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This quick and easy shrimp piccata recipe is ready in under half an hour! Succulent shrimp are cooked in a lemon-butter-caper sauce and served over pasta.

close-up of easy shrimp piccata in a bowl with penne pasta

I love chicken piccata, so I figured why not try shrimp piccata? This idea actually popped into my head while I was making these garlic shrimp zoodles, so I had to make both recipes. Sometimes things happen spontaneously and work rather well!

You may also like my easy 20-minute creamy salmon piccata recipe as well!

metal skillet with shrimp, lemon, butter, and capers

How to make shrimp piccata

Season shrimp with garlic powder and dredge them in flour. Sauté shrimp in butter for 1 minute on each side; take shrimp out of pan.

Make the sauce by adding the lemon juice & zest, capers, the remaining butter, and the white wine (or chicken broth). Let it bubble for a couple of minutes, then add the shrimp back in.

Finish cooking shrimp and then season them with salt & pepper, and add the parsley.

If you didn’t include the pasta in this recipe like I do, the actual cooking time of the shrimp piccata is closer to 5 minutes. Super simple, right? You could also serve this lemon shrimp piccata over mashed potatoes or even with rice.

Pro tip: If you’re out of white wine or just don’t want to cook with it, I suggest replacing it with chicken broth or the same amount of water + a bit of a bouillon cube for some added flavor.

white bowl with easy shrimp piccata served over penne beside cloth napkin and lemon slice

I hope you enjoy this delicious quick and easy shrimp piccata recipe! It’s perfect for busy weeknights but nice enough to serve to guests without killing yourself. 🙂

Questions? Ask me in the comments below!

More shrimp recipes you may like:

This quick and easy shrimp piccata recipe is ready in under half an hour. Succulent shrimp are cooked in a lemon-butter-caper sauce and served over penne.
5 from 1 vote

Shrimp Piccata

By Natasha Bull
Shrimp in a delicious lemon-butter-caper sauce over penne.
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 15 minutes
Total: 25 minutes
Servings: 2
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Ingredients 

  • 3/4 pounds medium shrimp thawed & peeled
  • 8 ounces uncooked pasta (I used penne)
  • 3 tablespoons butter + 2 tablespoons butter
  • Garlic powder
  • Flour for dredging
  • Zest + juice of 1 lemon
  • 2 tablespoons capers drained
  • 1/2 cup dry white wine (or chicken broth)
  • Salt & pepper to taste
  • Handful fresh parsley chopped

Instructions 

  • Boil a pot of salted water for the pasta. Cook according to package directions.
  • Once the pasta is well on its way, add the first 3 tablespoons of butter to a large skillet on medium heat. Sprinkle the shrimp gently with a little bit of garlic powder then dredge the shrimp in flour. Once the butter has melted, add the shrimp to the pan and cook them for 1 minute on each side. Remove to shrimp from the pan.
  • Deglaze the pan with the lemon juice + zest, capers, rest of butter, and white wine. Cook for 2 minutes, then add the shrimp back in.
  • Cook for another 2 minutes or so until the shrimp are cooked through. Season with salt & pepper, and add the fresh parsley. Toss with the cooked and drained pasta. If desired, add a tablespoon or two of the pasta water to add some more moisture to the sauce. Serve immediately.

Notes

  • If you prefer, substitute the white wine with chicken broth or water and part of a bouillon cube.
  • This is the handy tool I used to zest the lemon.

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Hi! I’m Natasha.

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12 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    Great recipe but I made it even more simple by not dredging the shrimp in flour. Just sautéed them in butter til just pink; then added everything else and simmered til pasta was hot throughout and Parmesan cheese on top. Delicious and soo easy.

    Reply

  2. Natasha, I made this a couple weeks ago and we really enjoyed it. Never thought about doing a piccata with shrimp before but it works! I will be making it again tonight. Thanks!

    Reply

  4. Piccata dishes are my husband’s favorite Natasha. Always so full of flavor. Looks delicious!

    Reply

    2. Because of the name I’m not sure if this is a real question or not but if so you can easily make this vegetarian. Instead of shrimp you simply use extra firm tofu that you drain and press with paper towels and weight of some kind to remove as much liquid as possible. Then slice or cube, coat lightly in flour and pan fry. Then follow the recipe (which sounds very yummy BTW) for the pasta and sauce. I hope I didn’t stick my nose into a family joke or anything since I am new to the blog. 🙂 Either way, I am not a vegetarian anymore and am looking forward to trying this dish.

      Reply

      1. No worries, Brittanyann. My sister is vegetarian, and it is a real comment. A small family joke – she likes to comment on my blog even if the post isn’t totally relevant to her diet. Thanks for writing, and so happy you’re here! Hope you enjoy the recipe! ☺️

        Reply