Garlic Butter Shrimp Pasta with shrimps in garlic butter sauce served over al dente pasta. Ready in minutes and with the most amazing flavor, it’s the perfect weeknight dinner!
Halabos na hipon is a type of Filipino dish where shell-on shrimps are cooked in butter, garlic, and 7-up. It was what I planned to cook for dinner today and I was eagerly anticipating since early morning how I’d enjoy the succulent morsels of my favorite crustacean with humongous helpings of steamed rice. Alas, come prep time, I opened our pantry only to discover we were out of Jasmine rice. Ugh.
We had, however, boxes and boxes and more boxes of pasta in various shapes and types.
With my mind set on a seafood meal, I peeled the shrimps, stir-fried them briefly in a garlic, butter, and basil mixture and served them over angel hair pasta. What an amazing meal it turned out to be! Garlicky, buttery, and slightly spicy, I was actually we didn’t have rice. 🙂
This garlic shrimp pasta is quick and easy to make yet packs big, bold flavors. Ready in minutes with pantry ingredients, it’s perfect for family weeknight dinners yet fancy enough for company. Since it’s such a simple dish, here are a couple of tips to maximize flavor.
- Garlic is the major flavor component here but it was one aromatic that takes mere seconds to burn. When the butter JUST begins to melt, add the butter and continue to cook the garlic on medium-low heat so you extract full flavor before they brown.
- Cook the shrimps on high heat to quickly sear and lock in their natural juices. The olive oil will help stabilize the butter to prevent burning.
- As the angel hair pasta will continue to cook when tossed with the rest of the ingredients, decrease cook time about 1 minute less than recommended on the package.
Ingredients
- 1 pound angel hair pasta
- 1 cup butter
- 1 head garlic, peeled and minced
- 1 tablespoon fresh basil, chiffonaded
- 1/2 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes
- 1 pound large shrimps, peeled and deveined, leaving tail intact
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 tablespoon Parmesan cheese, grated
Instructions
- In a pot over medium heat, bring about 4 quarts of lightly-salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for about 4 to 5 minutes. Remove from pot and drain well.
- In a wide skillet over medium-low heat, add butter. When butter just begins to melt, add garlic and continue to cook, stirring regularly, for about 2 to 3 minutes or until lightly browned and aromatic.
- Add basil and chili flakes. Remove garlic butter sauce from pan, leaving about 1 tablespoon, and set aside.
- Increase heat to high. Add shrimps and cook for about 2 to 3 minutes or until color changes to pink and cooked through. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Add pasta, garlic butter sauce, and parmesan cheese. Gently toss to combine and continue to cook just until heated through.
- Divide onto serving plates and garnish with Parmesan cheese. Serve hot.
Nutrition Information
“This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.”
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