Garlic Butter Shrimp
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An amazing flavor combination of garlicky, buttery goodness – so elegant and easy to make in 20 min or less!
Featured Comment
Garlic and butter. The two greatest pleasures in life. The two ingredients I could probably live off of for the rest of my life. And when you combine these two in a glorious shrimp skillet, well, it’s nothing short of perfection.
why i love this recipe
- Fast, weeknight dinner. Made in just 20 minutes or less, the shrimp cooks very quickly, convenient for any night of the week.
- Simple but fancy. Even with its quick time stamp, garlic butter shrimp is still fancy and impressive enough to serve for company or date night in, serving with some crusty bread and a side of rice, orzo or pasta.
- Easy recipe to halve or double. Need a treat-yourself dinner or feeding a big crowd? This recipe can easily be halved or doubled as needed.
types of shrimp
Wild caught shrimp vs. farmed shrimp
Farmed shrimp are raised in controlled environments, whereas wild caught shrimp have been caught in their natural habitats by fishermen. Wild caught shrimp is generally preferred over farmed shrimp primarily due to taste.
Frozen vs. fresh shrimp
Unless you reside in a coastal area, the “fresh shrimp” on display at your local grocery store have already been previously frozen at sea. Frozen shrimp offers ultimate freshness (flash-frozen as soon as they are caught) and flexibility, using only what you need for dinner. Bottom line, frozen shrimp will taste better and cook better.
tips and tricks for success
- Know your shrimp size. Shrimp size is calculated on number of shrimp per pound. The smaller the number, the larger your shrimp. There are about 40-50 medium shrimp per pound.
- Buy frozen shrimp. For superior quality and freshness, using frozen shrimp is ideal (but avoid the bags with freezer burn), opting for a quick thaw under cold running water.
- Cook in batches. Overcrowding the pan will lead to poor searing and chewy, rubbery shrimp.
- Reheat in the oven. Leftover shrimp can be rubbery when reheated in the microwave. For best results with leftovers, reheat in the oven at 325°F, covered in aluminum foil until warmed through.
- Serve with crusty bread. Serve with all the homemade crusty bread for dipping, sopping and dunking!
what to serve with garlic butter shrimp
Tools For This Recipe
Large cast iron skillet
Garlic Butter Shrimp: Frequently Asked Questions
Unsalted butter allows you to add as much salt (or as little) salt in your dish, allowing for more control and consistency.
You can replace unsalted butter with salted butter in a pinch, reducing the amount of salt indicated in the recipe, and adding to taste.
You can thaw frozen shrimp overnight, transferring it from the freezer to the fridge the day before. For a quick thaw, you can run them under cold water until completely thawed, about 5-10 minutes. Pat them dry as thoroughly as possible to remove any excess moisture (so they can brown nicely and evenly).
The lemon juice helps balance out the flavors and richness of the butter.
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 1 day.
Garlic Butter Shrimp
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- ¼ cup chicken stock
- 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
Instructions
- Season shrimp with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Working in batches, add shrimp, and cook, stirring occasionally, until pink, about 2-3 minutes; set aside.
- Stir in garlic until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Stir in chicken stock and lemon juice. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until reduced by half, about 1-2 minutes.
- Stir in remaining 6 tablespoons butter, 1 tablespoon at a time, until melted and smooth.
- Stir in shrimp and gently toss to combine.
- Serve immediately, garnished with parsley leaves, if desired.
Video
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Simple ingredients. Easy go to recipes. Soooo delicious that I was licking the plate clean. Added some broccoli to the shrimp sauce and served it over pasta. Definitely keeping this recipe at the top. Thank you!
Cooked this for NYE and it was a hit with the family!! Things I’ve changed up (1) used calamansi in lieu of lemon (2) added cornstarch to thicken the sauce (3) used Italian seasoning
Also added a ton more garlic since we love garlic here! 😀
Made this tonight for Christmas Eve. It was very good. Will make it again.
