Shrimp Pasta (Easy + Delicious Creamy Recipe!)
This easy shrimp pasta recipe (with seared shrimp and lemon cream sauce) is so tasty you'll FORGET about your favorite Italian restaurant.
Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 12 oz pasta
- 12 oz fresh shrimp peeled and deveined
- Kosher salt
- Black pepper
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 4 tbsp butter
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- ¾ cup heavy cream whipping cream or 35% m.f. cream
- 1½ tsp lemon zest
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- ½ cup finely-grated parmesan cheese
- Minced chives or parsley to serve
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it well. Add the pasta and cook until al dente, according to package instructions. Drain in a colander.
- Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the shrimp season with 1/2 tsp kosher salt and a few cracks of pepper.
- Cook until they turn pink and opaque, about 2-3 minutes per side. Remove the shrimp from the skillet and set aside. Don't wipe out the pan.
- In the same skillet, reduce the heat to medium and melt the butter. Add the minced garlic and cook until fragrant, a 1 minute, scraping up any browned bits from the pan as you stir.
- Whisk in the heavy cream, lemon zest, 1/2 tsp more kosher salt and a few cracks of black pepper. Bring to a simmer and then remove the skillet from the heat.
- Off of the heat, whisk in the parmesan cheese until the sauce is smooth. Stir in lemon juice.
- Add the cooked pasta and shrimp to the skillet with the sauce. Toss to coat everything evenly. Serve immediately, garnished with minced chives or parsley.
Video
Notes
For a slightly lighter version, you can use half-and-half instead of heavy cream.
If you prefer, you can use pre-cooked shrimp. Just add them to the sauce to heat through before tossing with the pasta.
Substitute parmesan with pecorino romano for a different flavor.
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. Reheat gently on the stovetop, adding a splash of cream or milk to loosen the sauce if needed.
For a pretty presentation, set aside some of the browned shrimp to top individual portions at the end.
Nutrition
Calories: 727kcal | Carbohydrates: 66g | Protein: 34g | Fat: 36g | Saturated Fat: 20g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 11g | Trans Fat: 0.5g | Cholesterol: 227mg | Sodium: 412mg | Potassium: 486mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 1115IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 261mg | Iron: 2mg