What's for Dinner? Easy Oven Shrimp Scampi

A Shrimp By Any Other Name Would Still Be As Delicious

I have vivid memories of being a child and going out for fancy dinners with my family.  Not all the time, but for special occasions.  It was on this special trips that my parents introduced my brother and I to a world of culinary delights.  It would be these dinners that would develop our likes and dislikes and help us to be adventurous eaters later in life.

You most likely have similar memories, perhaps not like the one I have described, but one of your own.  One that you refer to when you are seated in a special restaurant and are reading the menu, maybe you look for your favorite, whether it be Beef Wellington, Veal Oscar or Chicken Kiev.  It will bring you back to that place when you were a child, when the table was much larger and the napkins seemed more like a bed sheet.  When your mother would let you take a sip of her wine.  You were allowed to order Chocolate Mousse, Baked Alaska or Cherries Jubilee, for dessert.  The latter set aflame table side for maximum impact.  Truly a spectacle to behold!

For me, there are a couple dishes that take me back to that place, when the napkins were big and I had to make an effort to be on my best behavior.  Veal Oscar and Shrimp Scampi are my two favorites that I always search for on a high end menu.  The first is one that I reserve for an evening out, and it is getting more and more difficult to come by, but the scampi, is easy to make yourself and even though you cook at home, you can still achieve the same flavors and memories that you love. 

There is also no reason to kill your self while making this dish.  I mean this is simple and making it anything else would be criminal.  Simple ingredients yield maximum flavor and that is what you want.  This dish is even easy enough to prepare on a busy weeknight.  It literally takes minutes to cook and aside from the cleaning and shelling of the fresh shrimp, really takes little time.

So, relive a happy memory, go back to a simpler time and do it the easy way.  I invite you along for the trip, here is how you make shrimp scampi the oven style, no brainer, maximum flavor way!

OVEN SHRIMP SCAMPI

Here is what you will need to make this dish:

2 pounds shrimp peeled and deveined

1 stick butter

4 cloves minced garlic

Juice of 2 lemons

1 tsp. Old Bay Seasoning

1 tsp. Mrs. Dash

1 tsp. paprika

1 tsp. sea salt

Prepared Angel Hair Pasta

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

In a baking pan place the stick of butter and place in oven until melted.  When butter is sizzly and melted remove from oven and add minced garlic and shrimp and toss to coat.  Return pan to oven and allow to cook for 5 to7 minutes or until the shrimp are opaque and no longer translucent.  Don’t let them cook for too long otherwise they will be chewy and tough and you don’t want that. 

When shrimp are cooked through remove from oven and add Salt, Old Bay, Paprika and Mrs. Dash along with the juice of 2 lemons, toss to combine and you are ready to serve of some angel hair pasta or rice, your choice.

I hope you try this and I hope you enjoy it!  As Always, Happy Eating!