Baked Shrimp Scampi Dinner

Baked Shrimp Scampi Dinner is simply delicious! The secret is the buttery-garlic wine sauce that makes this dish so exquisite.  Serve it alone or with pasta, rice, and quinoa for an easy weeknight dinner!

 

Baked Shrimp Scampi Dinner

Shrimp scampi is such a delicious dish, and one your whole family will love!  Using already cleaned and deveined shrimp helps make this shrimp scampi dinner ready in less than 30 minutes! 

Plus, we’ll share some “great tips” and “easy steps” on how to make this baked shrimp scampi dinner, so you can enjoy it for years to come.

 

Overview of Making Baked Shrimp Scampi Dinner

For this recipe, there are 3 Easy Steps to making our Shrimp Scampi Dinner. If you have never made this dish before, don’t fret- it’s relatively easy.

1. PREPARE THE SHRIMP: Shrimps are easily butterflied (see our step-by-step directions below).

2. MARINATE THEM: Then they are marinated with white wine and melted butter, and topped with a light breadcrumb mixture combined with fresh garlic, grated cheese, and dried herbs. 

3. THEN BAKE: When ready? Baked for 10 to 12 minutes, or until they turn pink, and the sauce is bubbly. Then serve.

 

Pros Tips for Success

1. How Much Shrimp Do We Need? One-pound bag (16 ounces) of frozen Raw Shrimp is good for 4 to 6 servings.
2. Which Shrimp To Choose? Choose shrimp that come already peeled, deveined, and with tails on.  (I found these at Trader Joe’s) 
3. Where To Go To Buy Shrimp? You can easily find shrimp at your local fish market and have them cleaned for you for a few pennies more.  
4. What Size of Shrimp To Buy? Shrimp scampi is a dish usually made with ex-large shrimp, but you can choose whatever size you prefer.  I found these frozen shrimps to be smaller in size, but it didn’t matter. 
5. How Many Servings Will This Recipe Yield? This dinner recipe will yield 4 to 6 servings.

How To Thaw Frozen Shrimp?

There are three easy steps to thawing frozen shrimp. Then once you have done that, you are ready to make this recipe.

1. FIRST: If the Shrimp Is Frozen, allow the shrimp to defrost in the bag, on your kitchen counter, or overnight in the refrigerator.

2. NEXT: Rinse The Shrimp: Rinse shrimp under cold running water for about 4 to 5 minutes. This will help remove most of the “iodine” from the shrimp. (see my notes below)

3. DRAIN: Allow the shrimp to drain in a colander for a few minutes.

How Do We Know if the “Iodine” Has Been Rinsed Off?

• When rinsing, the water will bubble up or create the “suds effect,” as if there is soap in the water.  That is the iodine creating the suds in the water. 
• You will need to rinse well, and for a few times until “the suds” disappear entirely. 
• And, the second way you can tell is …if you don’t smell the scent of the iodine in the shrimp.  Then the shrimp is ready for you to cook.

How To Butterfly the Shrimp?

With these easy-to-follow, step-by-step directions, you will learn how to butterfly the shrimp.

1. SLICE THE SHRIMP: Use a knife to carefully butterfly each shrimp, slicing it down the center, halfway through. 

2. NEXT, CHECK THE SPINE: If you see a thin line of darkness running through the back of the shrimp, pull those out and discard them.  The shrimp should be clean inside and out.  Continue with each shrimp.

3. SHRIMP IS READY: Then transfer each one to a baking dish. Set them up with a split side down and tails folded over.

Make the Marinade for the Shrimp

Once the shrimp have been properly cleaned and deveined, you can begin. Now you are ready to make the butter and wine sauce for the shrimp:

1.  Pour in the wine and melted butter.  Season with some sea salt and fresh cracked black pepper on top.  Set it aside.

2.  As it sits for a few minutes, the shrimp will marinate in the wine and butter.

3.  Meanwhile, you can preheat the oven to 400 degrees F ( 204C).  It takes about 15 to 20 minutes to preheat the oven, giving some time to marinate the shrimp while it sits on the counter.

4.  The bread crumbs with garlic mixture take about 2 minutes to prep, and it’s sprinkled over the shrimp just before it’s baked.   

5.  And, just before I pop the shrimp into the oven, I give an additional sprinkle of dried oregano over the entire dish,  just to give it a little more flavor.

How To Bake Shrimp Scampi?

Our full printable recipe card is located at the bottom. But first, let’s go through the steps so you can see what’s involved before you start.

1.  Bake Shrimp Scampi in the oven at 400 degrees F. (200C). While the shrimp are in the oven baking,  you can get started with cooking the pasta, or any side you wish. (Here, I decided to serve it with our favorite orzo pasta.)

2.  Finally, I check on my shrimp and take them out of the oven.  Once, the orzo pasta is fully cooked and drained,  I serve the orzo directly into the dishes and serve with a few shrimp on top, and spoon some butter sauce over the entire dish. 

So yummy! 😉

What to Serve It With?

The buttery garlic and wine sauce in the baking dish is wonderful with any side to soak up, giving them additional flavor. Try any of these ideas for a delicious dinner:

• You can serve baked shrimp scampi alone, along with some crusty bread and a crisp green salad as a side.
• Try serving baked shrimp scampi with orzo pasta, as we did today.  
• Or serve it over cooked rice or quinoa.
• Try them with a side of our angel hair pasta with lemon sauce. It’s exquisite!
• And, they are delicious with a side of creamy mashed potatoes to soak up all that flavorful sauce.

A Delicious Seafood Dinner

Easy Baked Shrimp Scampi Dinner is company-worthy and perfect for busy weeknights.  It goes well with some crusty bread or with our homemade cheesy mini biscuits and a green salad. 

And for our gluten-free friends, you can use gluten-free bread crumbs and gluten-free orzo pasta with this recipe. The dish always turns out great! 

Try this recipe!  ENJOY!

More Seafood Recipes…

• Easy Shrimp Dinner
• Wild Rice with Lemon Garlicky Shrimp
• Shrimp and Lobster Sauce
• Easy Baked Trout
• Calamari Fra Diavolo
• Spaghetti with Shrimp Marinara
• Zesty Lemon Shrimp and Mango Salad
• Best Grilled Shrimp and Scallop Kabobs

Are you cooking or baking with us?  If you make our easy-baked shrimp scampi dinner, let us know and leave a comment and a star rating below!  Sharing your experience and insights will not only help those who read them but will help us too!

Happy Cooking! 🙂

xo anna and liz