When you want to be fancy but also lazy, this one-pot creamy shrimp scampi is the dinner option for you!
You’ll love the lemon and white wine flavor of the classic shrimp scampi dish combined with the richness of alfredo sauce. This is a pasta dish that’s so delicious you’ll feel like you’re out to eat, yet it’s all very easy to make yourself, at home. I bet it will become a go-to dinner option after you try it.
Creamy Shrimp Scampi — perfect for a quick and easy weeknight meal.
This is one of my favorite weeknight meals because it’s simple to prep and I almost always have all the ingredients I need to make this, on hand. Plus I cook everything in one pot. My cast iron skillet.*
I use frozen raw shrimp, so no need to even plan ahead because no defrosting is necessary. Brilliant. We all need more meals like this in our lives, am I right?
*A note about cast iron skillets: acidic food like lemons and tomatoes can wear away the seasoning on your cast iron skillet so be sure your skillet is well seasoned and use extra butter or oil if you feel the need to add a layer of protection. You can also just use a non-stick skillet or a dutch oven for this recipe.
No need for jarred Alfredo sauce.
Using a simple roux base (butter + flour) you can make your own Alfredo sauce in just a few minutes. Parmesan cheese gives this homemade Alfredo sauce it’s classic cheesy flavor and creamy texture. This homemade sauce tastes 100 times better than any jarred sauce available and is so easy there’s no reason not to go for it!
What ingredients are needed to make this creamy shrimp scampi alfredo recipe?
Even though we’re making the sauce from scratch, you only need a handful of ingredients.
Here’s everything you’ll need: raw shrimp (I use frozen shrimp), pasta (spaghetti or linguine), butter and flour to create your roux, white cooking wine, lemon juice, grated Parmesan cheese, and milk. Parsley is optional for garnish and added flavor but highly encouraged and it really makes this dish look amazing when plated too!
You’ll love how easy this creamy shrimp scampi is to make!
Watch the video to see step-by-step how this delicious dinner dish comes together in less than 30 minutes.
White wine and lemon add a bit of tang and sophistication.
If ever you want to jazz up a weeknight meal, just add some sort of cooking alcohol. That’s my motto. And for this dish, it totally works.
For a non-alcoholic version, you can substitute champagne vinegar, rice wine vinegar or white wine vinegar for the wine, just use a little less of it so it’s not overly vinegary and balance it out with more lemon juice.
When you make a sauce with lemon and white wine, it’s often times called shrimp scampi. So this dish is very similar in flavor but we are introducing Parmesan cheese here for an extra boost of flavor and richness and the roux make this sauce thick which help it stick to the noodles and shrimp.
Add chicken to this dish.
Feel free to sub or add chicken to this dish. Shrimp and chicken go really well together and the flavors of this dish work really well with both.
Make this dish kid-friendly.
Easy. If you have picky eaters, just set some plain noodles and plain cooked shrimp aside and add a veggies.
Make everything in one pot.
Using a dutch oven, you can boil the noodles, drain then set those aside. And then use the same pot to cook the remaining ingredients of this dish. Using just one pot makes clean up so easy! I have a 6-quart Lodge Dutch Oven (in green!) that I love and use all the time for one-pot meals and for literally almost everything I cook.
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You can also use a large cast iron skillet to cook this one-pot meal.
What veggies go well with this creamy shrimp scampi pasta?
A side salad goes great with this dish. Or if you’re in the mood for something warm, roast some veggies. I really love roasted asparagus, Brussels sprouts or broccoli with this pasta dish.
Love easy pasta dishes?
Creamy Shrimp Scampi
Ingredients
- 8 oz spaghetti noodles or linguine pasta
- 6 tbsp butter divided
- 3 tbsp flour
- 12 oz frozen raw shrimp
- ¼ cup white wine
- 1 tbsp lemon juice freshly squeezed is best!
- 2 cups milk, half and half or cream
- ¼ cup Parmesan cheese
- ¼ tsp garlic salt more or less to taste
- fresh parsley for garnish optional
Instructions
- Prepare spaghetti noodles according to package. Drain and set aside.
- Rinse frozen shrimp under luke warm water until separated. Pat dry with paper towel.
- Melt 2 tbsp butter in large skillet over medium heat. Stir and cook just until the shrimp turns pink, about 4-6 minutes. Remove from pan and set aside.
- Add and melt 4 tbsp butter to skillet. Whisk in flour. Let bubble for 2 minutes then add white wine, lemon juice, milk and Parmesan cheese. Bring to a boil, stir until thick. Add garlic salt to taste.
- Add shrimp and noodles to Parmesan Alfredo sauce and gently toss to coat. Add fresh parsley as a garnish to your plates or toss it in with everything in the pan. Your choice! Serve hot.
Steph
Monday 31st of January 2022
I’ve made shrimp scampi numerous times and I was just looking up a recipe to see if I could find an easier one with the cheese white sauce. But 5 pounds of shrimp??? and 8 ounces?? of spaghetti? I think there’s something off with the amounts!
Patty Scott
Friday 21st of January 2022
I made this and added a new category…SUPER GOOD! Sorry I didn’t take a picture…
Angela G.
Friday 21st of January 2022
Aww yay! Glad you enjoyed it! It’s one of my favorite super easy dinners. ☺️
Ella
Tuesday 16th of November 2021
Quick and easy. Very good! Only I added chopped garlic and some chicken bouillon. Delicious!