Giada De Laurentiis’ Linguine with Shrimp and Lemon Oil Is a Sunny 5-Star Pasta Hit

Giada De Laurentiis‘ pasta recipe with shrimp has a sunny side: it’s cooked in tangy, zesty lemon-infused oil, giving the dish a pleasingly intense lemon shot. Here’s how the Food Network star makes this satisfying meal.

De Laurentiis’ Linguine with Shrimp and Lemon Oil is much easier to make than it sounds

The Food Network chef’s elegant meal calls for extra-virgin olive oil, linguine pasta, shallots, garlic cloves, frozen shrimp, arugula, salt, pepper, parsley, and of course, zested and juiced lemons.

“I’ve always got lemons in the kitchen,” De Laurentiis says in the Food Network video for this recipe. “Because they add so much brightness and flavor to every dish.”

Giada De Laurentiis’ pasta dish is a quick weeknight meal

The Simply Giada star begins the dish by preparing her lemon-infused oil. To a half cup of extra-virgin olive oil (“We’re not cooking this, so it’s got to be really fruity yummy olive oil”), she adds the zest of one lemon. “It’s so aromatic.”

In the meantime, a base sauce is prepared for the pasta by cooking chopped shallots and garlic in olive oil in a skillet, salting and peppering as you go along. Also, make sure you get your linguine cooking in salted boiling water.

Now the frozen shrimp are added to the skillet: “This is the thing with frozen shrimp,” De Laurentiis says in the video. “I have them in my freezer and they’re always a freezer staple for me. Because I can whip up a gourmet meal in no time with them.”

She explains the shrimp are not thawed before adding to the skillet because “that way, the minute they’re defrosted and they turn slightly pink, you know they’re done. The biggest problem people have with cooking shrimp is overcooking them, and if you overcook them, they lose that sweetness and they get kind of rubbery.”

The lemon zest and juice are added to the skillet, as well as the al-dente cooked linguine, tossing it with the sauce. With the heat off, add chopped parsley, washed arugula leaves, and the lemon oil prepared at the very start.

“[The lemon oil] just makes the linguine silky and smooth and super yummy,” De Laurentiis says.

Once the arugula has wilted, the dish is ready to be served.

Get the full recipe, video, and reviews on Food Network’s site.

De Laurentiis’ Linguine with Shrimp and Lemon Oil has well over 500 five-star reviews on Food Network’s site

It’s easy to see why home cooks were impressed with the chef’s bright and fresh pasta dish.

Reviewers wrote, “Fantastic!! Quick & easy to make for my family. I will make this dish again & again,” and “Absolutely delicious! Have made this a few times because it is such a simple recipe. Light and full of flavor.”

One home cook affirmed this recipe as a perfect go-to dish when you want something great for dinner that doesn’t take long to prepare: “This is a delicious quick meal when you are in a rush!!!”