1 pound shrimp
1/ 2 cup butter
1/ 4 olive oil
1 1/ 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 to 4 garlic cloves, minced
1/ 2 teaspoon salt
1/ 2 teaspoon oregano
1/ 2 teaspoon basil
1/ 2 teaspoon parsley
1. Oven 450 degrees.
2. Melt butter in a small pot, add all other ingredients except shrimp
3. Peel and devein shrimp, leave tails on.
4. Butterfly the shrimp.
5. Place shrimp in a shallow baking dish with tails sticking up.
6. Pour the sauce over all the shrimp.
7. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes. Then broil for 5 to 10 minutes.
8. Serve with rice, risotto or spaghetti.
ENJOY – Delicious and shrimplyious!
Shrimp Scampi is high on the list of my son Tommy’s all time favorite meals. When my husband or children celebrated a birthday, I always cooked whatever they wanted for dinner and dessert. Tommy always requested shrimp and steak over the years, and now that he’s married, his wife, Christine, makes her own version. It’s different than mine, but I love it!
Before I continue my story, let me confide in you… I am not crazy about fish. Please do not judge me too harshly; not every good cook loves to prepare every type of food. As a child, my family followed the rules of the church at the time; we weren’t supposed to eat meat on Fridays and the only other popular option was fish. The smell of fish to me was and still is, at times, very unpleasant. Thank goodness my mom understood and made a dish of pasta for me when Friday dinner rolled around!
I spent many years teaching Japanese women how to cook a variety of meals and desserts. However, teaching them how to cook fish posed something of a challenge for me considering what I just told you. In my classes we would always have jobs to do together. I will admit that while they tackled the shelling, de-veining, and cleaning of the shrimp, I made sure I was busy handling another part of the recipe away from all that business!
It’s also no surprise that when we prepare this dish at home, my husband’s job is cleaning the shrimp. Yep, he’s quite a guy! If you’re not too excited about cleaning shrimp, you can also call the fish store to clean it ahead of time or spend a bit more money buying shrimp that’s ready to be cooked. Hey, nobody knows that you’ve cheated a little – it’s worth the splurge.
A last and most important note about this Shrimp Scampi recipe…. that tantalizing aroma that will float through your house will not be the shrimp; it’ll be the garlic. So, if you’re like me but have loved ones at home who want to experience the joy of Shrimp Scampi, this will be one fish dish that they and you will run to, and not from!
Somebody's Mom 