Classic Shrimp Scampi

[elleng]

'Scampi are tiny, lobster-like crustaceans with pale pink shells (also called langoustines). Italian cooks in the United States swapped shrimp for scampi, but kept both names. Thus the dish was born, along with inevitable variations.

This classic recipe makes a simple garlic, white wine and butter sauce that goes well with a pile of pasta or with a hunk of crusty bread. However you make the dish, once the shrimp are added to the pan, the trick is to cook them just long enough that they turn pink all over, but not until their bodies curl into rounds with the texture of tires.'

Featured in: A Good Appetite; Shrimp Scampi, A Classic Open To Interpretation.

http://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/9101-classic-shrimp-scampi?

[Lunabell]

1. I LOVE Shrimp.

But only because I can't afford lobster!

[Tab]

2. Few people cook shrimp properly

I let them get about halfway cooked (depends on the size) and then know sitting in the hot pasta sauce or saute pan or whatever will finish them just right. Major difference between shrimp cooked this way and shrimp allowed to get to the texture of tire rubber.

Incidentally, this goes for shrimp cocktail too. Most "shrimp" that comes pre-cooked (or in shrimp rings) are soooo overdone.