Why wait until you’re out at a restaurant to enjoy this Italian menu favorite? Our easy Shrimp Scampi recipe takes just 25 minutes to whip up at home. Garlicky, buttery, and totally irresistible, this shrimp scampi dish is light, bright, and perfect when paired with a simple starchy side and veggies!
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Food trends come and go, but classic Shrimp Scampi is one of those enduring dishes that has graced the menus of Italian restaurants for decades, and has never lost its popularity. And it’s no wonder: there’s just something extra comforting and luxurious about the combination of tender and succulent shrimp swimming in a luscious butter sauce with dry white wine, punchy garlic, and bright herbs.
And while many people think of Shrimp Scampi as a restaurant delicacy, it actually comes together quickly and easily at home with shrimp and a short list of easy to find, budget-friendly ingredients.
So the next time the craving for this addictively buttery and garlicky seafood recipe strikes, don’t make a reservation. Just like our Chicken Tikka Masala, Lobster Fettuccine Alfredo, and Crispy General Tso’s Chicken, this classic restaurant dish is even more delicious when cooked at home.
Looking for more family-friendly shrimp recipes? We’ve got a bunch. This honey garlic shrimp is full of flavor, this shrimp fajitas sheet pan dinner is as easy as it gets, and this shrimp fried rice is a GREAT way to use up any leftover rice you may have hanging out in the fridge!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Shrimp, garlic, white wine, and butter…need we say more?
- Ready in less than 30 minutes
- A restaurant-worthy meal that you can eat at home in sweats
- Super easy to scale up for a dinner party or big crowd
- Goes well with crusty bread (hello, cheesy garlic bread), rice, or pasta to soak up that delicious butter sauce
Shrimp Scampi Recipe Ingredients
Our easy shrimp scampi recipe is made with succulent shrimp, white wine, and a just handful of inexpensive and easy-to-find ingredients. Find ingredient notes (including substitutions and swaps) below.
- White Wine – an iconic ingredient in shrimp scampi! For our recipe, you’ll need ¾ cup of white wine. Don’t worry about the alcohol content in the wine. It will cook out, so you’ll be left with delicious flavor but no alcohol.
- Fresh Parsley – parsley is the herb of choice in shrimp scampi. You’ll need about a ¼ cup of packed fresh chopped parsley.
- Lemon Juice – fresh (fresh is key, for sure) lemon juice adds a really beautiful brightness to the dish. You’ll need 2 tablespoons here.
A full ingredient list with exact amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
Recipe Variations and Modifications
- Go dairy-free – instead of the butter, swap in extra olive oil or a vegan butter alternative.
- Omit the alcohol – just substitute fish, chicken, or vegetable broth for the white wine. (But don’t use red wine since it will muddy the butter sauce and overpower the flavor of the shrimp).
- Out of fresh parsley? – fresh or dried parsley adds a bright and grassy herbal flavor that’s the perfect accompaniment to the shrimp and garlic-white-wine-butter sauce. But you can use other herbs instead, including chives, tarragon, or basil.
- Mix up your seafood – it seems like everyone (and we do mean everyone) loves shrimp. But if it’s not your thing, or you want to try this sauce with other seafood, try bay scallops, sea scallops, get fancy with lobster tails, or white fish like cod, haddock, or sole. Chicken is a popular option too. Just adjust your cooking time accordingly if you swap in a different protein.
How to Make Shrimp Scampi
This recipe comes together easily in just 25 minutes. Follow along below.
Step 1: To start, you’ll want to add the butter and olive oil to a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once the butter is melted, add the garlic to the skillet and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly, until the garlic is fragrant and beginning to brown and the butter begins to foam.
Step 2: Pour the wine into the skillet, decrease the heat to medium-low, and simmer for 7-10 minutes, until the volume is reduced by half.
Step 3: While the wine is reducing, season the shrimp with the salt and pepper and toss to coat. Then, increase the heat on the skillet to medium-high heat.
Step 4: Working in batches, add the seasoned shrimp to the skillet, making sure it doesn’t overlap, and sear for 2-3 minutes per side, until the shrimp turn pink and curl in on themselves. Remove the shrimp from the skillet and set aside, then add the next batch of shrimp to the pan to cook.
Step 5: Once all of the shrimp is cooked, turn off the heat, then add all of the shrimp back to the pan along with the lemon juice and parsley, toss to combine, and serve!
Recipe Tips
- When choosing a wine, look for a dry, light-bodied white like Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Grigio. The flavor of more full-bodied whites like an oaky Chardonnay can be too overpowering.
- This recipe calls for thinly sliced garlic, which imparts a more subtle flavor than garlic that’s been finely minced.
How to Serve
Serve the scampi immediately, while the tender shrimp is still good and hot, with some crusty bread, cooked pasta, potatoes, or rice for soaking up the extra sauce.
If you’re looking for other yummy additions to your shrimp scampi, consider our:
How to Store and Reheat Shrimp Scampi
What’s the old saying: “Guests, like fish, begin to smell after three days?”
It’s true that fish and shellfish are always best when at their freshest, so eat any leftovers a day or two after cooking. (You can also freeze them for up to a few months.)
If you served the scampi with pasta or rice, store the elements separately so they don’t soak up all of the sauce while they sit.
Reheat the scampi gently, adding an additional splash of wine or a little nob of butter if there’s not a lot of sauce left.
Frequently Asked Questions
Scampi are actually small, lobster-like crustaceans that Americans are more likely to know as langoustines. Coastal Italians who immigrated to the U.S. swapped in more widely-available shrimp for the scampi in this recipe, but kept both names. As the dish has evolved, scampi has become shorthand for the popular butter-garlic sauce that is also great with chicken and other proteins. But technically, it refers to the langoustine/shrimp element of the dish.
