Kitchen notes · a little help before you start
Classic Shrimp Scampi
Shrimp scampi is a good dinner for anyone who wants the sauce to get a little attention. Butter, lemon and garlic make each shrimp inviting, with parsley giving the plate a fresh finish.
- Prep
- 5 min
- Cook
- 10 min
- Total
- 45 min
- Original yield
- Serves 4
- Ingredients
- 9 listed
Make it part of your week
Recipe categories & planning details
- Meal type
- Main course
- Primary protein
- Seafood
- Cuisine
- American
- Preparation & total time
- Prep: 15 minutes or less · Total: 31–60 minutes
A few quick notes
1. Split the garlic preparation
Slice two cloves for the skillet sauce and mince the remaining cloves for the shrimp's chilled coating.
2. Leave the oil behind
Use a slotted spoon to move the cooked shrimp to their serving plate, leaving as much oil in the skillet as possible.
3. Reduce before adding butter
Cook the wine and lemon mixture until reduced by half before melting the butter into the sauce.
Get to know the ingredients
Prepared large shrimp
Begin with peeled, deveined large shrimp, gently tossed in the minced garlic mixture before chilling in the refrigerator.
Wine or broth
Dry white wine is listed with chicken broth as an alternative for the liquid reduced with lemon in the skillet.
Chopped parsley
Keep the parsley for garnishing after pouring the finished butter sauce over the cooked shrimp on the serving plate.
Let’s make it
Choose your servings, then check things off as you go.
Original recipe: Serves 4. Original quantities shown.
Check ingredients as you prepare them. These checks stay on this page.
How to make it
0 of 4 steps completeMake room for Classic Shrimp Scampi
Review ingredients in your pantry before anything is added. Meal plans use your household size; grocery-only additions use the servings selected above.
The last little job
Pour the sauce over
Let the butter melt and the sauce thicken, then pour over the plated shrimp and scatter on fresh parsley.
A little more help as you go
Optional pepper flakes
If using the red pepper flakes, add them with the sliced garlic for the brief fragrant cook before the liquids.
Chill before cooking
Give the coated shrimp their thirty-minute refrigerator rest before heating the remaining oil and cooking them in the skillet.
A few questions you might have
Does all the garlic go into the marinade?
Three cloves are minced into the shrimp coating; the two sliced cloves wait for the sauce stage after the shrimp cook.
Is the shrimp cooked in the butter sauce?
The shrimp cook first in oil and move to a plate. The sauce is then made and poured over them.
When does the lemon juice go in?
It goes into the skillet with wine after the sliced garlic becomes fragrant, before reduction and adding butter.
Do I stir the sauce while it reduces?
The directions call for occasional stirring while the wine and lemon liquid reduce by half before adding butter.
Where does the salt go?
Whisk it with the minced garlic and first portion of olive oil before gently coating the shrimp for chilling.
Storage & reheating safety
For cooked, perishable leftovers, refrigerate within 2 hours (1 hour above 90°F), using shallow containers for prompt cooling. Keep the refrigerator at 40°F or below, use refrigerated leftovers within 3–4 days, and reheat hot leftovers to 165°F, checked with a food thermometer. Follow any shorter package limit.
These are general safety limits, not a tested storage or freezing recommendation for this particular dish. USDA leftovers guidance · Safe cooking temperatures
Recipe source: therecipecritic.com. Ingredient names and quantities may be adapted for the pantry.
Preparation notes follow the recipe shown here.
