Shrimp Scampi Linguine is an easy and delicious weeknight dinner. It has lightly marinated and perfectly cooked shrimp serve with linguine in a buttery lemon garlic sauce spiked with a little white wine. It comes together really quickly but looks and tastes like it came from a fancy restaurant!
If you love this shrimp recipe then also check out these recipes for Shrimp Carbonara, Cajun Shrimp and Instant Pot Shrimp Risotto.
Ingredients & Supplies
Here are the items you will need to make this Shrimp Scampi Linguine recipe:
- Large skillet
- Microplane or zester
- 1 lb large shrimp peeled and deveined
- kosher salt and pepper
- garlic cloves
- extra virgin olive oil
- butter
- red pepper flakes
- dry white wine chardonnay or pinot grigio work great
- 2 lemons
- parsley
- 12 oz linguine
- fresh grated parmesan cheese for serving
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
There is a difference (a big difference) in Olive Oil and Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Of course in how they are processed, but we are just concerned with flavor here. Extra Virgin Olive Oil has a distinct buttery slightly salty flavor and can even be a little spicy, while olive oil has little to no flavor.
You will want to make sure that you use EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OIL for this recipe. The flavor that it imparts is crucial to getting the right taste in your sauce. If you use traditional Olive Oil your sauce will not taste as robust.
Shrimp
When you buy shrimp you have a variety of size options. For this shrimp scampi dish you will want to buy a “large” shrimp. It may be marked by how many shrimp come in a pound: 21/25 or 26/30 will both be good options for this dish. You can find more on shrimp sizes here.
If you buy frozen shrimp let it thaw in the fridge overnight. For a quick thaw you can place the frozen shrimp in a zip lock baggie and place in a bowl of cool water for 10-15 minutes.
White Wine
Make sure that you purchase a wine that is not sweet. A chardonnay or pinot grigio are both good bets that don’t lean too sweet. I would steer clear of Riesling and Sauvignon Blanc as they can tend to go pretty sweet!
I like to buy a carton of white wine for this recipe since I do not drink a ton of white wine.
PRO TIP: You can freeze your leftover white wine, as long as you only intend to cook with it. Freeze it in the carton (not bottle), ice cube tray, or a freezer safe container. Just make sure you leave room in the container for it to expand while it freezes. It should last 4-6 months.
How to Make Shrimp Scampi Linguine
This recipe comes together really quick, so I HIGHLY RECCOMEND that you prep all the ingredients before you get started: mince the garlic, measure the extra virgin olive oil, cube the butter, zest and squeeze the lemons, chop the parsley, measure out spices/seasonings.
Now that you are all ready, place a pot of salted water on the stove to boil (this will be to cook the linguine).
Place the shrimp in a bowl and add the salt and pepper, 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, 1 garlic clove minced and ½ teaspoon lemon zest. Let it marinate for about 15 minutes.
Go ahead and pop the linguine in the boiling water now.
Place a large skillet over medium heat add 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil to the pan. When it is hot add the shrimp and sauté for 1 minute per side, it will start to turn light pink. Remove from the pan and set aside on a plate.
In that same skillet add the garlic and red pepper flakes and sauté for 30 seconds (don’t let the garlic brown).
Pour in the wine and lemon juice. Let it simmer for about 2 minutes. Then stir in the butter cubes, letting them melt.
Add the cooked shrimp back to the pan along with any juices on the plate. Stir in the parsley, lemon zest and cooked linguine.
Toss everything together and serve!!
Serving
Serve the Shrimp Scampi Linguine topped with fresh grated parmesan cheese and lemon wedges.
This goes great with a Caesar or Italian Salad and some crusty warm bread.
Shrimp Scampi Linguine Recipe
Shrimp Scampi Linguine
Equipment
- Large skillet
Ingredients
- 1 lb large shrimp peeled and deveined
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 4 garlic cloves minced and divided
- 3 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil divided (see note)
- 5 tablespoon butter cubed
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes (less if you are sensitive to spice)
- ½ cup dry white wine chardonnay or pinot grigio work great
- 3 tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice
- 2 tablespoon chopped parsley
- 1 teaspoon zest of a lemon divided
- 12 oz linguine cooked per package instructions
- fresh grated parmesan cheese
Instructions
- THIS RECIPE COMES TOGETHER VERY QUICKLY. I recommend while the shrimp marinates that you get all your ingredients measured and prepped.
- In a large bowl toss the shrimp with 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, 1 minced garlic clove, ½ teaspoon lemon zest, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, and ½ teaspoon black pepper. Let this marinate for 15-20 minutes.
- In a large pot of salted boiling water cook the linguine per package instructions.
- While the pasta is cooking, in a large skillet over medium heat add the remaining 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil. When it is hot sauté the shrimp for approx. 1 minute per side. Using tongs transfer the shrimp to a plate.
- In the same skillet add the remaining 3 minced garlic cloves and red pepper flakes, sauté for 30 second, not allowing the garlic to brown.
- Pour in the wine and lemon juice and simmer for about 2 minutes.
- Add the cubed butter and simmer in the sauce until it is melted and the sauce is thickening, about 1 minute.
- Add the shrimp to the pan along with any juices from the plate, chopped parsley, lemon zest and the cooked linguine.
- Toss everything together so the pasta is coated with the sauce.
- Serve immediately with fresh grated parmesan cheese.
Notes:
If nutrition facts are provided they are calculated as an estimate to the best of our knowledge.
Kim
This recipe is soooo good!! I add sun dried tomatoes to mine for an extra zing!
John
I had this for dinner last night and it was sooooo good!