Buttery, garlicky, irresistible shrimp scampi—but make it pasta. We like how the heat from the red pepper flakes cuts through all the richness in this dish, but if you’re spice-sensitive, hold back half of the chile (you can always serve more on the side). This recipe calls for frozen shrimp, which we're huge fans of. You never have to wonder how long they've been sitting on ice at the seafood counter, and they thaw in no time at all, making them a great weeknight protein option to have in your back pocket. (Err...freezer. Freezer is definitely a better place for shrimp than your back pocket.)
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What you’ll need
Measuring Cups
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Measuring Spoons
$10 At Bon Appétit Market
Large Bowl
$18 At Amazon
Paper Towels
$13.45 At Amazon
Large Pot
$55 $48 At Amazon
Chef's Knife
$34.53 At Amazon
Cutting Board
$10 At IKEA
Medium Bowl
$17 At Amazon
Microplane
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Small Bowl
$15 At Amazon
Dutch Oven
$133 $80 At Amazon
Wooden Spoon
$7 At Amazon
Tongs
$21 At Amazon
Glass Measuring Cup
$26 At Amazon
Ingredients
4 servings
1
1
7
2
1
¾
6
8
½
¾
1
Preparation
Step 1
Thaw that shrimp! Place unopened 1-lb. bag of shrimp in a large bowl and fill with cool water. Place a heavy plate on top to submerge until thawed, about 45 minutes. If you're the kind of person who actually thinks about dinner more than a few hours before you're going to make it, you can also let the shrimp thaw overnight in the fridge. Alternatively, if you're in a hurry, take the shrimp out of the bag and let them soak in a big bowl of cold water—they'll be ready in about 15 minutes. However you thaw them, make sure to pat them dry before proceeding. Season shrimp with 1 tsp. salt. Let sit until ready to use. While all that's happening, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
Step 2
This dish comes together quite quickly, so you're going to want to have all of your prep done before you start cooking. Peel 1 medium onion, then finely chop so that all pieces are about the size of lentils. Transfer to a medium bowl. Using a Microplane, grate 5 garlic cloves right into bowl. Finely grate zest of ½ lemon right into bowl. Coarsely chop 1 cup parsley leaves with tender stems; transfer to a separate small bowl and set aside.
Step 3
Heat ¾ cup panko, 2 Tbsp. olive oil, and ¼ tsp. salt in a large Dutch oven over medium, stirring to coat panko.
Step 4
Grate remaining 2 garlic cloves into pot and stir to combine. Cook, stirring often, until panko is golden brown, 3–4 minutes. Transfer panko mixture to a small bowl. Let cool. Wipe out any panko stuck to bottom of pot.
Step 5
Heat 2 Tbsp. olive oil in pot over medium-high until just beginning to shimmer and you can see wisps of smoke. Cook shrimp, undisturbed, until golden brown on the underside, 2–3 minutes. Turn with tongs and continue to cook until shrimp is barely cooked through, about 15 seconds longer (the shrimp will keep cooking as it sits, and we’re going to add them back into the pot later so they’ll get a chance to finish cooking there—err on the side of undercooked). Transfer shrimp to a plate.
Step 6
Add onion mixture, 4 Tbsp. butter, 1 tsp. salt, and ½ tsp. red pepper flakes to pot and cook over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, until very fragrant and softened but not browned, about 2 minutes.
Step 7
Add ¾ cup dry white wine and bring to a simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid evaporates, some of the harsh alcohol scent cooks off, and sauce is thick and glossy, 2–3 minutes. Remove from heat while you cook the pasta.
Step 8
Drop 1 lb. fettuccine in boiling water and set a timer according to package directions for al dente. Scoop out 1½ cups pasta cooking liquid.
Step 9
Pull off and discard tails of shrimp while pasta cooks, then cut each shrimp into 3 pieces.
Step 10
Drain pasta and add to Dutch oven along with reserved pasta cooking liquid and remaining 4 Tbsp. butter and 2 Tbsp. olive oil. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, until well coated and glossy, about 3 minutes.
