Creamy Shrimp and Mushroom Pasta
I love this recipe. It is so fast and easy yet so filling and rich. It is a company worthy dish on a weeknight time budget.
I love this recipe. It is so fast and easy yet so filling and rich. It is a company worthy dish on a weeknight time budget.
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 4-8 oz fettuccine or linguine
- 10 tbsp butter divided (i know but i’ve tried it with less and it’s just not the same)
- 8 oz fresh sliced mushrooms
- 3 oz cream cheese cut into small pieces
- 2 tbsp fresh parsley chopped
- 1 tbsp fresh basil chopped (you can use dried herbs if that’s all you have)
- 2/3 cup boiling water (from your noodle pot)
- 1 lb cooked shrimp (feel free to buy frozen-gasp!)
- Carbohydrate 4.62561689436223 g
- Cholesterol 23.3883565575 mg
- Fat 7.50135476607931 g
- Fiber 1.59097715896256 g
- Protein 2.6066759538851 g
- Saturated Fat 4.12859982666423 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (199g)
- Sodium 312.695923214619 mg
- Sugar 3.03463973539967 g
- Trans Fat 1.13430532441559 g
- Calories 91 calories
Step-by-step
- Boil and salt a large pot of water and cook your pasta. I usually only use about half of an 8 oz box, preferring fewer noodles.
- While your pasta is cooking, cook your shrimp if necessary and reserve. If your shrimp are pre-cooked and frozen, quickly thaw them under running water.
- In a large skillet melt 2 tbsp of butter over medium heat and saute mushrooms until soft and brown. Season with salt and pepper.
- Reserve cooked mushrooms and melt remaining butter in the skillet. Add minced garlic, cream cheese, and herbs. At this point, I generally feel like something has gone terribly wrong. The cream cheese doesn’t really melt and starts to look almost curdled, don’t worry about it! It will all smooth out and be wonderful when we add the water. I promise.
- Simmer cream cheese mixture until well blended. Get a scoop of boiling pasta water from your noodle pot and mix it in, stirring quickly to smooth out the sauce.
- Keep sauce hot and add shrimp and mushrooms, mix well and simmer (stirring often) until everything is hot and thickened, about 10 minutes-you wont ruin this sauce by accidentally boiling it so don’t worry.
- Toss sauce with cooked noodles and serve.
Swapping heavy cream for cream cheese alters the fundamental physics of pan sauce creation. Dairy solids separate when heated too rapidly without adequate emulsifiers, turning a silky emulsion into a greasy pan of broken fats. Cook mushrooms in a wide 12-inch skillet over medium heat to maximize surface area contact. This allows moisture to evaporate efficiently within six minutes rather than steaming the fungi into a rubbery texture. Brown edges indicate proper caramelization of natural sugars. Reserve starchy pasta water before draining the pot. Starch molecules coat protein strands in shrimp and bind the butterfat seamlessly into the melting cheese. Adding boiling water directly to cold cream cheese breaks the thermal shock that causes curdling. Whisk constantly during this liquid addition phase. Use pre-cooked frozen shrimp only if thawed completely under cold running water and patted dry with paper towels. Excess surface moisture dilutes the sauce and drops the skillet temperature below the simmering threshold. Simmer the combined seafood and sauce mixture for exactly ten minutes to heat proteins through without toughening the shellfish.
