Shrimp Scampi Without Wine

A delicious and savory shrimp scampi without wine makes this dish easy and doable with just a few ingredients. Battered shrimp and lemony pasta for a dish that the whole family will love.

Looking for more pasta with shrimp? Try ourCajun Shrimp Scampi, or Shrimp Fra Diavolo with Linguine.

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The Key to Scampi

Shrimp Scampi is one of those dishes where people get caught up on whether it is truly Italian or not. There are definitely some Italian roots to the dish, but the Italians most likely didn't use shrimp when this dish was created. They probably used langoustines, which were more common in the Mediterranean at the time.

Also, scampi literally means cooked shrimp or prawns. So, saying shrimp scampi is sort of like saying shrimp cooked shrimp.

Regardless, in my opinion, every dish is open to interpretation. And I decided to fry my shrimp instead of saute or grill and I added my favorite little fishy ingredient, anchovies.

Ingredient Notes and Substitutions

Chicken Broth. Typically, shrimp scampi will be made with white wine. In this recipe, we're substituting a combination of lemon and chicken broth to imitate the flavor of the wine.

Anchovies. The anchovies bring a lot of extra flavor to this dish. They make the dish more savory or bring the "umami."

Battering the Shrimp. This is my preference for this dish. The Cheesecake Factory does something similar with its shrimp. If you don't want to fry the shrimp, you can marinate them with olive oil, minced garlic, salt, and pepper. Then saute them on both sides for 2 minutes.

Step-by-Step Directions

The biggest difference in this version of shrimp scampi is how we prepare the shrimp. Instead of grilling or sauteing in butter, the shrimp will be battered and fried.

Step 1: Batter the shrimp in the seasoned flour. Mix the flour with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Toss the shrimp in olive oil and dredge each shrimp in the flour. You can't do this ahead of time. Always dredge in flour right before you are about to fry.

Step 2: In a large pan, add enough olive oil to cover the pan and bring to medium-high heat. Once the oil is shimmering, arrange the shrimp in the pan, leaving space in between each shrimp, and fry on each side for 1-2 minutes. Carefully flip the shrimp so that the batter does not fall off. Fry the shrimp in batches and set aside.

Pro-Tips

1. Shrimp overcook easily, so cook for a maximum of 3 minutes, making sure that the batter is brown on each side. When flipping the shrimp, be extra careful, because the batter can fall off if you grab and squeeze them.
2. The shrimp are lightly battered, so gently flip them to make sure they don't lose their batter. 
3. Cook the sauce in the same pan you fried the shrimp to gather up all the delicious fond from the fried shrimp.

Step 3: Before you start creating the sauce, get a pot of water boiling so that you can boil your pasta. You want the pasta to finish right around when the sauce is done so that it will still be hot when you add it to the sauce.

Step 4: Lower the heat to medium and give the pan time to lower in heat. It will still be very hot from frying the shrimp and if you add the butter too soon it will burn.

Add butter and 1 tablespoon of olive oil and allow the butter to melt and the foam to dissipate. Add shallots and chopped anchovies and saute for 3-4 minutes, until the anchovies are almost melted. The anchovies will shrivel and melt away. Then add the garlic and saute for another 2 minutes.

Step 5: Next, squeeze in lemon juice, stir it throughout, and let it come to a slight simmer before adding the broth. Add the chicken broth to the pan and bring it to a simmer, stirring often. You'll want the broth to reduce by about half. When you drag your wooden spoon through the sauce, it should leave a trail like Moses parting the Red Sea.

Step 6: Save a little bit of pasta water when you strain the pasta and add it to the sauce. Let it come to a simmer and then add the shrimp to the dish. Then stir in the pasta and parsley. Try not to stir the pasta vigorously because you will lose all the shrimp's coating. Stir the pasta until it is coated with the sauce and the parsley.

Serve the pasta with parmesan if you like!

FAQs

Can I Leave out the Anchovies?

You can but I highly recommend against it. Without wine, this shrimp recipe needs some flavor and savoriness. You won't taste the anchovies, but it will bring a lot of flavor to the dish.

What is a good substitute for dry white wine in Shrimp Scampi?

Chicken broth is a great substitute for white wine. That's what we used in this recipe. We always have chicken broth in the pantry, but sometimes we don't have white wine.

Can I substitute apple cider vinegar for white wine?

No. Not in this dish. It will be way too intense of a flavor and won't work with the flavors of the dish.

Shrimp Scampi is a classic regardless of whether it is, Italian, American, Italian-American, or British. Yes, even the Brits have some claim to this dish. It is tasty and flavorful and this rendition of shrimp scamp is no different.

More Seafood Pasta

• Creamy Pesto Shrimp Pasta
• Linguine with Red Clam Sauce
• Squid Ink Pasta with Calamari
• Linguine with Clams