Hi Nancy, this is tonight’s dinner. I was looking at the comments and saw your familiar last name. I wonder if there is any relation. Our family was from NYC.
do you cut the tails off the shrimp?
I substituted white wine for chicken broth, and added a pinch of red pepper flakes. Was delicious!!
I cooked this it is really delicious I added pasta and red pepper flakes! so delish! My family loves it!!
One word, DELICIOUS! Thank you so much for the recipe
im vegetarian and i substituted the chicken base for a vegetable base and it worked PERFECTLY. i’ve never made anything this delicious. Even added some cajun seasoning and it somehow made it better. tip: chopped almonds on top are the best 🙂
Just YES. I have not been this lemony-garlic happy since my week in Positano, Italy. Fabulously easy as it is delicious. Served with beets and goat cheese and crusty bread to sop up the lemon sunshine. MAKE THIS DISH!
Easy to make and quite dicious
This recipe was damn delicious indeed! So simple but the flavours are amazing.
Thank you, this turned out great!
My fiance said after the first few bites, “Next time we have shrimp, let’s do this again!” It’s always nice to hear the food was delicious when you cook for someone else. 🙂 I’m more of a lemon lover than he is, but he said he loved the lemon flavor.
Followed the recipe almost exactly, but used both white wine and Better Than Bouillon Chicken base, and served it over fettucine.
Y’all if you haven’t tried this, it’s a MUST!!
Normally, I don’t leave reviews but this was worth it. I made the recipe to the T. I did take the advice of another reviewer and made it with penne pasta.. best decision EVER! As they stated the pasta soaked up the juices very nice! I may just make the pasta this way again.
my husband loves shrimp so i made this for him and he absolutely loves this recipe for the first time will make again
OMG I made this for dinner this evening and savored every single bite! We love garlic and this recipe really delivers. The shrimp was very tender. We served it over penne and the pasta soaked up the garlic-lemon reduction very nicely. Absolutely delicious! We will definitely make this over and over again.
This recipe received high marks and a couple of disappointed cooks. Overall, I thought the recipe was good and I will repeat.
A note to inexperienced cooks, keep in mind you need to adjust recipes to fit your flavor profile. Here is some advice for those who may require more flavor:
– the recipe calls for 5 cloves…..she doesn’t state the size. If you are someone who likes a more garlicky flavor (like me), double it. Also, i always recommend adding 2 cloves to any recipe as you don’t know what type of garlic that was used and/or the freshness of your own. Always use fresh garlic. You can use the minced garlic to add more flavor but i wouldn’t recommend. I prefer a garlic paste over minced garlic.
– incorporate some red pepper flakes. If you are like me and don’t care for spicy food, you only need a pinch. I didn’t add it this time but will next time
– quality, quality, quality…..using dried parsley is not going to work or bottled lemon juice,, fresh is best. Cheap chicken stock is not going to do it either and the same for butter. Cheap stock contains more water than actual chicken. You could always sub for pinot grigio
– if you notice in the photo, she kept the shells on the tail but didn’t tell you to do it. Shrimp shells have flavor too. I left mine on which added to the flavor and it keeps the shrimp from shrinking so much.
-last but not least, if you watch the video, she only seasoned on one side…..season on both
Hopefully, these tidbits will help you have a wonderful dinner.
Really?
A great recipe for those on low carb or keto! Delicious and decadent. If only I could sop the butter up with some bread!
Lick the plate goodness! Easy, fast recipe that my husband and kid both loved. Can’t wait to try this again. Thank you!
I used jumbo shrimp mainly because that’s what I had on hand. The Mrs liked it enough that she said I could make it again.
I normally love all Damn Delicious recipies, but I wan’t fan of this one—I’m sorry! Full disclosure–I used regular salted butter since that was all I had on hand. However, my issue isn’t that it was salty…it was actually bland. Not sure waht happened since others who posted reviews loved it. I DID use fresh garlic and fresh lemon juice. Hmmm…