This easy Shrimp Scampi recipe is quick enough for a weeknight and elegant enough to serve to guests.
Juicy shrimp are quickly pan-fried and then smothered in a garlicky white wine sauce, this meal is on the table in just 15 minutes!
It’s super easy to prepare and absolutely delicious.
A Fast and Easy Weeknight Recipe
I love shrimp pasta with hunks of crusty bread (or dinner rolls) for cleaning the plate, and this version is extra fast and easy!
Shrimp Scampi is a dish made with shrimp (or prawns) cooked in a garlic, butter, and white wine sauce. The scampi sauce can be spooned over pasta or serve this shrimp scampi recipe as a first course with artisan bread for dipping.
Some shrimp scampi recipes call for parmesan cheese, but I prefer to the sauce without it and to have some on the table for family and friends to add if they wish.
How To Make Shrimp Scampi
The entire recipe (sauce AND shrimp) can be made in about the same time it takes to boil the pasta!
Ingredients for shrimp scampi include shrimp (of course), garlic, butter, olive oil, white wine, and simple seasonings.
- COOK SHRIMP – Cook garlic & butter until fragrant per the recipe below. Add shrimp and cook a couple of minutes. Set aside.
- ADD WINE – Pour in some wine and reduce for a few minutes.
- TOSS WITH SHRIMP – Add shrimp back to the pan and toss to heat through. Sprinkle with parsley and serve.
If you’d like, squeeze a little lemon juice overtop for a fresh bright flavor.
Wine for Scampi
The best wine for scampi is a crisp dry white wine that you’ll enjoy drinking with your amazing meal! Try Pinot Grigio, Viognier, a dry Riesling, or Sauvignon Blanc.
Add a little to the dish and a little to your glass! Cheers!
Tips for Perfect Shrimp Scampi
- Buy peeled and deveined shrimp.
- The shrimp look pretty with the tails on, so they’re great that way if serving as an appetizer, but if serving over pasta, I prefer shrimp without tails.
- The ingredients (including the garlic) can be prepared up to 24 hours in advance. The dish will takes just minutes to come together.
- If serving as an appetizer, include crusty bread or crostini for sopping up the scampi sauce.
Shrimp Favorites
Some other shrimp recipes we LOVE that come together just as quickly is this super easy shrimp and grits….or this simple skillet paella with shrimp and chorizo!
Did you enjoy this Easy Shrimp Scampi? Be sure to leave a rating and a comment below!
Easy Shrimp Scampi Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes or to taste
- 1 pound large shrimp peeled and deveined
- ½ cup dry white wine
- ½ cup fresh parsley chopped
- kosher salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Melt the butter and olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
- Stir in the garlic and red pepper flakes. Cook for 1 minute.
- Add the shrimp to the pan and toss to coat. Cook the shrimp until bright pink and no longer translucent, approximately 2-3 minutes.
- Using a slotted spoon, transfer the shrimp to a plate and keep warm.
- Add the wine to the pan and cook for 2-3 minutes. Turn off the heat.
- Return the shrimp to the pan and toss to coat in the sauce. Sprinkle with the parsley. Season with salt and black pepper, to taste. Serve immediately.
Video
Notes
- Buy peeled and deveined shrimp to save prep.
- The shrimp look pretty with the tails on, perfect if serving as an appetizer. If serving over pasta, choose shrimp without tails.
- The ingredients (including the garlic) can be prepared up to 24 hours in advance. The dish takes just minutes to come together.
- If serving as an appetizer, include crusty bread or crostini for sopping up the scampi sauce.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Appetizer, Dinner, Entree, Lunch, Main Course, Seafood
Cuisine Italian, Mediterranean© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
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easy scampi
Totally easy to understand and follow. Ingredients were simple and yet flavorful. I had to substitute the dry white wine tho… using white vinegar. It wasn’t easy to sub either. You’d have to know how to offset that acidic smell and taste. Which we did pretty well & it actually came out pretty awesome! So thanks for the recipe.
