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Cook a five-star meal in your own kitchen! Restaurant-worthy Creamy Shrimp Scampi Linguine is deliciously easy to make at home with just a few simple ingredients.
It’s the perfect, delicious shrimp pasta recipe for a romantic dinner at home, family meal, or addition to a dinner party menu!
Our garlic butter shrimp pasta is similar to Ina Garten’s shrimp scampi, and it’s so simple to make, too!
You all know how much we love her recipes. We couldn’t help but put our own spin on a classic garlic butter shrimp pasta dish.
What is scampi?
“Scampi” actually refers to langoustines or little lobsters. In Italy, a traditional way of cooking them is with olive oil, garlic, and white wine.
When this method was brought to the U.S., we began using butter in place of olive oil in most cases, and shrimp took the place of traditional “scampi”.
What is shrimp scampi?
Classic shrimp scampi is a dish usually consisting of garlic, lemon, and butter or olive oil. Most often, shrimp scampi recipes also use wine.
You can make shrimp scampi many ways, such as in this shrimp scampi linguine, shrimp scampi with angel hair pasta, baked shrimp scampi, or even creamy shrimp scampi with rice.
The very first time I tried Italian Shrimp Scampi at the Cheesecake Factory, I knew I was hooked. The sauce, the very creamy sauce is what made me come home a recreate this recipe for my family.
Ingredients for Shrimp Scampi
- 1 lb. linguine pasta
- 1 lb. large shrimp, peeled and deveined*
- 3 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- ⅓ cup white wine*
- juice of 1 lemon
- salt and pepper to taste
- A few sprigs of finely chopped parsley
- 1 Tbsp. butter, optional
- spicy red pepper, optional
Our easy scampi uses just a few simple ingredients, many of which you may already have on hand!
Garlic butter shrimp pasta is one of the most delicious dishes you can make at home, and it’s easy, too. My personal favorite is Creamy Lemon Butter Sauce!
Can I use frozen shrimp?
Yes! You can use frozen shrimp in your shrimp scampi pasta. In fact, we recommend using frozen shrimp, as it saves you the time and effort of peeling and deveining your own shrimp.
If you use frozen shrimp for your garlic butter shrimp pasta, we recommend following these instructions on how to thaw shrimp:
- Add the frozen shrimp to a bowl of cold water. Make sure the cold water fully covers the shrimp. Do not use warm water.
- Allow the shrimp to sit in the cold water for 10 to 15 minutes. If they need more time, drain the water after 10 minutes, add fresh cold water, and allow them to sit for an additional 10 to 15 minutes.
- Dry the shrimp with paper towels before cooking.
If you want to elevate this dish even further, you could substitute prawns for shrimp. Prawn linguine is delicious, especially prawn scampi.
Prawns are a favorite of ours, and make a deliciously easy Sunday dinner (see our Chinese Prawns Recipe !)
Scampi Sauce Recipe
One of the secrets to making the best shrimp scampi recipe is the scampi sauce. Sauce for scampi is a divine combination of lemon, garlic and white wine, which perfectly complements the shrimp.
For a real Italian experience, I recommend using olive oil and adding butter at the end only if desired.
You can even skip the butter and add a little more olive oil instead. However, the butter adds an additional delicious hint of flavor to the meal, which I recommend.
The wine pairing for shrimp scampi we recommend is a good quality wine such as Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay, or even a Riesling.
Tips for the Best Shrimp Scampi
- We recommend extra large or jumbo shrimp (or prawns) in this recipe! They’re perfect for a shrimp scampi!
- We always look for wild-caught shrimp. They have better flavor and are a lot healthier for you than farm-raised seafood.
- Use a good quality white wine. We use a Sav Blanc or Chardonnay when cooking this recipe. You can also use a Pinot Grigio. .
- Leave some of the pasta sauce on the side. You may need it to add to the scampi sauce to make it more rich and creamy.
Can I make shrimp scampi without wine?
Yes, you can use chicken broth as a substitute for wine in cooking shrimp scampi. This dish will still be delicious.
How to Make Shrimp Scampi
If you are wondering exactly how to cook shrimp scampi, then don’t worry! It is really so easy.
All of the work is done in a pan on the stove in just a few simple steps. Follow these simple instructions to make easy shrimp scampi linguine:
- Sauté 1 lb. large shrimp with 3 Tbsp. olive oil, 1 finely chopped onion, and 2 minced garlic cloves. If using frozen shrimp, follow the instructions on how to thaw shrimp above before cooking.
