Pasta with Pesto Sauce and Shrimp
Real Italian flavor and an incredible aroma! Pasta with pesto and shrimp is so delicious it’s hard to believe you can make it at home - it tastes like a restaurant dish. Despite seeming difficult, it cooks quickly, especially with ready-made pesto.
Updated : 05 March, 2026
Easy
About 20 min.
Ingredients
250 grams
Spaghetti
250 grams
Shrimp
3
Garlic
2 tablespoon
Olive oil
to taste
Ground black pepper
to taste
Salt
Pesto
100 grams
Parmesan
100 grams
Pine nuts
50 milliliters
Olive oil
50 grams
Basil
1
Garlic
Table
Table of volume measurements:
- teaspoon - 5 ml
- dessert spoon - 10 ml
- tablespoon - 20 ml
- glass - 200 ml
Preparation
Step 1
How to cook pasta with pesto sauce and shrimp? First, make the pesto. Wash the basil, pat dry, and pull the leaves off the stems. Peel the garlic and slice it if you like.
Step 2
Cut the Parmesan into cubes. You can use Parmesan of any firmness; I used a young one.
Step 3
Put pine nuts, basil leaves, Parmesan, garlic, and olive oil into a blender bowl.
Step 4
Blend until smooth. Adjust the consistency with olive oil - from a thick paste to a spoon-dripping, semi-thick sauce.
Step 5
Prepare the ingredients for the dish. You can use any pasta: long (spaghetti, linguine, fettuccine) or short (farfalle, penne, fusilli, etc.).
Step 6
Thaw the shrimp in advance and peel off the heads and shells. You can use any shrimp: standard, king, or larger (such as Argentine red shrimp). They can be peeled or unpeeled, but the net shrimp weight should be at least 250 g (about 9 oz).
Step 7
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add the spaghetti, and cook until al dente. Drain, reserving about 50 ml (3 tbsp) of the pasta cooking water.
Step 8
Peel the garlic cloves.
Step 9
Heat vegetable oil in a frying pan, add the garlic cloves, and fry until golden. Remove the garlic.
Step 10
Add the peeled shrimp and sauté, stirring, for about 2 minutes.
Step 11
At the end, season the shrimp with salt and pepper to taste. Pour in the reserved pasta water.
Step 12
Add the cooked spaghetti and the pesto sauce to the shrimp.
Step 13
Mix until evenly combined. All the pasta should be coated with pesto.
Step 14
Plate and serve, garnishing with herbs. Enjoy!
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