Creamy Garlic Prawns are your favourite garlic prawns… PLUS a creamy garlic sauce! Few simple little tricks to make a sauce that’s a cut above your basic recipes – deglaze the pan with a little white wine, a splash of chicken stock and sprinkle of parmesan. Because plump prawns demand the BEST sauce!
Creamy Garlic Prawns
Plump juicy prawns marinated in garlic then seared in butter, finished with a splash of dry white wine and a squeeze of lemon juice is my go-to way to make prawns. That’s this recipe here – Garlic Prawns. A classic that will never go out of style.
Then there’s this version – Garlic Prawns PLUS a creamy garlicky sauce. It’s the jacked up version, a more indulgent one for those nights when you want/need something to impress, and extra sauce to smother your starchy side of choice so you can lavish every single drop of that sauce!
What you need for Creamy Garlic Prawns
This recipe might call for a few ingredients that others don’t – namely wine, parmesan and chicken stock. But these are the 3 things that gives the sauce extra depth of flavour so it stacks up to great restaurants. So don’t skip them!
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Prawns / shrimp – use good quality frozen, thawed, or peel your own (you’ll need 1kg /2lb whole prawns). I used to be a total prawn snob and never used pre peeled frozen ones, but nowadays you can get really good quality ones from the fish markets and good fish mongers;
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White wine – age old trick used by chefs to add extra complexity into sauces by deglazing pans (ie add wine into hot pan after searing meat/prawns to dissolve the precious gold bits stuck to the base of the pan into the sauce = free flavour!). Use any white wine that’s no too fruity (like some Rieslings can be) or too woody (like some Chardonnays). I use Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Gris, I buy discount bottles for cooking purposes. I keep them for weeks/months in the fridge!
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Chicken or vegetable stock/broth – as with the wine, this adds an extra depth of flavour to the sauce. Use low sodium so you can be sure your sauce won’t end up too salty;
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Parmesan – in addition to wine and stock/broth, this is the 3rd power ingredient that makes this creamy garlic sauce extra good. Parmesan is a well known source of umami which is the technical term for “savoury” flavour, and in this recipe it also serves the double purposes of thickening the creamy sauce (instead of using even more cream);
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Cream – thickened / heavy cream is best because it’s thicker than pure cream which means it needs less reducing to thicken. And full fat is better / thicker than light cream, but this recipe works a treat with low fat too (as well as evaporated milk); and
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Garlic – because we’re making a Creamy GARLIC Sauce for the prawns! Some garlic is used to marinate the prawns, some to add flavour into the sauce.
How to make Creamy Garlic Prawns
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Marinate prawns – just a brief 20 minute marinade for the prawns to infuse them with some garlic flavour. Because prawn flesh is so tender, it doesn’t need anymore than that;
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Sear prawns – cook these on medium heat, then remove. Cook in batches to make it easier to control the process so you don’t accidentally overcook them. Nobody likes rubbery overcooked prawns!
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Sauce garlic & deglaze pan – cook some garlic in a little butter in the same pan (this gets really good garlic flavour into the sauce) then add the wine;
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Reduce wine – simmer rapidly on high heat until the wine is reduced down and you no longer smell the harsh “winey” smell;
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Finish sauce – add the stock and reduce that down too, before adding cream. I do this before the cream because it’s faster to reduce it first by itself before adding the cream. Then once the cream is added, it only takes 2 minutes or so to reduce and thicken;
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Return prawns into sauce to reheat them gently and bring it all together, then it’s ready to be served!
Here’s a close up photo of the sauce so you can see the thickness. Though actually, it’s a bit thicker than ideal – the sauce had cooled a bit by the time I took that photo.
What to serve with Creamy Garlic Prawns
Serving on a starchy bed worthy of soaking in that creamy sauce is essential. The best is mashed potatoes – to fully optimise the eating experience of every drop of sauce.
Also good with:
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rice – try it with this Seasoned Rice, though plain white rice or brown rice will be just fine too;
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creamy Mashed Sweet Potato (someone please remind me to publish the recipe, I have had it waiting to go for months!);
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Creamy Cauliflower Mash (low-carb life essential – and it’s MUCH tastier than you think!);
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soft white rolls for mopping plates clean (use this No Yeast Sandwich Bread if you have no yeast or no time to wait for dough to rise)
If you want this over pasta, best to use this Creamy Garlic Prawn Pasta recipe instead (you need to toss pasta with sauce to get the creamy sauce to stick to the pasta).
Also on the very edge of the above photo, you spy greenery which is essential to round out the meal. On that occasion, it was a handful of mixed leafy greens tossed with my Basic Salad Dressing but you could get a little fancier and use a French Vinaigrette or Italian Dressing, or a simple Balsamic Dressing.
Otherwise, browse through Vegetable Sides and pick a dish based on whatever veg you’ve got. There will be new veggie side dishes added regularly to increase the selection! – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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Creamy Garlic Prawns (Shrimp)
Ingredients
Garlic marinated prawns:
- 500g / 1lb peeled prawns/shrimp , large/jumbo best (Note 1)
- 1 garlic cloves , finely minced
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp salt
Cooking prawns:
- 15g / 1 tbsp unsalted butter
Creamy garlic sauce:
- 2 garlic clove , finely minced
- 15g / 1 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup dry white wine (or more chicken stock) (Note 2)
- 1/2 cup chicken or vegetable stock/broth , low sodium
- 1 cup heavy/thickened cream
- 1/2 cup parmesan , finely grated (grate your own, Note 3)
- 2 tbsp parsley , finely chopped
Instructions
Marinate Prawns:
- Place prawns, garlic, oil and pepper in a bowl. Toss to coat, set aside 20 minutes if time permits (no longer).
