Succulent shrimp tossed in a rich blend of melted butter, abundant garlic and fresh lemon juice, Lemon Garlic Butter Shrimp may be the ultimate 20-minute meal.

Lemon Garlic Butter Shrimp with lemon slices in a cast iron skillet

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With just 6 simple ingredients, this flavorful, juicy shrimp not only makes an easy weeknight meal, but a welcome appetizer for your next dinner party or game day get-together.

Ingredients You Need to Make Lemon Garlic Butter Shrimp

Lemon Garlic Butter Shrimp Ingredients on a white marble board

Shrimp: Medium or large raw shrimp (fresh or thawed frozen shrimp) that are peeled and deveined, ideally shrimp with tails.
Butter: salted or unsalted butter
Olive Oil: ideally good, extra-virgin olive oil
Fresh Garlic: Look for a firm, fresh head of garlic with large cloves and smooth skin.
Lemon: Ideally organic as you’ll need both juice and zest.
Parsley: Fresh, flat leaf parsley (Italian parsley) – dried parsley is not a good substitute in this dish.
Crushed Red Pepper
Kosher Salt and Freshly Ground Black Pepper

Fast, easy and tasty — that’s how I would describe shrimp. It cooks in minutes and lends itself to a wide variety of flavor combinations. Here sweet, tender shrimp is pan fried and bathed in a bright, aromatic, lemon garlic butter sauce. A truly restaurant-quality meal on your dinner table in less than half an hour. Serve it with bread, pasta (see this Lemon Garlic Shrimp Pasta recipe) or rice because you won’t want to miss a drop of the rich, silky sauce.

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How to Make Lemon Garlic Butter Shrimp

Step 1: In a large skillet, heat butter and olive oil until sizzling. Add minced garlic and red pepper flakes; cook and stir 30 seconds, or until fragrant. Add shrimp; cook and stir until shrimp is just cooked through.

adding crushed red pepper to butter in skillet

Step 2: Add fresh lemon juice and zest, and parsley; stir to coat. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Transfer to platter and serve.