Buckle up those fancy pants. We're bringing the fancy food home, and not in a to-go bag. This easy Shrimp Alfredo recipe comes together in less than 30 minutes and is 100 times better than anything you could buy premade. It's the perfect dinner to make for an at-home Valentine's date night.
This dish is largely made up of succulent, perfectly cooked shrimp, garlic, and freshly grated parmesan cheese. You can't go wrong with those flavors and the consistency is so creamy! For more like this, bookmark our Steak Alfredo, Tortellini Alfredo, and Stuffed Shrimp for next time.
HOW TO MAKE SHRIMP ALFREDO
To kick off your Shrimp Alfredo, you'll first want to get a large pot of water going over high heat and bring it to a boil. Be sure you salt your water generously. While you are waiting on your water to boil, move on to the shrimp.
For this recipe, you will want to have jumbo shrimp on hand, with a shrimp count of 16/25. Rather than trusting generalized terms such as large, jumbo, etc., it is best to purchase your shrimp according to the shrimp count. This is a much more accurate way of gauging the size of your shrimp!
Once you have your shrimp in hand, peel it, devein it, and whether or not you'd like to leave the tails on is completely up to you! To prepare your shrimp for seasoning and cooking, you'll first need to pat it dry with a paper towel.
The easiest way to do this is to lay a few sheets of paper towels down on your work surface, add a single layer of shrimp, and top them off with another couple of layers of paper towels. Gently press down on the top layer of paper towels to remove the excess moisture from the exterior of the shrimp. This helps both the oil and the seasoning to stay put on your shrimp, which will give you super flavorful Shrimp Alfredo.
Then, you'll add your shrimp to a medium-sized bowl, drizzle with olive oil, and season the shrimp with kosher salt, pepper, garlic powder, and Italian seasoning. Toss until the spices and oil are evenly distributed all over the shrimp, and it's off to the stovetop.
Have ready a large skillet over medium-high heat. Drizzle in a couple of tablespoons of olive oil and allow the oil to come to temperature.
Then, you'll add the shrimp one single layer at a time, making sure to leave a bit of space in between each shrimp. Cook the shrimp for about two minutes, turn the shrimp over and cook for about two minutes more. Take care to cook the shrimp in batches as needed in order to avoid overcrowding your pan.
The shrimp is fully cooked through once it has turned pink, is completely opaque, and is semi-firm to the touch.
Remove the shrimp from the pan and transfer them to a plate. In order to build flavor and save ourselves from cleaning extra dirty dishes, we will be making our Alfredo sauce in the same pan the shrimp cooked in.
However, before we get to that dreamy, creamy sauce for this Shrimp Alfredo recipe, you'll want to take a look at your water pot. At this point, if it has reached a roaring boil, add in half of a package of fettuccine and cook to al dente according to the package directions. Set yourself a timer and take care not to overcook the pasta!
Add 2 tablespoons of butter to the pan, along with four minced garlic cloves. Cook the garlic for about one to two minutes, using a wooden spatula to simultaneously stir the garlic and scrape up any leftover brown bits left behind in the pan. Sprinkle the garlic with flour and stir until it is evenly coated. Using flour in the base of your Alfredo sauce will prevent your sauce from breaking and thicken it to a perfect consistency.
Many Shrimp Fettuccine Alfredo recipes will call for heavy whipping cream. Because we used flour as our thickener and binder for this creamy Shrimp Alfredo sauce, heavy cream is not particularly necessary. However, if you'd like your sauce to be extra, extra rich, feel free to use it in place of half-and-half.
Now, begin adding in the half and half one big splash at a time, stirring well after each addition. As soon as all of your half and half has been incorporated, slowly stream in the milk, stirring all the while. Now comes the freshly grated Parmesan!
Add in a whopping one and a half cups of fresh Parmesan cheese and stir until melted and smooth.
Season with kosher salt and pepper and your creamy Alfredo sauce is done!
If desired, add the cooked pasta to the sauce and toss them together in the pan. Top with your shrimp, and an extra sprinkle of grated Parmesan cheese if desired, serve it up, and enjoy!
6 MORE SHRIMP RECIPES YOU’LL LOVE
- Shrimp Enchiladas
- Shrimp Mac and Cheese
- Shrimp Spaghetti
- Shrimp Pesto Pasta
- Shrimp Quesadillas
- Shrimp Sandwich
Shrimp Mac and Cheese
Shrimp Enchiladas
Shrimp Spaghetti
Shrimp Pesto Pasta - Simple and Delicious
Easy Shrimp Quesadillas Recipe
Shrimp Sandwich
This incredibly easy Shrimp Alfredo recipe comes together in no time yet tastes like a decadent restaurant-level dish.
- ½ package (about 8-ounces) fettucini pasta
- 1 pound jumbo shrimp (16/25 count), peeled and deveined
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ cup half and half
- 1 ½ cup whole milk
- 1 ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan
- 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
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Have ready a large pot of water, salted, and bring the water to a roaring boil. Then, cook the fettuccini according to the package directions. While you are waiting on the water to boil, begin on your shrimp.
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Pat the excess moisture away from the shrimp using a paper towel. Add the shrimp to a medium-sized mixing bowl, drizzle with 1 tablespoon of oil, add spices, and toss until evenly coated. Set aside.
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Add 2 tablespoons of oil to a large sauté pan over medium-high heat and allow it to come to temperature. Then, add one single layer of shrimp, leaving a bit of space in between each one.
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Cook for about 2 minutes, then flip and cook for about 2 minutes more on the other side. Repeat the cooking process with any remaining shrimp. The shrimp are ready when completely opaque and semi-firm to the touch. Transfer the shrimp to a plate while you make the sauce.
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Reduce the heat to medium-low, melt the butter and add garlic. Saute for 1-2 minutes, scraping the pan with a wooden spatula as the garlic cooks. Sprinkle flour over the garlic and stir until coated.
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Increase heat to medium and begin to add the half-and-half a splash at a time, stirring after each addition. Once all of the half-and-half has been incorporated, stream in the milk, whisking all the while, and simmer 5 minutes. Stir occasionally until slightly thickened.
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Add the Parmesan, salt, and pepper, and stir once more. Set the sauce aside.
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Add the pasta to the alfredo sauce and toss until coated. Serve in pasta bowls or on plates. Top off your pasta with the shrimp. Serve and enjoy!
