I heard something the other day that made me immediately think of this recipe. Renowned restauranteur and Iron Chef Geoffrey Zakarian said, "When you have something simple and it tastes complex, that's when you've won." And this dish is definitely a winner.
So easy, and so quick - about 25 minutes is a small price to pay for a meal this delightful.
This is also a great time to learn about mise en place. Literally translated from the French, it means "putting in place" and is pronounced "MEEZ ahn plahs." In the culinary world, it refers to having all your ingredients out, prepped, and ready before you start cooking. Once you start melting the butter, this dish moves FAST, so you'll want to make the salads or garlic bread or side dishes before you start, as well as having your shrimp prepped.
A word about shrimp: I buy frozen shrimp that are raw, deveined, with tails on. You can certainly devein your own shrimp if you feel so inclined; I prefer to leave the removal of the shrimp's intestinal tract (read: poop) to professionals. I also don't like fighting with the tails on the plate (although they certainly look pretty), so I give each one a quick squeeze to remove the tail after thawing the shrimp. And finally, since we live FAR from an ocean, the shrimp at the seafood counter at the grocery store have already been frozen once to arrive safely in the middle of the continent. And those cost quite a bit more than the ones in the frozen food aisle. So, my recommendation: find a quality brand of raw frozen shrimp, and thaw them by placing them in a colander and running cool water over them for a few minutes. (And then squeeze those tails off, if you like.)
Now... let's get started.
Lemon-Butter Shrimp & Linguine
Adapted from damndelicious.net (One of my favorite blogs! Check it out!)
Serves: 4
You'll need:
8 oz linguine (or spaghetti)
2 T butter
1 lb medium or large shrimp, thawed and deveined
4 cloves garlic, minced
cayenne pepper, to taste
salt and pepper, to taste
1/4 c white wine*
1/4 c lemon juice
2 T chopped fresh parsley
1/4 c grated Parmesan cheese
*If you prefer not to cook with wine, chicken broth can be used as a nonalcoholic substitute. If you do choose to use wine, choose a dry white, like Pinot Grigio, Sauvignon Blanc, or Chardonnay, and enjoy a glass with your dinner. Or choose a nice dry rosé like this one that apparently pairs well with seafood.
If you missed last week's post about pasta, I'll include a brief summary on technique here: use a huge pot of water; salt the water copiously; undercook your pasta by a minute or two; drain it very briefly; and then place it directly into the pan of sauce, so it can finish cooking in the sauce and soak up the flavor.
So, in the context of this recipe: Bring a large pot of water to a full rolling boil. Meanwhile, make sure all your ingredients are at hand, parsley is chopped, Parmesan is grated, etc. Drop the pasta into the boiling, salted water and set the timer for 1-2 minutes LESS than the box recommends. When there's about 6 minutes left on the pasta, start melting the butter in a large sauté pan over medium heat.
Add the shrimp and garlic and then sprinkle the shrimp with salt, pepper, and a dash or two of cayenne.
Cook the shrimp for about 1 minute, flip them over, and cook about 1 minute more until they are opaque. I'm serious - if you've never cooked shrimp before, please trust me - they cook shockingly fast. And you really don't want overcooked, rubbery shrimp.
As soon as they're cooked through, add the wine and lemon juice and bring to a simmer.
About this time, your pasta should be done boiling. Drain it briefly and then dump it straight into the pan of shrimp, along with most of the parsley.
Stir to mix everything thoroughly and allow it to simmer for 1-2 minutes in the sauce.
Serve garnished with the Parmesan and additional parsley.
Simple, right?
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