Add ⅓ cup white wine and juice of 1 lemon. - Add salt and pepper to taste, with a sprinkling of chopped parsley. Remove from heat.
- Cook and drain 1 lb. linguine pasta. Make sure the noodles are al dente or still slightly hard, as they will continue to cook in the next step. Leave some of the pasta sauce on the side. You may need it to add to the scampi sauce to make it more rich and creamy.
- Add the pasta to the shrimp sauce in the pan and cook for 1-2 minutes.
- If you want the sauce to be more creamy and juicy, add about ½ cup of the pasta water and stir. Once the sauce thickens, it is ready.
- Serve immediately, and enjoy!
Get your crusty bread ready to soak up this delicious garlic butter sauce!
That’s how you can make a wonderful, creamy shrimp scampi dish in just about half an hour! We truly believe this is the best shrimp scampi recipe.
It is so easy to make and worth trying at home. Try it and let me know if it is as good as any you’ve had at a restaurant, especially the Cheesecake Factory.
Side Dishes for Shrimp Scampi
Scampi linguine is fabulous by itself, but a salad and a glass of white wine like Pinot Grigio is the perfect pair for the dish.
Anyone of these easy salad recipes pairs deliciously with creamy shrimp scampi linguine:
- Greek Cauliflower Rice Salad
- Fresh Vegetable Salad with Creamy Balsamic Dressing
- Roasted Artichoke Salad
- Spinach Pomegranate Salad
You could also try serving shrimp scampi pasta with vegetables such as Garlic Parmesan Roasted Carrots, Green Bean Almondine, Smashed Brussels Sprouts or Roasted Vegetables.
This garlic butter shrimp recipe also makes for an easy shrimp appetizer! Leave out the pasta and serve with garlic bread for a quick and easy shrimp appetizer everyone will enjoy.
Check out our Easy Seafood Appetizers for more ideas!
Craving more easy shrimp recipes?
Here are our best delicious shrimp recipes for you to enjoy:
Love pasta? Get even more Comfort Food Pasta Recipes like this one!
📌 Pin Shrimp Scampi Linguine to save for later!
Did you try this shrimp scampi pasta recipe? We would love to know what you think! Leave us a comment and a rating below to let us know.
What did you enjoy your scampi linguine with? Was there a special occasion?
Shrimp Scampi Linguine
Ingredients
- 1 lb. linguine pasta
- 1 lb. large shrimp peeled and deveined*, see notes for frozen shrimp
- 3 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
- 1 onion finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- ⅓ cup white wine*
- the juice of 1 lemon
- salt and pepper to taste
- A few sprigs of parsley finely chopped
- 1 Tbsp. butter optional
- Red pepper flakes optional
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a skillet and sauté the onions until translucent. Add shrimp, garlic, lemon juice, and wine, and cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Make sure all shrimp is pink on both sides.
- Stir in parsley and season with salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes (if using). Remove the skillet from heat.
- Cook the linguine in a large pan with salted boiling water. Cook until it is still slightly hard to chew (al dente), which is about 2-3 minutes less than the cooking time on the pasta box.
- Drain the linguine in a colander and add the pasta to the shrimp scampi in the skillet. Add the butter. Mix everything over low heat for 1-2 minutes.
- Reserve approximately 1 cup of the pasta water. If you want your scampi sauce to be a bit more creamy and saucy, add approximately ½ cup at a time to the pasta and stir until creamy.
- Serve immediately. Add more fresh pepper and parsley, if desired. Garnish with parmesan cheese.
Notes
- Instead of butter, you can add 1-2 Tbsp. of fresh olive oil at the end.
- Instead of wine you can use chicken broth.
- You can top with Parmesan if you prefer.
- For convenience, we recommend using frozen shrimp for this recipe.
- Elevate this dish by swapping out shrimp for prawns! Garlic butter prawns are delicious.
- We recommend a good quality wine like Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay, or a Riesling for pairing and cooking with this recipe.
- Reserve 1 cup of pasta water to add to the scampi sauce if a more creamy texture is desired.
Nutrition
Post updated on 9/13/2019 to include more information, a new recipe, and new photos.
Cindy Kerschner says
This sound so good. I love Scampi of all kinds!