped parsley if desired. Serve immediately!
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 398Total Fat: 19gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 14gCholesterol: 247mgSodium: 1233mgCarbohydrates: 25gFiber: 2gSugar: 4gProtein: 30g
Beth, this was the best shrimp scampi ever. All the flavors worked so well together. My husband & I absolutely loved it. I had mine mixed with zucchini noodles. So so good. Thank you
Aww so glad to hear that! Yummy isn’t it?! I LOVE the idea of the zucchini noodles! What a great flavor combo that must have been!
What can I use instead of wine?
Sure you could use a squeeze of 1/2 lemon for some fresh lemon juice that would be good too.
This was Delicious, but clearly in the video that is more than 1 pint of tomatoes, and more than 2 Tablespoons of wine! Beth is pouring on the wine!!But oh sooo good!!