Shrimp Scampi with Sun Dried Tomatoes

A very easy weekday meal that has loads of flavor that everyone will enjoy.

Shrimp scampi ready to serve

Simply Scrumptious

Recently, I had a chance to buy a kilo of shrimp from a colleague’s friend who farms shrimp in Mukah, on the central coast of Sarawak. This shrimp had been harvested just the night before and looked temptingly scrumptious. I tossed a few ideas around but then decided that for such fresh shrimp, I would keep it simple, so I went with shrimp scampi.

I don’t really have a recipe for shrimp scampi but I know that it’s a very simple, basic dish that calls for butter and garlic and some parsley. I had everything except the parsley but I decided that I would go ahead with the dish using what I had on hand.

Key Ingredient

The one key ingredient I added was sun-dried tomatoes and let me tell you something—shrimp scampi with loads of butter and garlic is yummy BUT shrimp scampi with loads of butter, garlic AND sun-dried tomatoes is YUMMIER!

For a weekday meal, this dish could not be easier. And my whole family inhaled this in no time flat. Two weeks later, I made it again for a fellowship evening, and even with a lot of other foods, this huge bowl of pasta got devoured very quickly.

Shrimp Scampi with Sun Dried Tomatoes Recipe

Prep time: 30 min Cook time: 20 min

Ingredients:

1 kg shrimp (about 2 lbs), any size you like but medium-large is preferable
3-4 Tbsp olive oil
2 oz butter
1 small head garlic, minced (about 5-6 Tbsp)
1/2 cup dry white wine
3 Tbsp sun dried tomatoes in oil, chopped or in strips (make sure you get some of the flavorful oil from the jar in your sauce too)
lemon juice from 1/2 a lemon, or more to taste
about 1 Tbsp fresh ground black pepper and salt to taste
500 g linguine noodles
chopped parsley/green onions (for garnish)

Method:

1. Start a large pot of water boiling for pasta. Let your linguine cook while your shrimp scampi is being prepped and cooked. Don’t forget to salt your pasta water liberally before cooking the pasta (my rule of thumb is that it should taste like the sea, about 1 Tbsp of salt or more)

2. Peel shrimp, saving as much of the meat from the head as possible. Soak the shrimp in a salt brine (fill bowl with the shrimp with water until shrimp is submerged, sprinkle on 1 Tbsp salt and stir and let sit for 30 minutes).

Shrimp olive oil garlic and butter

3. In a large heavy-bottomed pan, heat up 3-4 Tbsp olive oil and a half stick (2 oz) of butter on med-high heat. Just as the butter is almost melted, add the minced garlic and saute till lightly brown.

4. Remove shrimp from brine. Rinse and drain then add shrimp in one layer to the pan. Turn the heat to medium and let cook for about 2 minutes, flip and let the other side cook till just pink. Add the wine, sun-dried tomatoes, and lemon juice. Let the sauce simmer for about a minute.

Adding sun dried tomatoes and lemon juice to shrimp scampi

5. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

6. Add your cooked linguine to the pan and toss with the shrimp and sauce. Taste and adjust seasoning or add more olive oil, if needed. Finish by adding parsley or green onion and giving it a final toss.

Adding linguine and green onions to shrimp scampi

7. Serve up and enjoy!

Shrimp scampi ready to serve

Cook’s Notes

Some tips on the shrimp—get the ones with the head on if you can. You want to peel everything off but get as much of the stuff in the head to come off too—when the shrimp is cooking, the tomalley from the head will thicken the sauce and add sweetness and wonderful shrimpy flavor to your sauce.

If you want, you can leave the tail on for prettier presentation but I just peel them all off for EASIER eating. ^_^ Finally, I find that brining the shrimp for about 30 minutes prior to cooking helps to give your shrimp an added bounciness and crunch. I just soak the peeled shrimp in a bowl of water and add about 1 Tablespoon of salt to it, and I drain and rinse the shrimp off before using.

Cheers, Annie

What would you do with fresh shrimp like this? Leave a comment below and share with us!

I am entering this post in the Presto Pasta Nights #262 roundup, hosted by Ruth from Once Upon a Feast.

Other Shrimp Scampi posts by: Cooking for Engineers, Simply Recipes, Good Life Eats, Eating Club Vancouver, The Food Addicts

17 thoughts on “Shrimp Scampi with Sun Dried Tomatoes”

  1. I shouldn’t have looked at this post. I am soooo hungry. A kilo of shrimp sounds heavenly. Did you guys have a big party? Let me know next time and I’ll fly in. 🙂 Seriously, this is my next recipe when I buy more shrimp.

    Alaiyo

    1. A –

      glad to hear it! We prepared this dish to take to our small group meeting. It was a hit with everyone there too 🙂

  2. Indeed beautiful, yet simple dish, which I can finish in no time flat 😀

    BTW, you mentioned Mukah. Have you been to Mukah? You should try their “umai”. Maybe you can include that in your post the next time 😉

  3. IH –

    we haven’t been to Mukah yet. I really want to go, but will have to see. So many places in Sarawak to visit!

  4. First, thanks for sharing this droolingly, sinfully looking dish with Presto Pasta Nights. I love shrimp served up any way. That said, I don’t think I’ve ever had fresh shrimp. Living in Nova Scotia, on the Atlantic Ocean, there are lots of local salt water delights, but shrimp is usually fished and flash frozen somewhere much further south before it makes it here.

  5. Looks delicious! And nothing beats fresh shrimp (especially ones with the heads still on…how I miss them). Will give this dish a try one of these days. Thanks! 😀

  6. Heads on shrimps are so packed with flavor and without any doubt the tomalley from the head gives much more shrimpy depth to the noodles! YUM YUM YUM!

  7. Oh my. Guess what. I’m eating creamy shrimp tomato pasta right now!!! Otherwise I would be SO jealous. Now I’m just a LITTLE jealous. 😉

  8. I came here from BMEWS for the tri-tip. Loved it, went to your home page, loved that, you just made my blogroll! Wow! This site is excellent!

  9. Heya, I’m off to the store to buy everything on the ingredient list , except for the wine.. I have to say ur cooking always inspires me..

    Xoxo

  10. This is amazing. Everything I LOVE all wrapped up into one dish. Brilliant!

  11. Annie, I agree with John Thompson, (in comments), — the brining is a brilliant idea. I’m excited to try this. Lots of good tips in this recipe –and I totally agree about the sun-dried tomatoes — they add a deep spicy punch to recipes. Thanks!
    Josie

  12. Sadly, with a child deathly allergic to shellfish, this dish will have to wait till he’s out of the house. In the meantime, can this be adapted for chicken?

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