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.
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Very tasty shrimp recipe. The whole family loved it!
Threw this together last minute, it was amazing!!
This one of our favorite ways to cook shrimp. I usually use a little less butter because we buy shrimp by the pound, but I keep everything else the same. My husband loves garlic and we always have homemade chicken stock on hand, which adds to the flavor. And I sometimes finish with a little chopped green onion if we have it. Great recipe!
Me and my friend (which we are both 12) made the Garlic butter and shrimp and it turned out soooooo delicious. It was really fun and easy to make. I really love this recipe!
This Garlic Butter Shrimp is very good that my husband utterly said, “this is the best garlic shrimp sauce ive tasted in my entire life”. Thank you, it turned out to be a very fantastic, delicious dinner for the family
Was amazing!!
Ezcellent I made spaghetti and used the shri and sauce delicious thank you so much for a wonderful recipe
It turned out wonderful! My 8 year old son is the major shrimp lover and he ate 2 servings!! I’ll make again!
This is DAMN DELICIOUS
DELICIOUS!!
I love to cook. I’m always looking for new recipes for my menu, which makes me always interested in my work. Today’s my lucky day, GARLIC BUTTER SHRIMP is great, just follow the instructions and everything is easy, I like that. Thanks for your sharing
I loved it!!!! I made it for my sisters and I and they loved it. I loved how the broth and lemons kinda soaked up in the strimp, cause we cooked it longer but it was better that way!!!! 100/10
I was very skeptical when I saw chicken broth for a seafood recipe but had been failing at creating my own garlic butter shrimp so thought I’d give it a shot. Glad I did! I used fresh off the boat gulf shrimp and followed the directions to a T and this turned out amazing. Definitely will make again in the near future.
Damn delicious. It got rave reviews by my family. I made one chang. I used white wine instead of chicken stock.
I have a lot of frozen cooked shrimp in the freezer that I caught on sale; peeled and deveined in 2 lb. bags. Thawing them in cold water and removing the tails only took a few minutes. Then drain and pat dry to remove all water. I cooked the recipe as stated except using only 1/2 lemon. After adding all of the butter, except the last two tablespoons, I added shrimp to the pan, covering with the hot garlic butter, then added the remaining butter, stirred it in and turned off the heat. It came out delicious. Just don’t overcook the cooked shrimp. Heating them through a minute or so is all it takes. Great recipe that I will make often.
Just made this: fantastic, easy, tasty. Served it with vegetables. Used crushed garlic from the bottle. My family loved it. Thank you.
This was awesome! I switched the chicken broth out for white wine and can’t believe how simple and good this was. Thanks for the recipe!
Easy and delicious!! Will be making these again!!
I’ve been looking for perfect recipe of shrimp which is my favorite .. thank you for this ,I found it.. more power and God Bless !
We’re so glad your search came to an end, Melissa! 🙂
I’ve been looking all over the Net for a Red Lobster Garlic Butter Scampi shrimp clone and your recipe is right on. Simple ingredients, quick and easy to make. I substituted the chicken stock with white wine and added a little Old Bay. Not that it needs it but next batch I’ll add a little Parmesan cheese. Got a thumbs up from my Wife and she didn’t even complain when she had to do the dishes. Thanks for an excellent recipe, Dave