A scrumptious Shrimp Scampi Pasta recipe that’s made without wine, and ready to be plated within 30 minutes! Enjoy a rich sauce with butter, garlic, and lemon flavors, plus some chili flakes for that bit of heat.
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**Recipe originally published: June 25, 2022, Post updated: February 8, 2023
Welcome back to my Shrimp Series! As big time shrimp lovers, my husband and I have been having the time of our lives polishing off each dish that’s prepped for this series. So if you’d like to check out the other recipes, you can click here.
For Day 6, we’re circling back to another easy shrimp and pasta dish — shrimp scampi pasta!
Shrimp Scampi with Angel Hair Pasta
Having origins from Italy, this dish was traditionally made with scampi, which are crustaceans belonging to the lobster family. As it made its way over to America, people started making the dish with shrimp instead. But despite that, both names were merged together, and kept until today.
A pasta dish containing scintillating bursts of flavor, this classic shrimp scampi is filled with buttery, garlic goodness and hints of lemon. This recipe is one that’s made without wine, but it’s substituted with a sugar and pasta water combo in order to round out the flavor.
For shrimp scampi, you’ll find that there are variations on the type of pasta that’s used. In my case, I love to use angel hair pasta! However, feel free to swap it with any pasta of your choice.
Dinner or Appetizer
It can not only be a filling meal for lunch or dinner, but you can dress it down by skipping the pasta and you’ve got yourself a delicious appetizer. Serve with some crusty bread so that you can mop up all that sinful sauce.
Ingredients You’ll Need
(For full ingredient measurements, please proceed to the recipe card below.)
- Pasta: I used angel hair pasta, but feel free to swap it with your choice of pasta. Some great options are spaghetti, fettuccine and linguine.
- Shrimp: Peeled and deveined. Leaving the shrimp tail on or off is up to your preference. I love leaving it on because it gives some extra flavor to the dish.
- Olive oil
- Butter
- Chili flakes: You can adjust the amount up to your preference. If you’re sensitive to spiciness, I suggest reducing the amount you use when cooking. Then serve extra chili flakes on the side.
- Salt
- Garlic
- Sugar
- Lemon juice
- Grated parmesan
- Parlsey finely minced
- Lemon zest
Instructions
- Boil the pasta per instructions and reserve 1/2 cup of pasta water.
- In a pan over medium heat, melt 1/2 tbsp of butter with 1/2 tbsp of oil. Once it’s hot enough add shrimp. Season with salt and pepper and let it cook for 1-2 minutes before flipping it over. Let it cook for another 1-2minutes. Remove from the pan.
- Turn heat down to medium low and pour in olive oil. Add sliced garlic and chili flakes.
- Let that cook for a minute before adding 2 tbsp butter. Once the butter melts, stir and let it cook for another minute.
- Once the mixture is gently simmering, add salt, sugar, parmesan, lemon juice, lemon zest and parsley. Stir then pour in pasta water. Stir and bring to a simmer.
- Once simmering, add the pasta and stir until well combined. Add shrimp and stir then turn off the heat (see notes). Optional step: add 1 tbsp of butter and stir until it melts.
- Add more parsley, parmesan and chili flakes on top when serving. Enjoy!
Notes for Shrimp Scampi Pasta (Without Wine)
- Alcohol free: This is a non-alcoholic version of Shrimp Scampi pasta. The sugar + pasta water combination is a substitute for white wine.
- Substitute pasta water: You can substitute pasta water with heavy cream for a creamy version of Shrimp Scampi.
- Serve: I like to leave the pasta in the pan for a few minutes before serving to soak up all that delicious sauce. This dish is best eaten when hot.
- Adjust seasonings: Adjust amount of garlic, chili flakes and seasoning to your preference.
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Shrimp Scampi Pasta (Without Wine)
Ingredients
- 2 servings pasta I used angel hair pasta
- 6-8 shrimp peeled and deveined
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 3.5 tbsp butter
- 3/4 tbsp chili flakes
- 1 tsp salt
- 8 cloves garlic sliced
- 1.5 tsp sugar
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 1/3 cup grated parmesan
- 1/4 cup parlsey finely minced
- lemon zest
Instructions
- Boil the pasta per instructions and reserve 1/2 cup of pasta water.
- In a pan over medium heat, melt 1/2 tbsp of butter with 1/2 tbsp of oil. Once it's hot enough add shrimp. Season with salt and pepper and let it cook for 1-2 minutes before flipping it over. Let it cook for another 1-2minutes. Remove from the pan.
- Turn heat down to medium low and pour in olive oil. Add sliced garlic and chili flakes.
- Let that cook for a minute before adding 2 tbsp butter. Once the butter melts, stir and let it cook for another minute.
- Once the mixture is gently simmering, add salt, sugar, parmesan, lemon juice, lemon zest and parsley. Stir then pour in pasta water. Stir and bring to a simmer.
- Once simmering, add the pasta and stir until well combined. Add shrimp and stir then turn off the heat (see notes). Optional step: add 1 tbsp of butter and stir until it melts.
- Add more parsley, parmesan and chili flakes on top when serving. Enjoy!
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