And…what is Olive Garden scampi sauce made of? Is it the same dish? Many Americans probably ate Shrimp Scampi for the first time at one of nearly a thousand Olive Garden restaurants around the country. While the exact recipe is secret, it contains what we now think of as the “traditional” scampi ingredients: butter, garlic, white wine, chicken stock, and herbs. Our version is made with the same core ingredients — but without the excessive amounts of butter that are often added to restaurant dishes.
There are so many options when it comes to buying shrimp! Of course the easiest option is to grab shrimp that have been peeled and deveined by the folks at the seafood counter at your local grocery store. Or, buy them shell-on, if you don’t mind peeling and deveining them at home (shell-on options are usually less expensive). We’re pretty fuss-free around here, so we say don’t stress too much on the size of the shrimp: just grab what you can find + what fits into your budget. If you buy frozen shrimp, be sure to thaw them in the fridge before making this recipe. Do be sure to get raw shrimp, though, because it’s likely that your store sells bags of precooked shrimp as well, which will easily become chewy and tough when cooked for a second time.
Good question! The combination of butter and olive oil has two benefits. First, since olive oil has a higher smoke point than butter, it decreases the chances of the dish reaching those unhealthy heat levels. Second, the combination of rich, creamy butter and fruity, silky olive oil creates a flavor and texture that highlights the best of both ingredients.
The butter, garlic, white wine, and lemon pretty much guarantee fresh, really delicious flavor here, but if you’re still looking for something more, try adding some red pepper flakes to the finished dish!
If your shrimp ends up chewy, that probably means that you cooked it for too long. (Remember, shrimp only takes 2-3 minutes per side to cook — maybe even less if you’re using small shrimp.) As soon it’s pink all over and the blueish translucent look is gone, it’s done. Once shrimp curls up into a tight circle, it’s overcooked, so take it off the heat as soon as it’s pink all over and still looks like a loose “C,” not an “O” with a tail.
More of Our Best Shrimp Recipes
If you tried this easy Shrimp Scampi or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below!
Easy Shrimp Scampi Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 3/4 cup white wine
- 1/4 cup packed chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
- 1 pound shrimp, peeled and de-veined
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper
- 2 tablespoons freshly-squeezed lemon juice, from about 1 lemon
- Lemon wedges, for garnish, optional
- Noodles, for serving, if desired, optional
Instructions
- Add the butter and olive oil to a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once the butter is melted, add the garlic to the skillet and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly, until the garlic is fragrant and beginning to brown and the butter begins to foam.
- Pour the wine into the skillet, then decrease the heat to medium-low. Simmer for 7-10 minutes, until the volume is reduced by half.
- While the wine is reducing, season the shrimp with the salt and pepper and toss to coat. Then, increase the heat on the skillet to medium-high heat.
- Working in batches, add the seasoned shrimp to the skillet, making sure it doesn’t overlap, and sear for 2-3 minutes per side, until the shrimp turn pink and curl in on themselves. Remove the shrimp from the skillet and set aside, then add the next batch of shrimp to the pan to cook.
- Once all of the shrimp is cooked, turn off the heat, then add all of the shrimp back to the pan along with the lemon juice and parsley and toss to combine. Serve over noodles, or alongside rice, orzo, or roasted potatoes.
Recipe Notes
- Go dairy-free – instead of the butter, swap in extra olive oil or a vegan butter alternative.
- Omit the alcohol – just substitute fish, chicken, or vegetable broth for the white wine. (But don’t use red wine since it will muddy the butter sauce and overpower the flavor of the shrimp).
- Out of fresh parsley? – fresh or dried parsley adds a bright and grassy herbal flavor that’s the perfect accompaniment to the shrimp and garlic-white-wine-butter sauce. But you can use other herbs instead, including chives, tarragon, or basil.
- Mix up your seafood – it seems like everyone (and we do mean everyone) loves shrimp. But if it’s not your thing, or you want to try this sauce with other seafood, try bay scallops, sea scallops, get fancy with lobster tails, or white fish like cod, haddock, or sole. Chicken is a popular option too. Just adjust your cooking time accordingly if you swap in a different protein.
Nutrition
very delicious. and I love how quick and easy it came together! thanks for another winner!
You are so so welcome, Lindsey! We are so glad you loved it!
This Shrimp Scamp is delicious! I LOVE the lemon flavor on F & F recipes. However, When I was cooking the shrimp (medium heat with covered pan), I few like my sauce reduced too much and did not have a good amount of sauce to serve offer the pasta. Did I do something wrong?
Oh no! We are sorry to hear this was your experience, Thais. Glad to hear that you enjoyed the flavor. The sauce is definitely meant to be lighter on this dish since it is such a rich sauce, but we want you to feel like you have an adequate amount. We’re not sure why the sauce reduced in volume so much, especially since you used a lid, so not sure what happened! -Team FF
Loved this. I used chicken broth instead of wine and it was delicious.
What a great sub! Glad you enjoyed. Thank you for taking the time to share with us! -Team F&F
I just wanted to say no alcohol is wrong. There is a study saying alcohol takes 3 hours to cook out of a meal.
Thanks for the feedback!
I love Shrimp Scampi and this recipe was EXCELLENT! Super easy and tasted amazing. Full of flavor. Perfect over linguine. Thanks for such a delicious recipe. Will definitely save this one!
That’s so awesome, Clarissa! We’re so glad you loved this one. Thank you for sharing this with us!
Is the protein value per serving really only 0.4g? Seems like it should be higher…
Whoops, we forgot to add the shrimp into the nutrition facts. Great catch – thanks for letting us know that something was off! It should be fixed now.
Wait…where are you finding the nutrition info? I don’t see if anywhere.