Shrimp Pasta in Vodka Sauce

This Shrimp Pasta in Vodka Sauce cooks up quickly for a satisfying, utterly delicious 30 minute meal.

A creamy vodka sauce is tossed with orecchiette pasta and sautéed shrimp to create this flavorful dish. A meal worthy of a special menu but easy enough to make any night of the week!

So, the holidays are officially over. All the Christmas decorations have been packed away. Paul and the boys lugged our beautiful 12-foot tree out to the curb, and our house is back to normal. Why does it look so incredibly boring without Christmas lights in every room? 

Boy #4 woke up in the wee morning hours, painfully dragged himself out of bed, and headed back to school and we are back to work.

There’s nothing like a cozy meal of tender pasta tossed with shrimp in a creamy vodka sauce to fill the void.

This is serious comfort food!

Ingredient Notes

• Shrimp – Do yourself a favor and buy peeled and de-veined raw shrimp. If the tails are on, they are easy to pull off. Large (31 to 40 count) or extra large (26-30 count) shrimp will work well in this recipe. If the shrimp are larger than this, I like to cut them in half.
• Olive oil
• Diced yellow onion and minced garlic cloves
• Seasoning – Salt, freshly ground black pepper and crushed red pepper flakes for a little kick.
• Vodka – Use a good quality vodka for the best flavor. Most of the vodka cooks off but leaves it’s flavor essence behind for a really special tomato cream sauce.
• Canned crushed tomatoes
• Fresh parsley – A little fresh parsley goes a long way to brighten up a tomato-based pasta sauce.
• Heavy cream – Cream helps tone down the acid in the crushed tomatoes and soften them into a delicious creamy tomato vodka sauce.
• Parmesan cheese – I love to use shaved Parmesan for a big flavor impact. Use a light touch to run a vegetable or potato peeler down a block of Parmesan cheese to get nice shavings to garnish the pasta.
• Pasta – I’m very fond of orecchiette pasta, also known as “little ear” pasta, because the shape resembles small ears. These little domes work perfectly to hold on to the vodka sauce. You can substitute another short pasta like penne, if you’d like.

How to Make Shrimp Pasta in Vodka Sauce

1. Coat a large pan with olive oil. Cut the shrimp in half and cook over medium heat, just till opaque. Transfer the shrimp to a dish and set it aside.
2. Coat the same pan with some more olive oil and add your diced onion. After the onion has softened add in your garlic and crushed red pepper and cook for another minute or two.
3. Remove the pan from the heat and add the vodka.

1. Return the pan to the heat and add the crushed tomatoes. Turn it up to high and bring the mixture to a boil. Then, reduce the heat to low and add the cream and fresh parsley. Season to taste with salt ad pepper. Let the sauce simmer while you boil the pasta in a separate pot according to the package directions.
2. When the pasta is finished cooking, add the cooked shrimp to the sauce.
3. Finally, stir in the cooked and well drained pasta.

Top the Shrimp Pasta in Vodka Sauce with shaved Parmesan and dive in!

Serving Suggestions

• Lemon Parmesan Salad
• Pesto Green Beans
• Simple Italian Salad
• Homemade Cheesy Breadsticks

More Easy Pasta Recipes You’ll Love

• Shrimp and Spinach Pasta– An easy, one-pot pasta. Shrimp lovers rejoice!
• Skillet Sausage Pasta – A long-time reader favorite.
• Skillet Lasagna – Satisfy those lasagna cravings with FAR less work.
• Chicken Pesto Pasta – Looks fancy, tastes amazing, and it’s super easy.
• There are more delicious choices in my full collection of Pasta recipes!

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