Shrimp Pasta with Veggie-Packed Sauce
Juicy, golden-seared shrimp tossed with tender pasta and coated in a rich, velvety tomato sauce that’s secretly packed with sautéed veggies and brightened with fresh lemon. This easy dinner comes together in under an hour and delivers bold flavor with simple, real ingredients.
As a busy home cook who sometimes get bored of chicken, I think shrimp is one of the most underrated options for dinner. It’s so easy to buy really good quality shrimp year round, frozen or fresh and it’s incredibly simple to make and it’s versatile. Something like these wild caught frozen shrimp are always available in grocery stores.
This Shrimp Pasta with Veggie-Packed Sauce is one of those meals that feels a little elevated but still totally doable on a weeknight. As always, the sauce is where the magic happens and you don’t need complex, expensive ingredients. In fact it’s the opposite. Use what you love or what you have on hand and have fun with it.
The Secret’s in the Sauce
It starts with a sauté of everyday veggies like onion, celery, carrots, bell pepper and zucchini. But again, use whatever you have on hand, and don’t overthink it. The veggies get blended into a smooth, tomato-y base that coats the pasta perfectly. Think of it as a low-effort way to get more veggies on the table without anyone noticing (or complaining).
Shrimp That Actually Tastes Like Something
Seasoned with a few pantry staples, we’re not just throwing plain shrimp into the mix here. A quick toss with olive oil, garlic powder, paprika, and a pinch of salt is all it takes. Searing in a hot pan locks in flavor and gives you juicy, golden shrimp in under 10 minutes. Yes, really.
Sometime’s I’ll make my 15-Minute Garlic Lemon Shrimp and throw it in a version of this pasta instead. Once you realize how easy it is to make shrimp, I promise you’ll be adding it to your rotation more often.
You Can Make This, (I promise)
Pasta Night, Upgraded
Use any short pasta you have, penne, fusilli, rigatoni, you name it. The shape doesn’t matter as much as the pasta water. Save about 1/4 cup of pasta water before draining and use it to thin the sauce to that perfect, glossy finish. You’ll feel like you’re winning at dinner (because you are).
Finish Strong (And Fancy, If You Want)
Toss the cooked shrimp and pasta in your velvety veggie sauce, add a squeeze of lemon, and top with grated parmesan and fresh parsley. Done. Dinner feels balanced and satisfying without trying too hard. And yes, it makes amazing leftovers.
Make It Work for You
This is the kind of recipe that adapts to your life. Double the sauce and freeze half for another week. Swap the shrimp for chicken, white beans, or roasted veggies if that’s what you’ve got. No fresh parsley? Skip it. No judgment here.
Want more recipes like this? Join my list for easy, everyday meals that actually work in real life. No overthinking, no weird ingredients, no 12-step instructions. Just good food, made simple.
Shrimp Pasta with Veggie-Packed Sauce
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stove Top
- Cuisine: American
Description
Juicy, golden-seared shrimp tossed with tender pasta and coated in a rich, velvety tomato sauce that’s secretly packed with sautéed veggies and brightened with fresh lemon. This easy dinner comes together in under an hour and delivers bold flavor with simple, real ingredients.
Ingredients
- 1 pound raw peeled and deveined shrimp, tails removed
- ¼ cup olive oil, divided
- 1 teaspoon salt, divided
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 brown onion, diced
- 2 celery ribs, diced
- 2 carrots, peeled and diced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 1 zucchini, diced
- 2 large tomatoes, diced
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 lemon, zest and juice
- 1 pound short pasta
- Grated parmesan cheese
- Chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, add the shrimp, 2 tablespoons olive oil, ½ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon garlic powder, ½ teaspoon paprika and mix until shrimp is well coated.
- Cook your pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water, according to the package instructions. (Save some pasta water to help thin out the sauce at the end if needed.
- Meanwhile, preheat a large pan over medium/high heat. Add the butter and melt, then add the shrimp in a single layer. Cook for 2-3 minutes on each side until opaque. Once cooked, remove from the pan and set aside.
- In the same pan, add the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil, the onion, celery, carrots, bell pepper, zucchini, ½ teaspoon salt and cook for 7-10 minutes stirring occasionally, until the veggies begin to soften.
- Stir in tomatoes, tomato paste, garlic, lemon zest and lemon juice. Reduce the heat to low, and cook for about 15 minutes.
- Once the veggies are cooked, blend on high speed in a blender until smooth, about 1-2 minutes. Make sure you leave an opening for the steam to escape while blending hot food!
- Add the blended sauce back into the pan, as much or as little as you like, and toss in the cooked pasta and shrimp and garnish with parmesan cheese and chopped parsley. Use a little pasta water at a time to thin out the sauce as needed.
Made this tonight and loved it! I used my immersion blender but the blender probably would have been quicker. Super good!
I’m so happy you loved it!