Creamy Tuscan Shrimp (Keto)
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Our creamy Tuscan shrimp is a mouthwatering keto-friendly recipe that’s perfect for those busy weeknights. With just a handful of ingredients and a simple cooking process, you’ll have a creamy, one-skillet meal on the table in no time. So, let’s dive into this quick and easy recipe that’s sure to please the entire family while keeping your low-carb goals on track.
Keto-friendly or not, this dish is delicious. Serve it with these keto Brussels sprouts for one of the most flavorful and satisfying keto meals you’ve ever had! No special ingredients are required!
What You’ll Love About this Creamy Tuscan Shrimp Recipe
- Quick Weeknight Recipe: This juicy shrimp recipe is perfect for busy weeknights. It seems like shrimp would be too complicated for a weeknight meal, but this one is ready in no time.
- Creamy Sauce: Who doesn’t love a creamy homemade sauce? This sauce is rich and velvety, but unlike many keto recipes, it doesn’t rely on cheese to provide all the flavor.
- It’s Filling: Tuscan shrimp with spinach makes a filling lunch or light supper on its own, but you can also add sides to stretch it further if you want.
What is ‘Tuscan’ food?
Tuscan food, also known as Tuscan cuisine, is rooted in the cooking styles of the Tuscany region in central Italy. It is renowned for its simplicity. It uses high-quality, locally sourced ingredients to create rich and flavorful dishes. Tuscan cuisine usually includes fresh produce, olive oil, and herbs to make simple sauces and dishes without much complication. Tuscan food tastes so fresh and flavorful, but is always very simple to make.
How to Make This a Complete Keto Meal
Creamy Tuscan Shrimp is awesome on its own, but here are a few ideas to make it even better:
- Zoodles (zucchini noodles): Toss in some cooked zoodles and give it a good stir for a keto-friendly shrimp pasta.
- Salad: A fresh green salad with a zesty vinaigrette makes this a complete, healthy meal. Try this Caprese salad (without the chicken if you want!) for a complete Italian-inspired meal.
Ingredients
- Butter – You can swap butter with olive oil, ghee, or vegetable-based butter substitute if you’d like.
- Garlic – Using a fresh garlic clove or jarred garlic is perfect.
- Large raw shrimp, uncooked jumbo shrimp. If using frozen, thaw before cooking.
- White wine – If you want to skip the wine, use vegetable or chicken broth instead.
- Sun dried tomatoes – You can buy these in a jar at the grocery store.
- Baby spinach: Fresh works best, but you can use frozen if necessary. Thaw, then dry up as much of the water as possible before adding it to your pasta.
- Half and half or heavy whipping cream: Want a lighter version? Whole milk or even a dairy-free option like coconut milk works, but the consistency will be less creamy.
- Lemon juice: Fresh lemon juice will make a big difference in the quality and flavor of your dish.
- Noodles – you can also use zoodles for a keto-friendly option.
How to Make Creamy Tuscan Garlic Shrimp
STEP ONE: Cook the shrimp. In a large skillet, melt the butter then saute the garlic for 1-2 minutes. Add the fresh shrimp and cook in a single layer over medium-high heat for 2-3 minutes, flip then cook an additional 2-3 minutes. Remove the shrimp from the skillet and set aside.
STEP TWO: Make the creamy tuscan sauce. Deglaze the pan by slowly adding the wine while stirring to get the bits off the bottom of the pan. Allow the wine to reduce by half. Add the half and half, fresh spinach, sundried tomatoes, lemon juice, salt, and black pepper. Cook until the spinach is wilted.
STEP THREE: Serve. Add the shrimp back to the pan and serve as is or over pasta.
Tips and Recipe Notes
- Don’t overcook the shrimp. Shrimp cook fast, so keep an eye on them to avoid rubbery shrimp. Have all your ingredients ready to go (pre-measured) so there are no hold-ups while cooking.
- Deglaze like a pro. Slowly add the wine while stirring and gently scraping the bottom of the pan to get those tasty bits into the sauce.
- Cook the dish until the spinach is nice and wilted but still vibrant green.
- Add a handful of grape tomatoes with the spinach
- Top with fresh herbs like fresh parsley or basil and a lemon wedge for serving.
FAQs
Yes, you can. Just thaw them first and pat them dry so you remove as much water as possible. Water in the pan can cause the shrimp to steam and boil instead of fry, changing their texture considerably.
Use a small knife or kitchen shears to make a shallow cut along the back, then remove the vein.
You can, but your sauce will be a bit less flavorful, because you’ll be making it without all the flavor from cooking the shrimp. If you use pre-cooked shrimp, add them right near the end, so they have time just to heat up, and so they won’t get overcooked.
How to Store Leftovers
Shrimp is always best when fresh, so eat it up if you can! But, if you do have some leftovers, you can save them for another day. Here’s how:
In the fridge: Pop the leftovers in an airtight container and store in the fridge for up to 2-3 days.
Can I Freeze Leftovers? Sorry, but freezing isn’t the best idea for this one. The creamy sauce might not hold up well when thawed. Try to use up your leftovers in a couple of days.
How to Reheat
When you’re ready to enjoy those leftovers, reheat gently in a pan over low heat, stirring often, until warm. You can also use a microwave-safe dish and heat in short bursts, stirring in between. Don’t overcook them or they’ll end up rubbery.
Can This Recipe Be Made Gluten-Free?
Sure thing! It’s already gluten-free as-is (double check your own ingredients). If you’re serving this with pasta, just use a gluten-free version, or skip it altogether if you’re going for a low-carb option.
Creamy Tuscan Shrimp Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 pound uncooked jumbo shrimp tails off
- 1 cup white wine
- 1 1/2 cups half and half or heavy whipping cream
- 2 cups baby spinach
- 4 ounces sun-dried tomatoes drained
- 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- cooked pasta optional for serving
Instructions
- Cook the shrimp. In a large skillet, melt the butter then saute the garlic for 1-2 minutes. Add the shrimp and cook over medium-high heat for 2-3 minutes, flip then cook an additional 2-3 minutes. Remove the shrimp from the skillet and set aside.
- Make the sauce. Deglaze the pan by slowly adding the wine while stirring to get the bits off the bottom of the pan. Allow the wine to reduce by half. Add the half and half, spinach, sun-dried tomatoes, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Cook until the spinach is wilted.
- Serve. Add the shrimp back to the pan. Serve as is or over pasta.
Video
Notes
- Don’t overcook the shrimp. Shrimp cook fast, so keep an eye on them to avoid rubbery shrimp. Have all your ingredients ready to go (pre-measured) so there are no hold-ups while cooking.
- Deglaze like a pro. Slowly add the wine while stirring and gently scraping the bottom of the pan to get those tasty bits into the sauce.
- Cook the dish until the spinach is nice and wilted but still vibrant green.
