This is a dish I threw together for the first time the other night. I arrived home an hour late from tutoring one of my local students. My husband needed to leave for a meeting in less than an hour. While normally stocked with leftovers for just such an occasion, our refrigerator was unfortunately empty. I had not taken anything out of the freezer for dinner, so I scrambled. I looked through my cabinets and refrigerator and freezer for the quickest meal I could pull together. This Lemon Garlic Shrimp Pasta was the answer. Seafood is always fast to prepare. This simple pasta dish was a winner with everyone in my family.
MADE WITH KITCHEN STAPLES
All of the ingredients I list for this Lemon Garlic Shrimp Pasta recipe are staples in my kitchen. I keep them around because I use them a lot. Here is what I chose for this recipe:
- gluten free spaghetti noodles
- olive oil
- onion
- garlic
- zucchini
- fresh spinach/arugula mix
- shrimp
- fresh lemon juice
- sea salt
- white pepper
- red pepper flakes
HOW THESE BECAME STAPLES IN MY KITCHEN
There was a time in my life when the “staples” in my kitchen were cream of mushroom soup, wheat bread, red wine, Cheez-its, and cheese. Lots and lots of cheese. The shift from highly processed staples to the list above did not happen overnight. It was a process. A challenge.
When I first began to change my family’s diet, I picked one new vegetable a week. I bought it fresh and figured out how to cook it. If we didn’t like it, I would rotate it back in at least twice to try different methods of cooking. In this way, I found my new staples. I found the vegetables that my family would eat often and what I liked for various recipes.
I always keep a few zucchini in the house now. They can be added to so many recipes. Sometimes I just cook them down and blend them into my soup broth. I also have a box of organic greens in the refrigerator at all times. I’ve been using a lot of spinach/arugula blend, but either of these greens would work well in this recipe. As for lemons, I buy a bag every few weeks. Buying a whole bag is cheaper than purchasing individual lemons for specific recipes. What I don’t use in recipes, I’ll cut up and throw into my water.
SEAFOOD MAKES FOR A QUICK MEAL
I always tell people that seafood is the quickest meal I can make. Whether it’s salmon, cod, or shrimp, I can take it from the freezer and quickly thaw it in a bowl of water. This is much faster than thawing beef or chicken, which often takes hours. Also, fish filets generally cook in 10-12 minutes. Shrimp is even faster. Once thawed, I pat the shrimp dry. When added to a hot pan, shrimp only need about sixty seconds on each side to cook all the way through. In fact, if you cook shrimp for too long, it will become tough or chewy.
I always reserve seafood meals for the nights when I need a real food meal, real fast.
How to Make Lemon Garlic Shrimp Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 lb shrimp, defrosted
- 1 pkg gluten free spaghetti noodles
- 1 onion, sliced thin
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 zucchini, chopped into 1/4 inch rounds and then halved
- 2 large handfuls of spinach/arugula mix
- 2 lemons, halved
- 2 tbsp olive oil, plus more later
- Sea salt
- 1/4 tsp white pepper
- 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
- Black pepper to taste
Instructions
- If shrimp is frozen, place into a bowl of warm water. Allow 10-15 minutes for the shrimp to thaw completely. Once thawed, move the shrimp to a plate and pat dry with a paper towel. (If the shrimp are especially large, I will slice them into thirds. This allows for a bit of shrimp in each bite.)
- While the shrimp are thawing out, boil the noodles in a large pot following the directions on the package.
- While waiting on the noodles, slice the onion and mince the garlic. Chop the zucchini, set aside a pile of greens, and halve the lemons. (I also deseed them if seeds are visible.) Set all this aside to be used soon.
- When the noodles are done, drain the noodles in a colander and run cool water over them to stop the cooking process. Set them aside.
- Return the large pot to the stovetop. Set the heat to medium. To the pot, add a few tablespoons of olive oil. Then add the onion and garlic. Sauté until fragrant. Add the zucchini. Stir everything and sauté for another 3-5 minutes. (I like the zucchini to soften a bit, but not be mushy.)
- Once the zucchini is soft enough, push everything to the side of the pan. Add the shrimp and cook on each side for 1-2 minutes. (If you overcook shrimp, it will become tough or rubbery.) Squeeze the lemon juice over the shrimp as they cook. Use both lemons completely. Once the shrimp have changed color, add the greens to the pot and mix everything well.
- To this shrimp and vegetable mixture, add the sea salt (to taste…I recommend at least 1/2 tsp), white pepper, red pepper flakes, and black pepper (to taste). If the pan seems dry at all, add a bit more olive oil.
- Return the noodles to this pot. Stir well to combine everything together. When the noodles are warm, turn off the burner and remove the pot from heat.
- Serve in a bowl or on a plate. I like to serve with a fresh drizzle of olive oil atop each portion.
If you like this shrimp recipe, check out another one of my favorites: Spicy Shrimp Curry.
