Shrimp Scampi Linguini

I will be honest, I made this recipes almost a year ago and took the photos, but have since made it several times because it is quite easy and delicious!  I made this dish for the first time when we were in France. One would wonder why you would ever cook for yourself while in France? Well, while we were in France we rented condos through Airbnb, one of the best ideas we had the whole trip. We had our own kitchen, living room, laundry, and various other amenities you wouldn’t find in a hotel. And the locations were always in the heart of residential areas. We were able to live as Parisian’s do, which was wonderful! 

One night while staying in Nice we decided we wanted to stay in after a day of shopping and exploring. We popped down to the market below our rental condo and grabbed some groceries.  Wonderful baguette of  French bread, fresh shrimp, butter, wine, noodles and small other items that created this wonderful pasta!  One of our friends on the trip still talked about this pasta. I think I should invite him over and make it again sometime soon. Add that to the to-do list.

Now its your turn to go get yourself chopping some garlic and onion. Then throw them into a pan with some BUTTER!

Yeah, this photo shows maybe 4 tablespoons, but you could also use 6 (I know I have more times than not). Put your water up to boil before you start chopping your onion and garlic, so it is boiling by the time you are ready to throw everything in the pan. Linguine takes several minutes to cook, and you will need pasta water to help thicken your sauce, so you will want it ready.

Once your onions are translucent and your garlic is giving off a wonderful aroma, you can add your white wine. I really hope you poured yourself a glass while you were waiting for the onions to cook down.  A nice dry white wine will go well in the sauce, as well as in your glass.

Allow the wine to cook down for 3-4 minutes.  Sprinkle in the red pepper flakes, salt and parsley while the wine is cooking down. If you are using dried parsley, you can add it here. If you are using fresh, wait until you add the pasta and toss it in along with the cheese. I only had dried on hand, and it worked just fine.  Adds a nice color!

Into the pool go the shrimp!  I would like to mention, make sure you buy RAW, deveined, peeled shrimp. You want to cook your shrimp in the sauce, not over cook pre-cooked shrimp. Raw shrimp will always look grey in color.  Please don’t confuse the two. You will for sure regret it!

Your noodles should just about be done at this point, so you will want to grab some of that starchy water to thicken your sauce. I just plunge my measuring cup in and scope the water over to my sauce. It got a little steamy.  If you needed to you could always have a glass measuring cup ready to pour off some of your water before draining. The water will sit fine if the timing doesn’t work out to use the water while the pasta is cooking. You will also want to use the pasta water near the end of cooking, not at the start. You want the starch in the water, not just salted boiled water ready for pasta.

The shrimp should cook 2-3 minutes per side. Allow them to cook into pink/orange Cs, not red Os.  Since the shrimp cook up fast, and no one enjoys over cooked shrimp, make sure you are watching them closely.  Your sauce should thicken up here with the addition of the starch from your pasta.

The home stretch, turn off the heat to your sauce,  drain your pasta (don’t rinse) and add to your sauce pan. Sprinkle in some parmesan cheese, and toss.  You can crack black pepper into your pasta here as well.

Time to eat!

Shrimp Scampi Linguine

4 servings

  • 1 lb pasta, linguine
  • 4- 6 tablespoons salted butter
  • 1 medium white onion, chopped
  • 6 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes (more if desired)
  • 1 tablespoon parsley, dried or 1/4 cup chopped
  • 1/2 cup dry white wine
  • 1/2 cup pasta water
  • 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
  • Salt
  • Fresh cracked black pepper
  1. In large pot, bring to boil water with 1 teaspoon salt.
  2. In large saucepan, add chopped onions, garlic and butter on medium heat. Cook until the onions are translucent.
  3. Add wine, red pepper flakes and dried parsley. Cook down wine for 3-4 minutes.
  4. Add shrimp and pasta water to sauce. Cook shrimp 2-3 minutes per side until shrimp are pink/orange and shaped like Cs.  Turn shrimp during cooking to ensure even cooking.
  5. Turn off heat to sauce, and add drained pasta and cheese to sauce. Toss to coat pasta.
  6. Serve immediately.  Add fresh cracked black pepper if desired.
  7. 

Do you have any memories of cooking on vacation?


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4 responses to “Shrimp Scampi Linguini”

  1. Sandra Avatar

    I blog frequently and I truly appreciate your content. The article has truly peaked my interest. I am going to book mark your website and keep checking for new information about once per week. I subscribed to your Feed as well.

  2. Amy Avatar
    Amy

    Great recipe idea. Plus I always love your step by step photos. You make cooking look easy!

  3. Becky @ Olives n Wine Avatar

    This recipe looks amazing, Rachel! I love shrimp scampi AND cooking with wine 😉