Brown butter shrimp
Sweet, juicy shrimp in nutty browned butter, and the cooking takes less than ten minutes.
- 20 min total
- 15 min hands-on
- Anyone can make this
- Serves 2
- About $5.31 a serving
- 400 calories
- Gluten-free
Dolly says: I’d make this on a weeknight. It’s on the table in 20 minutes.
Ingredients
For 2 servings.
- 1 lb raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 4 tbsp butter
- ½ lemon, cut into wedges (optional)
- 2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped (optional)
From your pantry
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
Each serving has about 400 calories, 46 g protein, 0 g carbs and 24 g fat, and costs about $5.31 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No raw shrimp? Frozen raw shrimp works.
- No butter? Ghee works.
- No lemons? Limes work.
- No fresh parsley? Cilantro works.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
the shrimp dry with paper towels and them with the salt and pepper.
Pat dry. Patting dry means pressing paper towels onto food to soak up the moisture on its surface. Wet food steams instead of browning, so this is how you get a good sear and crisp skin.
How you’ll know: The surface feels tacky, not wet, and the last paper towel comes away barely damp.
Toss. Tossing means gently lifting and turning food so everything gets coated, like pasta in sauce or vegetables in oil. It coats every piece evenly without mashing anything.
How you’ll know: Every piece looks glossy or evenly coated, with no dry spots hiding underneath.
Dolly’s tip: Frozen shrimp? Thaw them in a bowl of cold water for 10 minutes first.the butter in a large over medium heat and keep swirling for 3 to 4 minutes, until it foams, turns and smells nutty.
Melt. Melting means gently heating something solid, like butter or cheese, until it turns liquid. Low or medium heat keeps it from browning or burning.
How you’ll know: It’s smooth and liquid, and butter may foam a little but hasn’t turned brown.
Skillet. A skillet is a frying pan: wide and flat with low, sloped sides. The shape lets steam escape, so food browns instead of stewing.
How you’ll know: It’s the pan you’d fry an egg in, and a 10 or 12 inch one handles most recipes.
Golden brown. Golden brown is the color of good toast, somewhere between yellow and light brown. It means the outside is cooked and crisp but not burnt.
How you’ll know: It looks like toast and smells toasty; dark brown with a bitter smell means it went too far.
Medium heatTimer: 3 min 30 sec
Dolly’s tip: Brown flecks on the bottom are what you want. If they turn black, start over; it only costs butter.Add the shrimp in a single layer and cook without for 2 minutes, until pink underneath.
Stir. Stirring means moving food around with a spoon or spatula so it cooks evenly and doesn’t stick. Unless the recipe says constantly, every so often is plenty, and it gives food time to brown.
How you’ll know: When you drag the spoon across the bottom, nothing is sticking or scorching.
Medium heatTimer: 2 min
Flip each shrimp and cook 1 to 2 minutes more, until pink and opaque all the way through and curled into a loose C.
Medium heatTimer: 1 min 30 sec
Food safety: Shrimp are done when they turn pink and opaque all the way through and curl into a loose C. A tight O means overcooked, not unsafe.
Take the pan off the heat right away, squeeze over the lemon and scatter the parsley if you like, and serve with the butter spooned on top.
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
