Baked Parmesan Shrimp

Bring the iconic taste of Olive Garden’s baked Parmesan shrimp to the comfort of your own home with this spot-on copycat recipe.

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About Baked Parmesan Shrimp

This recipe is inspired by the Olive Garden dish of the same name, and it’s always fun trying to recreate the restaurant experience at home.

And with this dish, that’s exactly what you’ll get: a delicious helping of classic baked Parmesan shrimp, complete with tender penne pasta, garlic butter shrimp, creamy Parmesan sauce, and topped with cherry tomatoes, Parmesan, and breadcrumbs.

Plus, a good copycat recipe like this means you can be in your favorite food heaven while in your pajamas and watching Netflix.

What size shrimp should you use?

I recommend using medium or large shrimp with this recipe, but small or jumbo shrimp should work as well.

If using a different size of shrimp, be sure to keep an eye on them while they bake, as smaller shrimp may need less time (10-12 minutes) and larger shrimp may need more time (15-17 minutes).

Can you use frozen shrimp?

Yes, you can, but the shrimp should be thawed and thoroughly rinsed and dried before using in the recipe.

Can you use precooked shrimp?

I have not personally tried this, but it’s possible. If using precooked shrimp, you would skip the step for baking the shrimp, butter, and parsley in the oven by themselves and would add these three ingredients to the baking dish after the pasta and sauce (Step 7 in the recipe card below).

Should you grate your own cheese?

Using pre-grated cheese is extremely convenient, but it often contains some preservatives (such as potato starch) that help keep the grated cheese separated in the bag. And while this is great for grabbing a quick pinch of grated cheese, it will also cause the melted cheese to appear lumpy or harden faster than it normally should.

So if you’re a cheese lover like me and want the creamiest experience possible for your shrimp pasta, I highly recommend grating a block of Parmesan. It’s a bit more work, but the improved consistency is worth the effort.

How long is baked Parmesan shrimp good for?

Once prepared and cooled, baked Parmesan shrimp can be stored in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to three days.

Can you freeze baked Parmesan shrimp?

Yes, you totally can!

Once prepared and cooled, this dish can be stored in a sealed container or freezer bag for up to three months.

Notes & tips for baked Parmesan shrimp

• Cooking shrimp can be very tricky. If you’re looking for some helpful pointers on cooking crustaceans, be sure to check out this guide on How to Cook Shrimp and Mistakes to Avoid.
• I used penne in this recipe (to mimic what I remember from the Olive Garden version) but you could use any type of pasta that you’d like for this recipe.

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How to make baked Parmesan shrimp

This next part is only a photo tutorial of the recipe steps. If you’re looking for the full recipe measurements and instructions, scroll down to Recipe Details.

Step 1 – Kick things off by preparing the pasta per the package instructions but reducing the total cook time by 1 minute. Once done, drain the pasta and set aside.

Step 2 – Add the shrimp, melted butter, and parsley to an 8×8 baking dish, then toss to coat. Arrange the shrimp in an even layer along the bottom of the dish.

Step 3 – Bake!

Step 4 – While the shrimp bakes, prepare the sauce. Add the heavy whipping cream to a large saucepan, bring to a boil, then cook, whisking constantly, for about five minutes. Add Parmesan cheese, then season with salt and pepper. Cook for about 30 seconds more, then remove the saucepan from heat.

Step 5 – Add the cooked pasta to the sauce, then toss well to coat.

Step 6 – Once the shrimp is done baking, temporarily transfer the shrimp and butter to a small bowl. In the now-empty baking dish, add the sauce-covered pasta, then pour the shrimp and butter sauce on top. Finish it off by topping everything with chopped cherry tomatoes, more Parmesan cheese, and breadcrumbs.

Step 7 – Bake again!

Step 8 – Serve and enjoy!

Recipe Details

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4.36 from 62 votes

Baked Parmesan Shrimp

20 minutes mins prep + 30 minutes mins cook

931 kcal

Yields: 6 servings

Bring the iconic taste of Olive Garden’s baked Parmesan shrimp to the comfort of your own home with this spot-on copycat recipe.

Ingredients 

US Customary – Metric

• 1 pound penne
• 1/2 pound large shrimp, peeled, deveined, tail off
• 1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 1 1/2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley
• 3 cups heavy whipping cream
• 1 3/4 cups grated Parmesan cheese, divided
• 1/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, or to taste
• 3 tablespoons breadcrumbs
• 6 cherry tomatoes, cut in fourths and seedy pulp disgarded

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
• While oven preheats, prepare penne to package instructions, reducing cook time by 1 minute. Drain pasta, cover, and set aside.
  1 pound penne
• In a 8×8 baking dish, add shrimp, melted butter, and parsley, then toss to coat. Arrange shrimp in an even layer along the bottom of the dish.
  1/3 cup unsalted butter, 1/2 pound large shrimp, 1 1/2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley
• Cook shrimp in the oven for 15 minutes.
• While shrimp cooks, pour heavy whipping cream into a large saucepan. Over medium heat, bring cream to a boil. Cook cream for 5 minutes, whisking constantly to avoid boiling over. Add 1 1/2 cups Parmesan cheese and season with salt and pepper. Bring mixture to boil again, continuing to whisk, and cook for another 30 seconds. Remove saucepan from heat.
  3 cups heavy whipping cream, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, 1 3/4 cups grated Parmesan cheese
• Add cooked pasta to cream sauce, then toss to coat. If shrimp is still cooking, cover saucepan and set aside until shrimp is done.
• Once shrimp is done, remove baking dish from oven. Reduce oven temp to 350 degrees F (TIP: prop oven door open for a few minutes to help it cool faster). Temporarily transfer shrimp + butter to a small bowl. Pour sauced pasta to the 8×8 baking dish, then add the shrimp + butter on top of the pasta. Finish off by sprinkling chopped cherry tomatoes, 2-4 tablespoons of Parmesan cheese, and breadcrumbs on top.
  1 3/4 cups grated Parmesan cheese, 6 cherry tomatoes, 3 tablespoons breadcrumbs
• Bake pasta for 10-12 minutes or until cheese looks slightly melted and tomatoes are tender. 
• Let Parmesan baked shrimp cool for 5 minutes.
• Serve immediately.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 931kcal | Carbohydrates: 68g | Protein: 27g | Fat: 62g | Saturated Fat: 38g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 15g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 231mg | Sodium: 825mg | Potassium: 427mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 2517IU | Vitamin C: 6mg | Calcium: 352mg | Iron: 2mg

I do my best to provide nutrition information, but please keep in mind that I’m not a certified nutritionist. Any nutritional information discussed or disclosed in this post should only be seen as my best amateur estimates of the correct values.

Author: Chrisy