First time ever to make scampi and from scratch too. Well, ingredients and not store bought add and mix style. Lol! I was able to direct my 16 year old on making the scampi while reading the instructions & while helping in the background. So, that shows how easy this recipe really is and fast too.
For us, took a while cause of our first try and all. But overall, I must say… 30 minutes tops and dinner was served. We added noodles to the dish itself & chopped up the shrimp into smaller pieces, poured it onto the pan of noodles to spread the shrimpiness with every bite. We were able to make 6-8 mini servings from using 20 pieces of shrimp, half the bag of angel hair noodles and placed it into a 9” round baking pan for presentation.
Mahalo…
My husband said… “buggah had akshon!” Yeya!
So happy to hear that! I am glad it turned out delicious for her.
This recipe was quick and super easy. My very Italian husband couldn’t stop saying Mmm after almost every bite. I added more chopped garlic and used course garlic salt. Although I didn’t take any of the short cuts, I’m glad you included them. I would like to encourage you to add the different measurement for fresh vs dried parsley. When it took a while bottle of parsley for a half cup, I knew something had to be wrong. Unfortunately, I didn’t trust my eyes or the obvious. Lol Thankfully, I was able to find a way to get most of it out.
So happy you both enjoyed this recipe, Gail!
This recipe is AMAZING! I substituted pre-cooked, deveined jumbo shrimp (cause they were on sale).
Also, I didn’t have fresh parsley so I added dried parsley into the garlic, red pepper flakes & butter mixture. Tossed the shrimp in at the last moment just to warm them up & served it all over Ramen noodles! It was a hit! Thank you
Yum yum yum! That sounds delicious Debbylee.
Quick, easy, and very tasty. Love that it uses ingredients I usually always have on hand. I used precooked shrimp, chicken broth, added onions and fresh lemon juice. Served over pasta. It looked and tasted fancy, and with just two pots to wash, it’s definitely a recipe for your weeknight dinner rotation.
This was sooooo good! Surprisingly easy too. I cut the red pepper flakes to 1/4 tsp just for our tastes. My family really loved it. Thank you for an excellent recipe. Looking forward to making it again!
I’m sorry sister you can’t chop garlic a day ahead. That is so wrong.
Hi Jim, you can mince the garlic fresh when making this recipe :)
This was such a quick ‘n easy dinner to put together. The fresh parsley was an absolutely fresh ànd so tasty addition. Fresh parsley was definitely superior to making do with dried stuff!
How do I prepare ahead? the night before or early morning
The ingredients (including the garlic) can be prepared up to 24 hours in advance so the dish literally takes minutes to put together. Enjoy Tina!
Turned out great as a last minute meal. I used frozen cooked and peeled shrimp.
Red Esign I’m going to use cooked frozen shrimp too. What did you do differently with the shrimp already cooked? Thanks
Can I use frozen shrimp? Thaw it first???
I’ve never cooked shrimp but I love it.
Thanks for your help
You could use frozen peeled and deveined raw shrimp. Yes, thaw before cooking. Enjoy Jerri!
Can you use cooking white wine?
The taste will change slightly, but it’ll work! Enjoy the scampi Bonnie!
Perfect! Followed the recipe exactly and it turned out perfect. Served it on angel hair. Fast, easy and delicious!
This was so simple and delicious. I’m making it again next week!
Loved this dish … made with Pinot Grigio over pasta … so delish !
Did you use salted or unsalted butter? Thanks!
Either would work. I generally use unsalted and salt to taste.
Best shrimp scampi and then I made yet. I added Parmesan cheese and also use the suggestion of others with the chicken broth as a sub for wine and a little lemon zest and juice For extra Depth to the flavor. So quick and easy
So easy and fast. We did add two tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice to the sauce.
The scampi is so easy using already peeled shrimp and jared garlic. I also used shrimp flavored ramen to serve it over. Cooked the ramen in the flavor packet and drained it before putting the scampi over it. Just wonderful.
My mother loved the recipe so much she said it was better than s*x.