Shrimp Scampi: Easy yet Refined

It is raining in DC and spoiled my plans for grilling and making a bahn mi sandwich tonight. Shrimp scampi, probably an intimidating dish but actually an easy dish. It is flavorful, creamy, and spicy that is great for any time in the year from a rainy summer evening to a chilly winter night. It is a dish best served with a thicker noodle like spaghetti or linguine but can work with other past shapes.

Ingredients

• 4 cloves of crushed garlic
• Olive Oil
• 2 teaspoons of Red Chili Pepper flake
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1/4 Parmesan cheese
• 1 pound of shrimp
• 1 pound of spaghetti
• salt & pepper
• 1/2 jalapeno (sliced)
• 1/2 red onion (diced)
• 1-2 bunches of italian parsley (diced)
• 2 tablespoons of butter
• 1.5 cups of pasta water
• 1/4 cup of white wine (optional)
• cherry tomatoes (optional)

Method:

1. Boil the water and make sure the water is very salted (if it tastes like the ocean, you salted it properly). You should be able to cook the past while you are pan-frying the shrimp.
2. Marinade the shrimp at least a couple hours in advance. My classic go to is lemon juice, olive oil, paprika, chili powder, and pepper.
3. On medium, in a hot skillet, add the crush garlic, chili pepper flake, butter and olive oil until everything is well combine
4. Add the shrimp and let the shrimp and flip every once in a while. If there is extra olive oil, I try to bast the shrimp pieces. The shrimp cooks pretty quickly so keep a watchful eye.
5. By the time the shrimp are cooked, lower the heat to low and drain the pasta reserving about a 1.5 cups of pasta water
6. Add the onions, chili pepper, and cherry tomatoes (optional). This can be done as the shrimp are getting closer to being fully cooked.
7. Add the pasta and pasta water back into the pot as well as the lemon juice.
8. Keep stirring and slowly adding the parmesan cheese until the sauce thickens.
9. Lastly, add the italian parsley to the mix.
10. Add Salt and Pepper back for taste
11. Serve with a little extra parmesan cheese on top.

You should have a wonderful and flavorful sauce. It doesn't take that long but it is perfect for any time of year. I am going to go back to enjoying this but let me know what you want to see next!