Have a delicious dinner on the table in just 30 minutes! This Shrimp Scampi with Angel Hair Pasta is a simple but super flavorful and elegant dinner idea.
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Why You'll Love this Recipe
- Quick to make. Although this recipe looks super fancy, it comes together in around 30 minutes. This is perfect for busy nights when you quickly need dinner on the table.
- Perfect for a dinner party. The rich and decadent sauce in this shrimp scampi makes it the ideal recipe to serve when hosting guests for a dinner party.
- Made with simple ingredients. I love using simple ingredients when making delicious recipes because nobody needs to be running out to a bunch of different stores.
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Shrimp- I recommend fresh or defrosted wild-caught large shrimp or jumbo shrimp. To make things easier for you look for shrimp that is already deveined or even deshelled. I used Argentinian red shrimp for this recipe.
- Shallot- shallots have a much more mild flavor than onions and don't overpower the sauce.
- White wine- use dry white wine such as Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Grigio. Instead of wine, you can use chicken, vegetable or seafood broth or a splash of white wine vinegar.
- Lemon- you'll need the juice from ½ of a large lemon. I also like to add in some lemon zest, however, you can omit this.
- Angel hair pasta- use gluten-free pasta or spaghetti, if needed.
See the recipe card below for the remaining ingredients and quantities.
Instructions
- Soften the shallot and garlic in butter over medium-high heat.
- Pour in the lemon juice and wine or broth and simmer for a few minutes.
- Mix in the spices then add in the shrimp.
- Cook until the shrimp is just cooked through.
- Toss with angel hair pasta and parsley and enjoy!
Recipe FAQs
Instead of white wine, you can use broth. I recommend chicken broth over vegetable broth or seafood broth. You can also add a tablespoon of white wine vinegar.
Scampi sauce is typically made with butter, olive oil, shallot, garlic, white wine and lemon juice. This recipe doesn't use olive oil but feel free to add it.
I don't recommend making this recipe ahead of time. Shrimp scampi is best served fresh immediately after cooking. It cooks so quickly that there really is no need to prepare in advance.
To devein shrimp, make a shallow cut along the spine of the shrimp and remove the dark vein that runs along the center. You can use a small knife or fork to do this.
Top Tips
- Use high-quality shrimp. I highly recommend buying wild-caught shrimp over farm-raised. Also, ensure you are buying raw shrimp as pre-cooked shrimp won't work in this recipe. Check out my Shrimp Tacos with Avocado Crema next!
- Don't overcook the shrimp. Shrimp cook very quickly and overcooked shrimp will be rubbery and unappetizing.
- Prep all of your ingredients ahead of time. This shrimp scampi recipe comes together very quickly so I recommend having all of your ingredients prepped before cooking.
- You can store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. This recipe does not keep well for much longer.
- I recommend reheating the shrimp on the stove for a few minutes rather than in the microwave.
Serving
The great thing about this recipe is it can be enjoyed in a number of ways. This recipe is already a complete meal and can be enjoyed as is but you can serve Caesar Salad with Homemade Dressing, Tomato Salad with Red Wine Vinaigrette or Roasted Frozen Broccoli on the side.
Salad Recipes to Try
Did you make this recipe? Please leave a 5-star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating & comment below to let me know how it came out. Thanks for visiting!
🍳Recipe
Shrimp Scampi with Angel Hair Pasta
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 shallot, diced
- 3-4 garlic cloves, minced
- ½ lemon, juiced
- ¼ cup white wine or broth
- 1 pound of shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped
- Angel hair pasta
Instructions
- Boil water in a large pot and cook pasta according to package directions until it is al dente.
- Melt butter over medium-high heat in a large skillet. Add the diced shallot and cook for 2-3 minutes until softened. Turn the burner down to medium heat.
- Add minced garlic and cook for another 2 minutes. Squeeze in the lemon juice and pour in wine (if using) or broth.
- Let the sauce simmer for about 5 minutes then add in the salt, pepper and red pepper flakes. Stir to combine.
- Next, add the shrimp to the pan and cook until it is fully cooked (about 2 minutes per side). Turn off the heat.
- Toss the sauce with the pasta and fresh parsley. Top with parmesan cheese if desired. Serve immediately.
Notes
- Use high-quality shrimp. I highly recommend buying wild-caught shrimp over farm-raised. Also, ensure you are buying raw shrimp as pre-cooked shrimp won't work in this recipe. Check out my Shrimp Tacos with Avocado Crema next!
- Don't overcook the shrimp. Shrimp cook very quickly and overcooked shrimp will be rubbery and unappetizing.
- Prep all of your ingredients ahead of time. This shrimp scampi recipe comes together very quickly so I recommend having all of your ingredients prepped before cooking.
- You can store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. This recipe does not keep well for much longer.
- I recommend reheating the shrimp on the stove for a few minutes rather than in the microwave.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary with brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes and more.
Abbey says
This dish is absolutely delicious and for such a decadent taste it's so easy to make!
Sarah Holt says
So easy! Love that you enjoyed it so much🙂
Brian Barnes says
Needed a quick and easy dinner and this one was just that! Not to mention delicious! Will be making again!
Sarah Holt says
Thanks for the great review Brian, this is one of my favorites!!