Shrimp Scampi is the perfect Italian comfort food to prepare for seafood lovers who have a penchant for spicy heat.
Tender linguine noodle are tossed in a buttery white wine sauce with prawns fried in loads of minced garlic, finely chopped parsley and hot red chillies.
We’re certain your friends will love twirling their forks through this mouth-watering Shrimp and Chilli Pasta recipe!
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What Is Shrimp Scampi?
The word “scampi” originally refers to a type of small, lobster-like crustacean found in the Mediterranean, known in Italy as langostino. In Italy, scampi were typically prepared by sautéing them in garlic, butter, and white wine, often served as an appetizer.
When Italian immigrants arrived in the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, they adapted the dish to local ingredients. Shrimp, more widely available than true scampi, became the star protein.
The classic Italian technique of cooking in garlic, butter, and wine remained, but it was paired with pasta, especially linguine or spaghetti, creating the version now widely known as shrimp scampi.
There’s nothing quite as comforting as a plate of shrimp scampi with pasta, tender prawns sautéed in garlic, butter, and olive oil, tossed with al dente linguine, and brightened with fresh lemon juice and parsley.
This now iconic Italian–American dish is elegant enough for entertaining yet simple enough for a weeknight dinner, making it a staple in seafood and pasta lovers’ kitchens.
The combination of garlic, chili, and fresh parsley gives the dish a fragrant aroma, while the buttery, lemony sauce perfectly coats each strand of linguine.
Topped with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese, this shrimp scampi is both rich and refreshing, capturing the essence of Italian coastal cooking.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Customizable: Add extra chili for heat, more lemon for brightness, or even a splash of white wine for depth
- Quick and easy: Ready in under 30 minutes, perfect for busy weeknights
- Bursting with flavour: Garlic, lemon, and chili combine to create a perfectly balanced sauce
- Elegant presentation: Looks like a restaurant-quality dish with minimal effort
Ingredients You’ll Need
I love this recipe because it features so many pantry and fridge staples that you will likely already have in your kitchen. It’s the perfect dish to whip last minute if you have a bag of prawns loitering in your freezer.
- Pasta: we suggest using a long and thin dried pasta like linguine, fettuccine, spaghetti or angel hair.
- Prawns: whether you call them prawns or shrimp, you can use mini, large or jumbo varieties. Just ensure you devein and remove the tails and shells from the prawns before cooking them in the skillet.
- Garlic: use loads of fresh garlic to ward off vampires.
- Chilli: we like to use Thai Long Red Chilies but you can substitute for any fresh chilli or even jalapeno pepper in a pinch. A teaspoon or two of dried chilli flakes can do the trick too!
- Parsley: we like to use Italian-style flat leaf parsley but you can use curly parsley as a substitute.
- Olive Oil: use a good quality extra virgin olive oil.
- Butter: we suggest using unsalted butter and then seasoning the final dish with kosher salt to get the balance right before serving.
- Lemon Juice: only use fresh lemon juice, never concentrate, you can taste the quality difference!
- Lemon Zest: zest adds an additional citrus punch, elevating the flavour profile.
- Dry White Wine: we suggest using varietals like sauvignon blanc, riesling or chardonnay.
- Parmesan Cheese: use a well aged parmigiano reggiano.
How To Make Shrimp Scampi
This pasta dish is a fool proof recipe requiring very few kitchen tools so clean up is quick and easy!
- Cook the linguine: Boil linguine in salted water until al dente, usually around 7–8 minutes. Drain and set aside.
- Sauté aromatics: In a large skillet, pan-fry garlic, chili, and parsley in 2 tablespoons of olive oil over high heat for about 5 minutes until fragrant.
- Cook the prawns: Add the prawns to the skillet and stir for 2 minutes until they start to turn pink. Add the butter and let it foam for an additional minute.
- Combine pasta and sauce: Add the drained pasta, remaining olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, and white wine. Season with kosher salt and black pepper to taste. Toss everything together until the pasta is evenly coated in the buttery sauce.