Step 11
Remove pot from heat and stir in shrimp and reserved parsley.
Step 12
Cut 1 lemon in half and squeeze juice into pot (it should be about 2 Tbsp.), stirring to combine. Taste and adjust seasoning for salt. Cut remaining lemon into wedges for serving.
Step 13
Divide pasta among bowls. Drizzle with more olive oil. Top with reserved panko mixture. Serve with lemon wedges alongside.
Leave a Review
Reviews (129)
Back to Top100% will make again! My husband orders shrimp pasta dishes all the time when we go out but he insisted this is recipe is the ideal version. The panko was an amazing addition, I love the extra garlic crunch to break up what would be a standard pasta water sauce situation. Next time I will keep the shrimp whole though, all the shrimp pieces fall to the bottom of the pot which makes serving annoying.
Kaitlin
Chicago
11/10/2023
We loved it. I added a small can of green chilis and more red pepper but otherwise followed it. Cook time on the shrimp I feel is too long so I reduced it. The panko was a tasty surprise
Judymanynames
Northern California
8/2/2023
This recipe is trash. 3/4cup of panko? It just turns into slop when you mix everything together! What unhinged psychopath thought that was a good idea. Maybe I’m the real fool for actually thinking that would of worked.
Anonymous
Chattanooga, tennessee
6/17/2023
My whole family loved this dish. It was awesome until I had terrible diarrhea later in the evening. I don’t blame this dish though, I think it was the lamb vindaloo I had for lunch. Anyways 4 stars! Would be 5 but I can’t confirm the vindaloo is what gave me the trots.
Linda Walsh
Halfmoon, NY
3/5/2023
Perfection - made exactly as written. Entire family loved and will make again and again!
Chaille
Des Moines, IA
9/4/2022
I skipped the panko topping and used dry vermouth instead of white wine (didn't want to open a bottle) and it was absolutely delicious for a Wednesday night supper with my boyfriend!
Holly
Columbus OH
7/28/2022
This was a big hit!
Sonya
Washington, DC
7/22/2022
This is not a one pot, clean prep dish. It is - however - delicious. Followed the recipe using U-16 shrimp and, instead of fettucini, used cascatelli - it looks just like shrimp! I had at least half the bread crumb mixture left, so I'd consider cutting that preparation down. I only used one lemon, not serving slices with the dish.
Greengo
Falls Church, VA
3/29/2022
This is an excellent recipe. I have made it several times and it is always a palate pleaser!
Marian
Sarasota, FL
3/14/2022
This was really good. In tasting halfway through the process, I was worried it had too much lemon zest but it completely mellowed out in the finished dish. I did only add half the lemon juice it called for at the end because I did not want the lemon to be overpowering. There seemed to be too much butter with the onions - looked like soup. So I only did half the butter in later instructions. This recipe is definitely a keeper!
Anonymous
Austin, TX
3/8/2022
Great recipe, and yes it does help to have all ingredients ready before starting to cook!
Elen
New Hope,PA
10/17/2021
Very good! Even though I hate recipes that call for 12oz of pasta instead of the full pound (what the hell do I do with the remaining 4 oz?!), if I made this again, I'd probably only use 12 oz and keep everything else the same (well, maybe a lil less butter/oil to compensate). As is, this made six (very good, very large) servings but I'd rather a saucier, shrimp-ier 4-serving dish next time.
Heather
Canada
8/19/2021
This was to die for delicious! I doubled the red pepper flakes and used about 10 cloves of garlic. Other than that I followed the recipe precisely. My husband said it was one of the best shrimp meals he has ever had. Thank you!
Jackie
Lexington, KY
6/7/2021
I don’t have any of these ingredients at home. Could you rewrite this based on the food I do have in my house? I’m not going to tell you what food I have. You have to guess.
Coleman
4/11/2021
Wow, really good. Reasonably easy and so flavorful. It does move quite quickly. I made this for 3 other people and they all loved it! The crunchy panko takes it over the top! We did use less oil/butter than called for and thought it came together just fine.
Anonymous
Seattle, WA
2/26/2021