- Stir through salt just prior to cooking.
Cook prawns:
- Melt 15g / 1 tbsp butter in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add half the prawns and cook for 1 minute on each side, then remove.
- Repeat with remaining prawns (you shouldn't need more butter), then remove. Scrape out excess remaining garlic from pan and add to cooked prawns.
Creamy Sauce:
- Add butter into skillet and let it melt. Add garlic and stir for 30 seconds or until light golden.
- Add white wine, turn up heat to high. Bring to simmer while stirring base of the pan to dissolve all the golden bits into the sauce. Cook 1 minute or until it most evaporates and the winey smell is gone.
- Add chicken stock and reduce until mostly gone and just a thin layer remains on base of skillet.
- Add cream, then simmer on medium heat for 2 minutes until reduced and slightly thickened.
- Stir through parmesan, then add the prawns back in. Taste sauce and see if more salt and pepper is needed.
- Serve sprinkled with parsley, over mashed potato or something to soak up that fabulous sauce!
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Life of Dozer
Life of Dozer and Life of Nagi, perfectly captured in one still.
Bronwen says
Sautéed my shrimp in a garlic herb butter I had in the fridge, tossed in some frozen peas and finished with lemon and a little crushed red pepper—and it was a showstopper! I’m already looking forward to the leftovers.
Nagi says
Sounds yum!! N x
Jessie Chiconi says
Amazing! Made this while my husband was away as he’s not a prawn lover and it was sensational. Added some chilli flakes and lemon juice for a bit of a kick, but certainly didn’t need it. Just yum 😋 Thanks for yet another standout recipe!
Nagi says
Thanks! N x
Chris says
Cooked this tonight and loved it. Will add it to my list for future cooking’s. just wondering though is it possible to freeze the leftover sauce?
Darlene says
Delicious easy quick shrimp dish I served with mashed potatoes. This was a quick very tasty dish. I will make it on a regular basis. I added more garlic otherwise followed the recipe.
Nagi your recipes are wonderful I can’t wait for your cookbook. I also look forward to pictures of Dozer who is adorable. Thanks for sharing all your wonderful recipes I often use your recipes and they are always delicious
Maz says
OMG!!! I made this for my 17yo daughter tonight, her response “Better than a restaurant!”. Thank you soooo very much Nagi xx. I loved the sauce but I am not a prawn fan…. However as long as my daughter was happy, so am I 😘😘
Nagi says
Woah what a compliment Maz, that’s great!! N x
Debra McCallum says
Wow! Another amazing dish! I cooked this for my 26yo son’s birthday dinner and it was a total HIT!!! Everyone from my son, daughter, grandaughter and ex husband all loved it! I served it with pasta and added some chopped dill at the end – magnificent!!! Thanks yet again Nagi for a great recipe!!!
Karina T says
I’ve made this recipe almost a dozen times, so easy to follow and turns out delicious every time. My boyfriend is obsessed with this recipe and boasts about it to everyone! I love all of Nagi’s recipes x
Desiree Eime says
I loooove the flavour of this sauce…mwuah…so yummy..from Desiree in South Australia..ps. I follow a lot of your recipes and they are all fantastic!
Joy Mendoza says
Thanks for the delicious recipe. 😊
Nadia Furmie says
My family loved it. Thanks for a delicious recipe
PETER says
Will be making this tonight for my wife and myself.
Tonight is the last games of the English Premiership season 20/21.
All games start in the EPL at 16.00pm UK time 22.00pm Thai time.
Wish me luck with my prawn cooking.
And wish my team good luck in the last game of 20/21.
Who is that……………..ARSENAL.
padrino says
I will try for first time with Proffesoro Shuster and his family iin Easter , I am very excited about this recipe. I had something very similar with my wife but it was served on top of risotto that enhanced the flavor a lot
Tanya says
Total HIT in my house! Thank you again for your quick & yummy recipes
Emma-Jane says
I love the the prawn pasta but because I didn’t have garlic I put mijn Chinese chilli and garlic sauce in and I was nice it had a calm kick to it.
Denis Lynch says
Yumms!!!
I went to the fish market and bought large tiger prawns, followed directions and only cooked the prawns for one minute in the fry pan.
My goodness. Yumms. The creamy prawns are so tasty and I’m keeping the left over sauce for something else !
Absolutely fantastic. !!
Kwanda says
I absolutely love this recipe! I made it for my family this Christmas and they LOVED it! Thank you so so much!
Kate says
Nagi
You are without a doubt my favourite food blogger.
Made this one tonight and is it now another recipe saved to my favourites list.
Best garlic prawns I have eaten and served with your seasoned rice recipe too.
I thought it was about time I put up a comment as I use so many of your recipes so please keep up the amazing work you do!
Ann says
Hi Nagi,
Made this for dinner this evening. Doubled the recipe. It was so darned good. I served it over cous cous and peas. Everyone loved it and asked me to make it again. Thank you for another great recipe.
Clare says
There is a South African seafood restaurant chain that has outlets here in Cyprus and they have a starter on their menu called garlic and cheese prawns.
I substituted crumbled feta for half of the Parmesan and it came out virtually identical!! One of my favourite dishes and now I can make it at home 😍 doesn’t end to be served with anything other than a couple of slices of crusty bread to mop up the sauce 😋
Karin caple says
Just made this for my Hubbies dinner tonight, I don’t like prawns, or much else really, he is sitting here enjoying it as he did last time , great recipe, have made a few of yours keep them coming.