- Serve: Divide into bowls and top with shredded parmesan cheese. Serve immediately while hot.
Tips For Perfect Shrimp Scampi
We’ve included a few helpful tips and tricks for those cooking this recipe for the first time:
- Use a large pot or Dutch Oven to cook the linguine noodles so they can be fully submerged in the boiling salt water. This will ensure they cook evenly.
- We suggest using a long and thin pasta shape like linguine, fettuccine or spaghetti.
- You can use any size of prawn you prefer but ensure they are deveined and have their tails and shells removed before cooking them in the skillet.
- Don’t overcook the shrimp: Prawns cook quickly, just until pink and opaque for tender results
- We like to use Thai Long Red Chilies but you can substitute for any fresh chilli or even jalapeno pepper in a pinch. A teaspoon of chilli flakes or chilli powder can do the trick if your grocery store is out of the fresh stuff.
- We suggesting using Italian-style flat leaf parsley but you can use curly parsley as a substitute.
- We suggest using a dry white wine like sauvignon blanc, riesling or chardonnay.
- Optional add-ins: Cherry tomatoes, or capers for more complexity
- Toss pasta right in the sauce so every strand is coated with flavour
- We like to sprinkle the pasta with parmesan cheese but you can use other Italian aged cows milk cheeses like asiago or pecorino.
Serving Suggestions
There’s nothing more comforting than cozying up to a bowl of Shrimp Scampi with a chilled glass of Pinot Grigio.
Our favourite seafood-lovers pasta is perfectly creamy and light so we like to serve it alongside a fresh salad.
If you’re hosting an Italian-themed party we suggest serving this Prawn and Chilli Pasta recipe as part of a dinner buffet featuring other popular dishes like:
- Burrata Bruschetta Crostini
- Italian Burrata Caprese Salad
- Summer Grilled Peach and Burrata Salad
- Italian Stromboli Pizza
- Spicy Italian Pork Sausage Burgers
- Italian Veal Piccatina al Limone
- Fresh Fig Prosciutto Grilled Cheese Sandwich
- Gorgonzola Risotto al Radicchio
- Crispy Roast Chicken and Leek Risotto
- Sartu Di Riso Italian Baked Risotto
- Roasted Tomato and Mozzarella Caprese Risotto
- Involtini di Pollo
- Chocolate Hazelnut Ferrero Rocher Cake
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- Vegetarian Caprese Ravioli Pasta
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- Lumache Rigate Snail Pasta with Garlic Butter
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- Ndunderi Amalfi Lemon Ricotta Gnocchi
- Älplermagronen Cheesy Swiss Alpine Macaroni
- Maccheroni al Ferretto Pasta with Beef Ragu
- Caprese Gnocchi Cheese Bake Casserole
- Homemade Corzetti Pasta
- Culurgiones Sardinian Cheese & Potato Stuffed Pasta
- Caramelized Shallot Pasta in Cream Sauce
- Spicy Vegetarian Harissa Pasta
Shrimp Scampi
Equipment
- French knife
- measuring cups
- measuring spoons
- Large pot
- Spatula or Wooden Spoon
- Skillet
Ingredients
- 500 g Linguine
- 400 g Raw Prawns shells removed, deveined
- 4 Garlic Cloves minced
- 2 Long Red Chilli seeds removed, finely chopped
- 1/4 cup Fresh Parsley finely chopped
- 1/3 cup Olive Oil
- 1/3 cup Unsalted Butter
- 3/4 cup Lemon Juice
- 1 tsp Lemon Zest
- 1/4 cup Dry White Wine
- Kosher Salt + Black Pepper
- 1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese shredded
Instructions
- Cook linguine until al dente per package directions (usually around 7-8 minutes).
- In a large skillet pan-fry the garlic, chilli, and parsley in 2 tbsp of oil over high heat for 5 minutes.
- Add the prawns and stir for 2 minutes. Add the butter and let foam for an additional minute.
- Add the strained pasta noodles along with lemon juice, zest, remaining oil and white wine. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Stir to combine then serve immediately in bowls topped with parmesan cheese.
Nutrition
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