Whether as a tasty appetizer or mouth-watering main course, shrimp are part of many a favorite meal. These luscious shellfish can be served simply alongside a tried-and-true cocktail sauce or colorfully cooked in a complex entrée, but no matter how and where they show up, you know you’re in for a treat. Here are five of Wine Spectator editors’ favorite recipes in which shrimp shine brightly on the plate, so you can enjoy them in spring, summer and all year round.
Michael White’s Seafood Salad with Lambrusco
A refreshing option for warm weather days of outdoor entertaining, chef Michael White’s seafood salad with olives, lemon and capers is a simple, delicious way to enjoy shrimp alongside other shellfish such as calamari and scallops. Each is poached separately in a white wine liquid that includes lemon, bay leaves and thyme before being marinated in a caper- and lemon-accented vinaigrette to pack in more flavor. To finish, the seafood is mixed with olives, celery and parsley. This salad pairs wonderfully with Lambrusco, a lightly sparkling red wine from the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. This refreshing, zippy red balances the dish’s acidity with fruitiness and bold flavor.
Louis Osteen’s Barbecued Shrimp and Biscuits with an Alsatian White
This dish, first published in 2003, stands the test of time as one of Wine Spectator’s go-to shrimp recipes. It’s a twist on a Lowcountry classic, with a barbecue sauce that sings with flavor and biscuits that features editor Owen Dugan proclaims are the “fluffiest and most buttery biscuits you will ever eat.” Chef Louis Osteen, who sadly passed away in 2019, described these biscuits as “lighter than air,” adding that “you have to butter the tops right out of the oven or they’ll float away.” While that’s enough to convince almost anyone to try this recipe, the barbecued shrimp are truly the centerpiece, with some curveball ingredients in the tomato-based sauce, like guava paste and beer, that add sweetness and maltiness to this bold, peppery dish. An off-dry Alsatian white is recommended here, with enough lush fruit and a core of acidity to stand up to the sauce.
Emeril Lagasse’s Spicy Butter-Poached Shrimp with a Napa Chardonnay
A delicious way to celebrate shrimp as the star of a dish, celebrity chef Emeril Lagasse’s recipe for butter-poached shrimp is creamy, spicy and loaded with flavor. It starts with Emeril’s Original Essence spice mix, which can be found at grocery stores or ordered online, and is a great staple for cooking anything from shellfish to chicken to steak. The recipe for the spice mix—which includes paprika, cayenne, oregano and thyme—can also be found on Emeril’s website to make at home. The shrimp marinate in hot sauce and Emeril’s Essence for 1 hour before being placed in the poaching liquid, which gets its own dose of cayenne. The addition of bay leaves adds an earthy note, while tangy Worcestershire sauce and lemon juice round out the flavor profile of this appetizer. Serve it with a crusty loaf of bread and a lightly oaked Chardonnay from Napa to marry with the buttery sauce while providing a refreshing beam of vibrant fruit to balance all that spice.
Cajun Shrimp Spaghetti with Riesling
From Louisiana chef Melissa Martin’s cookbook, Mosquito Supper Club: Cajun Recipes from a Disappearing Bayou (Artisan Books, 2020), this recipe for Cajun-style shrimp over pasta is called “Lucien’s Shrimp Spaghetti,” as it is her son’s favorite meal. In her take on true bayou cuisine, Martin cooks the sauce really low and slow, adding tomato sauce and sugar in stages to achieve depth of flavor. The shrimp—which has been marinating in hot sauce, black pepper and cayenne—joins in at the very end of the cooking process. “It’s a near perfect meal,” Martin writes in the book. “Simple, sweet, perfectly balanced.” Enjoy this dish, good for family-style meals and feeding large groups, with a Riesling. A kabinett style from Germany’s Mosel region, or alternatively from New York’s Finger Lakes, would work very well here; the bright acidity and juicy, fruity flavors will balance the heat and heartiness of the sauce while complementing the natural sweetness of the tomatoes and shrimp.
Lemony Shrimp and Asparagus with Garlic Breadcrumbs and Godello
This easy weeknight shrimp dish is great for when you want something that will feel decadent but take only 45 minutes—or less, with advance prep—to come together after work or a long day. Essentially a riff on shrimp scampi’s timeless combo of lemon, wine, butter, garlic and parsley, this recipe evokes springtime with the tender crunch of fresh asparagus and adds textural contrast with crispy, garlicky breadcrumbs. (The breadcrumbs can be made up to a week ahead of time, though it takes only 10 minutes to brown them in a pan.) The asparagus is blanched, then cooked quickly with the shrimp in the sauce, with red pepper flakes adding a bit of spice. A medium-bodied white wine such as a Godello from the Bierzo region of Spain is a great choice here, as its refreshing acidity and lovely mineral and stone fruit notes provide a counterpoint to the buttery sauce and touch of heat.
