Description
A delicious, creamy one‑pot pasta dish with garlic, butter, shrimp, and lemon — minimal cleanup, maximum flavor.
Ingredients
- 8 oz (≈ 225 g) pasta (e.g. linguine, spaghetti)
- 1 lb (≈ 450 g) shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 4 tbsp unsalted butter, divided
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
- 1 cup low‑sodium chicken stock or pasta water
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- ½ tsp Italian seasoning
- Salt and black pepper, to taste
- Juice of 1 lemon (≈ 2 tbsp)
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- Fresh parsley, chopped, for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pasta until just al dente. Reserve about ½ cup pasta water, then drain pasta.
- In the same pot over medium‑high heat, melt 2 tbsp butter. Add shrimp, season with salt and pepper, and cook until opaque (2–3 minutes). Remove shrimp and set aside.
- Add the remaining 2 tbsp butter to the pot. Sauté garlic and red pepper flakes until fragrant (≈30 seconds to 1 minute).
- Stir in chicken stock (or reserved pasta water), heavy cream, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Simmer for 2–3 minutes until slightly thickened.
- Add pasta back into the pot along with the cooked shrimp. Stir to combine.
- Mix in Parmesan cheese and lemon juice. If sauce is too thick, loosen with extra pasta water or stock.
- Garnish with chopped parsley and serve immediately.
Notes
- Do not overcook shrimp — they cook very quickly.
- Reserve pasta water: the starch helps bind the sauce.
- Adjust salt depending on how salty your stock or pasta water is.
- You can omit heavy cream (or reduce it) for a lighter version, but sauce will be less rich.
- Feel free to add veggies like spinach, mushrooms, or sun‑dried tomatoes for extra color and flavor.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: ≈ 532 kcal
- Sugar: ≈ 2 g
- Sodium: ≈ 500 mg
- Fat: ≈ 25 g
- Saturated Fat: ≈ 15 g
- Unsaturated Fat: ≈ 10 g
- Trans Fat: ≈ 1 g
- Carbohydrates: ≈ 45 g
- Fiber: ≈ 2 g
- Protein: ≈ 32 g
- Cholesterol: ≈ 247 mg
