Shrimp Scampi

Name: Shrimp Scampi
Total time: 25 min
Yield: 3
Ingredients: 1 lb shrimp (large, peeled, deveined, patted dry); 6 oz pasta (linguine); 4 tbsp butter (cold, cubed); 2 tbsp olive oil; 4 clove garlic (thinly sliced); ½ cup dry white wine; 2 tbsp lemon (juice); 3 tbsp parsley (flat leaf, chopped); ½ tsp chili (red pepper flakes); ¾ tsp salt

Seafood & Poultry · European · American

10 ingredients · 25 minutes · 3 servings

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618kcal44.3g protein25.8g fat46.1g carbs~$4.34/ serving*

Contains gluten, dairy, shellfish

Restrictions

Containsgluten · dairy · shellfishIt is in an ingredient you cannot leave out.

Diets

PescatarianNo pork

Worked out from the ingredient list. It knows nothing about brands, shared equipment or cross contamination, and it is not a certification — if you have an allergy, you still have to read the label.

Ingredients

Servings:

1 lb	shrimp (large, peeled, deveined, patted dry)
6 oz	pasta (linguine)
4 tbsp	butter (cold, cubed)
2 tbsp	olive oil
4 clove	garlic (thinly sliced)
½ cup	dry white wine
2 tbsp	lemon (juice)
3 tbsp	parsley (flat leaf, chopped)
½ tsp	chili (red pepper flakes)
¾ tsp	salt

Optional

Not counted above. The dish works without them.

1 tbsp	shallots (minced)
3 tbsp	cheese (parmesan, grated — contested)
1 tsp	lemon (zest)
¼ tsp	black pepper (ground)

Steps

Season4 min
shrimp patted very dry, salted, left on paper while the pan heats
- shrimp
shrimp + half the salt. Dry them harder than seems necessary — shrimp hold a surprising amount of surface water and it is the reason most home versions come out pale and boiled rather than seared
Boil9 min
well salted, to 1 minute short of the packet, a cup of water reserved
- pasta
pasta, keeping a cup of the water. Start this before the shrimp: the pasta can wait a minute in a colander, and the shrimp cannot wait at all
Sear3 min
olive oil, high heat, single uncrowded layer, 60-75 seconds a side
shrimp seared until just opaque and pink at the edges, then removed to a plate immediately. They will finish in the sauce. Shrimp protein sets fast and keeps contracting — the visible tell is shape, since a properly cooked shrimp curls into a loose C and an overcooked one closes into a tight O
Saute3 min
heat to medium-low, sliced garlic in the same pan
- garlic
- shallots
+ garlic (+ shallots) + chilli flakes, cooked until the slices are pale gold and fragrant, no darker. Lower the heat before the garlic goes in — the pan is still at searing temperature and sliced garlic burns in seconds, and burnt garlic will define the finished dish
Reduce4 min
wine in, scraped, simmered until reduced by about two thirds
- butter
- dry white wine
+ white wine, reduced until syrupy and the raw alcohol smell is gone. Reduction is doing two jobs: concentrating flavour, and removing the water that would otherwise stop the butter from emulsifying into a sauce
Emulsify3 min
off the heat, cold butter a cube at a time, swirled constantly
- lemon
+ cold cubed butter + lemon juice + a splash of pasta water, swirled until the sauce turns opaque and thickens. Cold butter added off the heat emulsifies — the milk proteins and phospholipids hold the fat dispersed in the wine and starch. Melted butter or a boiling pan gives you a broken sauce with oil floating on acid
Fold2 min
pasta and shrimp returned, tossed off the heat
- parsley
- black pepper
+ pasta + shrimp + parsley (+ lemon zest, + pepper, + parmesan), tossed until coated and served at once. The shrimp get about thirty seconds of residual heat, which is all they need to finish. Loosen with pasta water — it will keep tightening on the way to the table