Twelve ingredients, thirty minutes, one skillet, and no pasta or rice anywhere — the recipe rules it out in its final step.
Artichoke hearts are in the pan alongside the cream and spinach, and they are part of what makes this dish.
Why This Recipe Works
- Patting the shrimp dry is what lets them sear rather than steam in their own liquid.
- One to two minutes a side takes large shrimp to 145 degrees without going further.
- Taking them out immediately means the four minutes of sauce-building do not overcook them.
- Parmesan stirred into simmered cream thickens the sauce without any flour.
- Folding the spinach in last wilts it in the residual heat rather than cooking it grey.
Ingredient Notes
- Quartered artichoke hearts
- A cup, drained. Not in the title and firmly in this recipe.
- Large shrimp
- A pound and a quarter, patted dry. Dry is what makes the difference between a sear and a steam in a hot pan.
- Heavy cream and Parmesan
- A cup and a third of a cup. Together they make a pale sauce that thickens in two to three minutes without any flour.
- No grain
- There is no pasta, rice or other starch in this recipe, and step 5 says so. It is served exactly as it comes out of the pan.
How to Make It
Sear to 145F, then out
Pat shrimp dry and season with salt and pepper. Sear in olive oil over medium-high heat 1 to 2 minutes per side until pink and 145 degrees Fahrenheit; transfer immediately.
Garlic, tomatoes, artichokes
Reduce heat to medium. Cook garlic and sun-dried tomatoes 30 seconds, then add artichoke hearts.
Cream, broth, Parmesan
Add cream and broth and simmer 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in Parmesan until the sauce is pale and lightly thickened.
Spinach, then shrimp back briefly
Fold in spinach until wilted, then return shrimp only long enough to warm through.
Parsley, pepper, and no grain
Finish with parsley and black pepper. Serve without pasta, rice, or other grain.
Four Minutes of Shrimp, Six of Everything Else
Almost every ingredient in this recipe goes into the pan after the shrimp have left it. Timed as a sequence, it is obvious why: nothing else here needs protecting, and the shrimp need protecting from all of it.
0:00 - and straight back out
1 1/4 lb of large shrimp, patted DRY and seasoned with 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper, seared in 1 tbsp olive oil for 1 to 2 minutes a side
To 145F and transferred IMMEDIATELY. Dry shrimp sear; wet ones steam. And 145F is where shellfish is done - every extra minute from here is texture lost.
0:04 - heat down to medium
2 garlic cloves and 1/3 cup of sliced sun-dried tomatoes for 30 seconds, then 1 cup of quartered artichoke hearts
The artichokes go in whole quarters and stay that way.
0:05
1 cup heavy cream and 1/3 cup broth, simmered 2 to 3 minutes, then 1/3 cup Parmesan
The cheese is the thickener; there is no flour in this recipe. Pale and lightly thickened is the target, not reduced.
0:08
3 cups of baby spinach, folded in until wilted
Three cups looks like far too much and collapses to almost nothing. Folded in at the end so it wilts in the sauce's heat rather than cooking grey.
0:09 - the shrimp return
The seared shrimp, ONLY long enough to warm through
Not to cook. They were finished five minutes ago; this is a reheat measured in seconds, and it is the last chance to overcook them.
On the plate
2 tbsp parsley and coarse black pepper - and nothing underneath
No pasta, no rice, no grain. Step 5 states it.
Success Tips
- Get the shrimp out the moment they hit 145; they carry on cooking on the plate.
- Keep the heat at medium once the shrimp are out so the garlic does not catch.
- Return the shrimp for warmth only, not for a second cook.
Serving Ideas
Four white plates of the shrimp in their pale ivory cream sauce with wilted spinach, sun-dried tomato and quartered artichoke hearts through it, scattered with parsley and coarse black pepper. Nothing underneath it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why are artichokes in a recipe that does not name them?
They are visible in the finished dish and part of this recipe.
Can I serve this over pasta?
Not as this recipe is written — step 5 leaves out pasta, rice and other grain.
My shrimp went rubbery. What happened?
They stayed in the pan. One to two minutes a side and straight out, then back only long enough to warm through at the end.
