ISO DELICIOUS Shrimp Scampi

QSis

QSis

Grill Master
Staff member
NCT Patron
I'm not a huge fan of shrimp, but I've tried tastes of other people's shrimp scampi when they've ordered it at a restaurant and have liked it. A lot!

I keep trying to make it, sometimes using various recipes, sometimes just winging it with butter, garlic and lemon. My attempts are .... i dunno ... watery and bland, instead of rich and buttery and garlicky. I guess I don't use enough of either?

I have a bag of frozen, uncooked, shell-on shrimp.

Now what?:unsure:

TIA!

Lee
 
I suggest you make clarified butter or buy some and use it instead of the whole butter. Another thing is don't over cook the shrimp, used concentrated lime/lemon but real lemons and fresh garlic. I like to roast my garlic also before using it with any shell fish. I also like to add a bit of fresh basil to mine but that is a personal thing. I also don't put the butter/garlic/lemon on the shrimp until done.
 
I make this recipe from the old Time-Life cookbook series every New Year's Eve at my wife's request. It's great, and especially suited for plain veggie such as steamed asparagus, a good loaf of crusty bread to sop up the sauce, and a nice bottle of Chardonnay to wash it all down.

SCAMPI WITH GARLIC BUTTER

1 pound of jumbo shrimp (prawns), peeled & deveined
¼ cup butter
¼ cup olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice (about ½ lemon)
¼ cup finely chopped shallots or scallions
1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
1 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup finely chopped parsley (preferably Italian flatleaf parsley)
Lemon wedges for garnish

1. Rinse shrimp and pat them dry with paper towels. Place in flame-proof baking dish in one layer.

2. Melt butter in olive oil over low heat, remove from heat and stir in lemon juice, shallots or green onions, garlic, salt, and pepper to taste. Pour over shrimp, and turn shrimp over to coat all sides. Allow to marinate for 15 to 30 minutes.

3. Preheat broiler to highest setting. Broil shrimp in butter sauce about 4 inches from heat for about 3 to 4 minutes or until they turn pink on the top side, then turn shrimp over and broil the other side for about 3 minutes or until they turn pink on that side, too; they will begin to brown on the edges and will feel firm when done. DO NOT OVER COOK! They will continue cooking a bit once removed from the broiler.

4. Remove from broiler, sprinkle with chopped parsley, and serve shrimp and sauce garnished with lemon wedges.
 
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Wow that sounds good except the cooking time, 8 minutes on shrimp seems like a long time to me even large ones. I grilled some tonight about 4 to 6 and took 2 minutes a side till done.
 
joec said:
Wow that sounds good except the cooking time, 8 minutes on shrimp seems like a long time to me even large ones. I grilled some tonight about 4 to 6 and took 2 minutes a side till done.
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Broilers are slower than grills, in my experience. Also, you're heating the sauce and the dish it's all in. Trick is to watch closely for the color to change.
 
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FryBoy said:
I make this recipe from the old Time-Life cookbook series every New Year's Eve at my wife's request. It's great, and especially suited for plain veggie such as steamed asparagus, a good loaf of crusty bread to sop up the sauce, and a nice bottle of Chardonnay to wash it all down.

SCAMPI WITH GARLIC BUTTER

1 pound of jumbo shrimp (prawns), peeled & deveined
¼ cup butter
¼ cup olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice (about ½ lemon)
¼ cup finely chopped shallots or scallions
1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
1 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup finely chopped parsley (preferably Italian flatleaf parsley)
Lemon wedges for garnish

1. Rinse shrimp and pat them dry with paper towels. Place in flame-proof baking dish in one layer.

2. Melt butter in olive oil over low heat, remove from heat and stir in lemon juice, shallots or green onions, garlic, salt, and pepper to taste. Pour over shrimp, and turn shrimp over to coat all sides. Allow to marinate for 15 to 30 minutes.

3. Preheat broiler to highest setting. Broil shrimp in butter sauce about 4 inches from heat for about 3 to 4 minutes or until they turn pink on the top side, then turn shrimp over and broil the other side for about 3 minutes or until they turn pink on that side, too; they will begin to brown on the edges and will feel firm when done. DO NOT OVER COOK! They will continue cooking a bit once removed from the broiler.

4. Remove from broiler, sprinkle with chopped parsley, and serve shrimp and sauce garnished with lemon wedges.
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I made this, adding just a splash of white wine, and only put it under the broiler for a few minutes. I tossed it with linguini and topped it with parsley - it's my BEST scampi effort so far!

Great dish - thanks, Doug!

Lee

 
joec said:
I like to roast my garlic also before using it with any shell fish.
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Lee, I want to make scampi just like what you made!!!! That looks heavenly. So did you roast the garlic before? Because I don't want to hijack this thread, but how do you roast garlic? I'm a complete newbie to this as I never use garlic. I know, I know, that's sacrilegious. But that's why I'm asking. Can somebody save me by helping me become a garlic convert?
 
No, I didn't roast the garlic, Terry. I like the stronger flavor of fresh garlic in scampi.

Roasting garlic is a cinch. Slice off the top of an entire head of garlic, to expose the cloves. Put it on a piece of alum foil, and drizzle some olive oil over the head. Wrap the head of garlic in the foil, and bake at 350 for about a half hour.

Let cool so you can touch it and break apart the head into individual cloves. Squeeze each clove out (it will be like a paste) to use.

Lee
 
QSis said:
No, I didn't roast the garlic, Terry. I like the stronger flavor of fresh garlic in scampi.

Roasting garlic is a cinch. Slice off the top of an entire head of garlic, to expose the cloves. Put it on a piece of alum foil, and drizzle some olive oil over the head. Wrap the head of garlic in the foil, and bake at 350 for about a half hour.

Let cool so you can touch it and break apart the head into individual cloves. Squeeze each clove out (it will be like a paste) to use.

Lee
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Thank you so much, Lee. This is exactly what I needed.
 
OK, here's how I do Scampi at work:

Preheat a saute pan over high heat. While the pan heats, dry the shimp (one order is six U/12 shrimp). When the pan begins to smoke, add some clarified butter. Add the shrimp (I usually sprinkle a little salt and pepper at this point). LEAVE THEM ALONE until they begin to turn pink. Carefully flip the shrimp. They may stick a bit. Once the shrimp are turned, add in about 2 T julienned shallots, and 2 t minced garlic. Shake the pan once a minute or so. Deglaze the pan with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, and about 1/4 c white wine. Shake and stir. Bring to boil. Cook briefly, until the shrimp are done (they may already be done by the time you deglaze). Remove the shrimp and keep warm. Reduce the sauce until there's maybe only 1 T of liquid left. Turn off the heat. Add a couple tablespoons of cold, whole butter. Shake and stir the pan around to "mount" the sauce with the butter. Once the butter has melted, and the sauce has thickened a bit, pour the sauce over the shrimp. Sprinkle with some fresh chives if desired.
 
Allen, your technique sounds great! That's closer to the way I've always tried to make scampi, but I've not been real successful so far.

You have some good tips - I'll give them a shot! Thanks!

Lee
 
man, that looks good, lee!

i'm not a big fan of scampi as the shrimp always seem to be tough, and the sauce oily instead of rich. but i'd certainly give yours a try. :)

i think i'll post my recipe for portugese garlic shrimp. i need to get to a spanish/portugese restaraunt soon!!!
 
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