Shrimp Scampi

The magic of a Scampi is that it is stupid easy. Really, the only hard part about it is taking a reality check about just how much of each ingredient you are using. 5 ingredients, maybe 10 minutes. But good lordy, once you chop up that garlic you will surely do a double take. And just don’t think about the butter.

Just. Ignore. It. Eat it anyway.

Get your pasta rolling and make sure that your shrimp is peeled. I like to take the tails off of mine, you may leave them if you like. Shuck 6 or 7 large cloves of garlic and chop them fine. You can use the jarred stuff if you prefer; it will take about 3 tablespoons to make it so.

Over medium high heat, melt 2 or so tablespoons of butter. You want the butter to melt, but you really don’t want it to brown. Once it is melted, toss in the shrimp and let them start to curl, then add the garlic. All of it. You want to get the garlic in the pan BEFORE the shrimp turn fully pink and curl tightly. The garlic should soften, but should not toast and turn brown. That just makes it crunchy and nobody likes that.

At this point, I would add some more butter and a pinch of salt. There should be visible butter puddles in the pan. Drain the pasta and twirl it into the pan, catching up the shrimp and garlic until everything is integrated.

Remove from heat and serve. Many chefs will dust this dish with chopped parsley, be sparing. You can also top with shaved parmesan.

If you are adding vegetables, you will need to determine the cook time of them before you add the extra butter. I tend to like peas in this which don’t take long to cook, so I would add them with the garlic. If you wanted something like broccoli, you would add it with the shrimp. Squashes should go with the shrimp.