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Creamy Shrimp Pasta with Mushrooms in a homemade alfredo sauce. The creamy pasta sauce is made with Parmesan and Mozzarella cheese, garlic, basil, crushed red pepper flakes, paprika.
One of the bests ways to cook and eat shrimp is in a luscious creamy sauce with pasta! Some of my favorites are creamy mozzarella shrimp pasta and spicy shrimp pasta with tomato cream sauce.
And, don't forget mushrooms - they go amazingly well with shrimp, as in this pesto shrimp mushroom pasta!
How to make creamy shrimp pasta
1) First, saute shrimp in olive oil, garlic, basil, and paprika.
2) Then, remove the shrimp from the skillet and in the same pan saute some mushrooms.
3) Add cooked shrimp to the skillet with mushrooms.
4) Next, make creamy shrimp pasta sauce. To the skillet with cooked shrimp and the mushrooms, add half-and-half, cheeses, more spices while the sauce simmers. Simmer the sauce, stirring, until the sauce thickens.
5) Add cooked and drained pasta to the skillet with shrimp, mushrooms, and the cream sauce. Reheat on medium heat. Stir well.
How to thicken or to thin out the cream sauce?
- To make the cream sauce thicker, add more cheese, while liquids are hot.
- To make the cream sauce thinner, add reserved warm pasta water (from cooking pasta).
Gluten-Free Friendly Recipe
I've also made this creamy shrimp pasta with gluten-free pasta (I used brown rice fettuccine) - and it was wonderfully delicious! The gluten-free pasta had the perfect texture for this kind of sauce.
Other creamy shrimp pasta recipes:
Creamy Shrimp Pasta with Mushrooms
Ingredients
- 8 oz fettuccine pasta (for gluten free version, use gluten free brown rice pasta)
- ½ cup cooked pasta water (optional)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 lb shrimp (10 big shrimp or 20 small shrimp without shells, deveined)
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- ¼ teaspoon dried basil
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 8 oz mushrooms thinly sliced
- 1 cup half and half
- ½ cup Parmesan cheese shredded
- ½ cup Mozzarella cheese shredded
Instructions
Cook pasta
- Cook pasta according to package instructions. Drain. Reserve some of the pasta water.
How to cook shrimp
- Heat a large skillet until hot - add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and immediately add garlic and shrimp.
- Cook on one side for about 1 minute until pink, on medium-high heat.
- Flip the shrimp to the other side. Sprinkle the top of the cooked side of shrimp with dry basil, paprika, crushed red pepper flakes, and salt. Cook for another 1-2 minutes, occasionally stirring, until shrimp is pink on both sides.
- Remove the shrimp from the skillet. If shrimp is a little undercooked - it's OK because you will continue cooking it in the sauce.
How to cook mushrooms
- To the same, now empty, skillet, add sliced mushrooms. Add more olive oil if necessary.
- Cook on medium-high heat for about 2 minutes, occasionally stirring, until mushrooms become soft and release juices. Sprinkle with a small amount of salt midway through cooking.
How to make creamy sauce
- To the skillet with mushrooms, add cooked shrimp. Immediately add 1 cup half-and-half. Bring to boil.
- Add half the cheese (½ cup). Bring to boil, and immediately reduce to medium-simmer. Cook, constantly stirring, until the cheese melts.
- Gradually start adding the remaining cheese (½ cup), while stirring. Do not add all of the remaining ½ cup of cheese at once. Add just enough for the sauce to get creamy without getting too thick. You might not use all of the remaining cheese.
- Remove from heat. Taste, and add more salt if needed.
- Add cooked and drained pasta from step 1 to the skillet with shrimp and mushrooms and cream sauce. Reheat on medium heat. Stir well.
- If the cream sauce is too thick and you want it thinner - add some pasta water in small amounts to the cream sauce (while the sauce is simmering on low-medium heat) until you reach desired consistency.
- Season with more salt and add more crushed red pepper flakes and basil, if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer:
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. It should not be used as a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Thank you so much for your recipe!! Was very delicious!! My husband even liked it and he is very picky hahaha
So happy to hear that! 🙂
This sounds scrumptious and I plan to give it a whirl v.soon. will be using small prawns. Will report back. Keep them easy but delish recipes coming.
Thank you! Enjoy!
I have made this recipe several times and just love it! Thank you for sharing❤️
You're very welcome! So glad you've enjoyed this recipe! 🙂
This is now on our dinner rotation!!! Thank you!
So glad you've been enjoying this recipe! 🙂
I used spaghetti squash instead of the fettuccine. It was really good.
Can you add small scallops to this recipe too
Yes, the scallops would taste great in this recipe! Just be careful not to overcook them.
All I can say is O M G. This is the bomb. Super easy and delicious. THANKS MUCH.
You're very welcome! So glad you've enjoyed this recipe! 🙂
What type of mushrooms to be used in this recipe?
Just regular white mushrooms that are sold in most grocery stores.
What type of mushrooms for the recipe?
Just regular white mushrooms that are sold in most grocery stores.
OMY GOSH! I made this delicious recipe & it is a keeper! Love it!
So happy you liked it! 🙂
2nd time making this recipe. It gets easier every time. Modified it a little because my nieces and nephew don’t like mushrooms. Such a great dish!!!
Thank you, Lori, for stopping by and leaving a comment! So glad to hear you've been enjoying this dish and made it twice! 🙂
This was really good and easy to make. Next time I will remember the cheese. Bet irs even better with cheese.
I am glad you liked it! 🙂
This has become a regular meal in my house. It is absolutely delicious and super easy to make. I will be trying more of your recipes soon!!
So happy to hear that! Please enjoy! And, thank you for stopping by to leave a comment.
What if i dont have any cream?
Use milk, bring to boil, add a tablespoon or two of butter until it melts, then add the cheese. Might have to use a little bit more of cheese, too.
I love mushrooms. My family does not. I have made chicken piccata numerous times, and they just move out the mushrooms. What might substitute for some of the mushrooms?
Thank you!! I just LOVE your Web site!!
Hi, Lydia! Mushrooms are a really tough ingredient to substitute for. You might just omit them altogether. Use something else which is not really a substitution for mushrooms but rather an alternative. Cooked spinach, cooked kale, sun-dried tomatoes would all work great in this recipe!
Hi. What is half and half ? is it half water and half milk?