Shrimp Scampi with Linguine – Shrimp are cooked in a garlic butter white wine sauce and tossed into linguine to make one of the easiest and tastiest dinners ever!
Shrimp scampi was one of my first “adult” meals that I remember ordering at a restaurant. That and fettuccine alfredo, of course. Is anyone surprised that I’ve loved pasta dishes since I was a pre-teen?
Anyway, I’ll never forget how fancy I felt ordering it at a restaurant. Or how incredible the shrimp tasted covered in the garlic butter sauce. Yum. It sure felt like a complicated dish.
20 years later, I’m finally making this dish for myself. And, surprise, it’s so much easier than I thought! In fact, the entire thing comes together in under 30 minutes so it’s the perfect candidate for a weeknight meal.
Check out my Shrimp Scampi with Linguine!
What is shrimp scampi?
Shrimp scampi is an Italian dish that is made with a garlic butter white wine sauce. It can be served with pasta or by itself with just a hunk of bread to soak up the sauce. I like to serve mine with the pasta, though, because the pasta soaks up the extra sauce and adds a layer of flavor that you can’t even imagine!
How to make shrimp scampi
Shrimp scampi is so easy to make because the shrimp cooks so fast! Seriously, when you finish flipping the shrimp to cook of the other side, the first flipped shrimp is probably already done cooking. Therefore, the biggest tip I can give you is to prepare your ingredients before getting started. That way, you’re ready for each quick step as it comes.
First, you’re going to cook the garlic in a mixture of olive oil and butter to bring out that beautiful aroma. Then the shrimp are added and cooked just until they finish cooking. The white wine is added and cooked until it reduces by half. This gives the dish the white wine flavor but without the alcohol.
Finally the shrimp is removed from heat and finished off with more butter, lemon juice, and fresh parsley. Make sure to taste the sauce and add seasoning, as needed. You’ll need a good amount since we didn’t add any in the process.
Toss the shrimp and the sauce in a large bowl with the cooked linguine. Let the pasta soak up the sauce for about 5 minutes to make it perfectly flavorful. And that’s all there is to it!
Tips & Tricks
- To prevent the cooked pasta from sticking together while the shrimp cooks, toss in a little olive oil and set aside.
- The recipe is super quick so make sure to prep your ingredients before you get started. This ensures you’re ready for each step as it comes.
- It’s very important to taste the sauce and season, as necessary. The perfect amount of salt and pepper makes a huge difference.
- If you don’t want to use the wine, simply substitute with chicken or vegetable broth.
Shrimp Scampi with Linguine
Ingredients
- 1 pound linguine
- 1 tablespoon + ¼ teaspoon salt divided
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 4 tablespoons salted butter divided
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 ¼ pound large raw, peeled shrimp
- ⅛ teaspoon pepper
- ¼ cup dry white wine I used Chardonnay
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add about 1 tablespoon of salt. Once water is boiling, add pasta and cook until al dente, according to the package instructions, normally about 8 minutes. Drain and set aside.
- Add olive oil and 2 tablespoons of butter to a large skillet or braising pot and place over medium heat. Once the butter has melted, add the minced garlic. Cook the garlic until fragrant – don’t let it get too brown! Add the raw shrimp and season with salt and pepper. Cook for 1 -2 minutes and then stir to help the shrimp finish cooking on the other side.
- Add white wine to pan and bring to a simmer. Let it cook for up to 2 minutes, or until the wine has reduced by half. The shrimp should be finished cooking and completely pink in color.
- Remove pan from heat and add remaining 2 tablespoons of butter, lemon juice, and chopped parsley. Stir until the butter has melted. Taste shrimp and season with salt and pepper if needed.
- Add pasta to a large bowl. Top with shrimp and sauce and toss together. Serve immediately.
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This shrimp scampi dish looks divine. I love a good pasta dish!
This looks delicious! It looks so easy to make too!
This is one of my favourite pasta dishes and that’s how I do it, but can I give you a tip on pasta? Since I’m Italian, I mean. We never leave cooked pasta sitting and never put oil in it like that. I’d suggest you cook the sauce first and let that sit in a pan, then turn the heat back on and add the just drained pasta in the pan. You can mix it on high heat for a minute or so and then serve it. It helps the pasta to sta al-dente
Shrimp scampi is one of my favorites, yet I never seem to make it. I need to change that!
This quickly became a favorite meal at my house!
This is my new favorite shrimp scampi recipe! so flavorful! Thank you.
Such a classic dish! And I love how easy it is to make. 🙂
Such an easy delicious dinner! Made it for my husband last might, and there are ZERO leftovers! Yummy!
I made this scampi for dinner last night and everyone loved it! It will definitely be on our regular rotation from here on out!