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Shrimp Tomato Spinach Pasta in Garlic Butter Sauce - a delicious Italian pasta dish with lots of fresh ingredients!
I absolutely love combining shrimp, pasta, and tomatoes. My long-time favorite is spicy shrimp pasta with garlic tomato sauce. Seafood, vegetables, and pasta are definitely a winning combination!
Why make shrimp tomato pasta
- This recipe is a great way to use up a bunch of fresh tomatoes you might have sitting around in your kitchen!
- It's a healthy, Mediterranean style recipe. This shrimp pasta is packed with healthy ingredients. I am talking about fresh vegetables, such as tomatoes and spinach.
- It's a vibrant and colorful recipe that makes a beautiful presentation!
- You can easily make this pasta gluten free by using gluten free noodles.
What makes this recipe work?
- In this recipe, the tomatoes are only slightly cooked. This preserves their freshness and shape.
- The shrimp has rich flavor thanks to paprika and crushed red pepper.
- The garlic butter sauce is refreshing and comforting. It's made with fresh tomatoes, fresh spinach, minced garlic, olive oil, and butter.
This recipe became a favorite in my household. It disappeared quickly from the skillet as everybody went for seconds. And, it's so easy to make!
When you cook the shrimp and garlic in olive oil, the shrimp will smell and look so good! You will be tempted to eat half of it before finishing up this recipe! 🙂
Resist the temptation! I promise you will be rewarded with the best garlic shrimp tomato pasta you'll ever taste!
And, if you want something more creamy, I recommend my very popular shrimp pasta with creamy mozzarella sauce. If you like mushrooms, you'll love creamy shrimp pasta with mushrooms.
How to make shrimp tomato spinach pasta
1) First, saute fresh shrimp in garlic, butter, and olive oil, until just pink on both sides. The shrimp will still be undercooked but it will continue cooking later.
2) Sprinkle the shrimp generously with salt and paprika, as you're cooking it.
3) Then, add chopped fresh tomatoes and cooked spinach along with garlic and crushed red pepper to the skillet with shrimp.
4) Mix everything well. Remove from heat (while you cook the pasta). You don't want to overcook the shrimp and tomatoes - they will continue cooking in the next step.
5) Cook fettuccine pasta in boiling water, according to package instructions. Drain.
6) Next, add cooked and drained pasta to the skillet with shrimp, spinach, and tomatoes, along with some lemon juice and more butter.
7) Heat up your shrimp tomato spinach pasta, and season with salt and red pepper flakes. Stir constantly until the shrimp is cooked through, and all ingredients are heated through.
8) Top with grated Parmesan cheese, when serving.
Enjoy this Shrimp Tomato and Spinach Pasta!
Shrimp Tomato Spinach Pasta in Garlic Butter Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 lb shrimp , fresh, uncooked, shelled and deveined
- 5 tomatoes , medium size, fresh, chopped into large cubes
- 1 cup spinach cooked
- 5 garlic cloves , minced
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ¼ lemon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper or more
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
- 10 oz fettuccine pasta
- ½ cup Parmesan cheese grated, for serving
Instructions
- Heat a large skillet on medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon olive oil, until melted.
- Add fresh shrimp and half the minced garlic. Make sure the shrimp is not crowded. Cook for 1 minute on one side until pink on that side.
- While the shrimp is cooking, generously sprinkle paprika and salt over uncooked side of the shrimp.
- Flip the shrimp over and cook for another 1 or 2 minutes until pink on the other side.
- To the skillet with shrimp, add chopped fresh tomatoes, cooked spinach, and the remaining amount of minced garlic. Add ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper (or more). Mix everything well, remove from heat while you cook pasta.
- In the meantime cook pasta according to package instructions. Drain and rinse with cold water to prevent pasta from cooking and getting mushy.
- Add cooked pasta to the skillet with shrimp and vegetables with 1 or 2 tablespoons of butter.
- Add freshly squeezed lemon juice. Depending on the juiciness of your lemon, it could be ¼ of a small lemon or ½ lemon. Don't add too much lemon juice.
- Season with salt and more crushed red pepper. Warm up on medium heat until the shrimp is cooked through, and all ingredients are heated through.
- To serve, top with grated Parmesan cheese.
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.
I just made this for supper. EXCELLENT!!!!! I did do a few things different. I added fresh mushrooms and I added the spinach without cooking it. This was the best pasta dish I've made in along time. Should also be good with some good white wine for more juice in it.
made this last week, the paprika built the dish - loved it, it is in my little box of recipes. will be once fortnight in my house.
Made this for dinner tonight. Used fresh spinach and added sausage. Delicious!!
Rinsing pasta is a no no. The natural starch of the pasta is what makes the favors stick to it. Rinsing stops that from happening.
Julia do you have an idea of the type of dish to put the pasta dish in and the type to serve guests. The recipe looks delish
I have a pasta serving set with a large shallow serving bowl and matching individual bowls. It looked lovely served this way.
Made this today. Delicious! Added half finely chopped bell pepper and a finely chopped medium red onion. I didn't have spinach so before serving I added a handful of finely chopped fresh parsley and sprinkled all with garlic powder and dried oregano. We absolutely loved this dish and will certainly be making it again!
Made it. Loved it. It was soooo easy thank you for sharing.
Instead of cooked spinach I'd recommend 2 c of fresh baby spinach
This is the 3rd time I've made this and my family loves it. It's a new favorite. I just changed it to angel hair pasta but still love it. Thanks
Thank you - I am always so happy to hear when people love the recipes I post. 🙂
Delicious! Great recipe. Wouldn't change a thing.
Thank you, Angela!
Is it really necessary to cook the spinach? Usually spinach cooks/wilts rapidly.
No, it's not really necessary to cook the spinach. You can just add it to the skillet and let it wilt while the pasta cooks.
This Shrimp tomato and spinach pasta recipe is a boom. My husband and I could not get over how delicious it is. Will make many many more times. Thank you
Thank you so much! Really happy you enjoyed it! 🙂
Amazing dish. I did not have fresh spinach but had a package of creamed frozen spinach.
Came out awesome with a bit of creamy sauce. Making it the same way tonight.
Loved it. Try it this way.
Good to know that it works with creamed spinach!
Recipe was simple to make and very delicious! We will be making this again soon!
Thank you! Glad to hear that you liked it so much you will be making it again! 🙂
Very good Julia! I added some asparagus and mushrooms since I had it in the frig. This recipe is a keeper and it was so quick and easy to make too. Thanks!
Asparagus and mushrooms sound like a great addition here! Very refreshing!