This brown butter shrimp is served on top of a creamy parmesan basil corn orzo and blistered cherry tomatoes for the perfect summer date night meal.
We’ve been eating out A LOT lately.
Nothing fancy, usually pizza to be honest, or better yet, chicken parm subs (I’m having a moment with them recently) but the amount of money going out the window on food is getting slightly ridiculous. Especially when you’re renovating a master bathroom, redecorating the entire upstairs, putting new tires on TWO cars (hi, that’s more than my mortgage payment), among other exorbitant boring adult expenses, etc. etc.
I felt the need to reign the dinner scene in. And so, this brown butter shrimp with parmesan basil corn orzo came to be.
It’s summer date night food and it’s good. Like really good.
As if butter isn’t delicious enough, here’s its good-looking cousin, brown butter.
These jumbo shrimp get hella cozy with some of it in a skillet before being placed on top of some of the creamiest orzo you’ve ever had.
This orzo actually acts more like risotto than pasta. It’s made with just enough broth and milk so that once it’s cooked, it absorbs almost all the liquid in a creamy, parmesan-laced way before getting tossed with fresh summer corn right off the cob (or make this in the winter by learning how to freeze corn on the cob) and basil. Pan-blistered cherry tomatoes cooked with some red wine vinegar for a bit of tanginess round things out.
First bite in and you might be fooled to think you were eating out at a fancy restaurant, not in your own kitchen. Especially if you serve this meal with a parmesan crisp or two.
More date night dinner inspiration: skillet lamb chops and cipollini onions, balsamic dijon crusted beef tenderloin
Here’s the thing about a date night dinner in our house though: I like wine and he doesn’t.
A meal like this, to me, is basically screaming for a new bottle of wine to be opened, whereas Ulysses can’t drink a sip without cringing his face in disgust like a toddler tasting a vegetable.
Therein used to lie my dilemma: do I open a bottle and end up wasting half of it because there’s only so much wine I can drink by myself or do I settle for a bottle of cider like my husband will undoubtedly grab even though it’s not at all what I want to drink with a meal like this?
Thankfully, I don’t have to make that tradeoff any more having now discovered zzysh®.
zzysh® was created so that you can now easily enjoy a single glass of wine or champagne without having to worry about what happens to the taste and flavor of the rest of the bottle. It’s an easy and affordable way to preserve the contents of your open bottle so that the second glass will taste just as good as the first glass. Literally, the perfect solution for me and my wine-hating husband household!
The zzysh® wine system is made up of 3 simple parts:
-the stopper
-the hand piece
-the cartridge
Once you’re ready to preserve your bottle of wine, you simply place the stopper in the wine bottle (where the cork would normally go), make sure a new cartridge (filled with 99.9% pure argon gas) is secured in the hand piece, connect the hand piece to the stopper, press down for 3-4 seconds and listen for the “zzysh” sound.
The “zzysh” is actually the argon gas replacing the air in the bottle, enveloping the wine in a protective atmosphere so no oxidation occurs for weeks.
This is what protects the flavor, color and quality of the wine in the bottle.
They make a zzysh® just for champagne too in case that’s more your style.
I’ll stick to the wine though and a big bowl of these brown butter shrimp with parmesan basil corn orzo.
Summer date night dinner perfection.
Love this brown butter shrimp recipe?
Try these other shrimp recipes: Shrimp Caesar Salad Stuffed Sweet Potatoes, Citrus Grilled Shrimp Skewers, and Blackened Shrimp Tacos with Grilled Corn Cherry Salsa.
Brown Butter Shrimp with Parmesan Basil Corn Orzo
Ingredients
FOR THE ORZO
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups broth, any kind
- 1 cup milk, 2% or whole is best for creamiest consistency
- 6 ounces orzo
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan
- 1 ear corn, kernels sliced off
- 1/4 cup chopped basil
- salt & pepper to taste
FOR THE TOMATOES
- 1/2 pint cherry tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
FOR THE SHRIMP
- 10 jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 3 tablespoons butter
Instructions
FOR THE ORZO:
- Place the butter in a medium sauce pot over medium heat. Once melted, add the flour and whisk until well combined. Cook for 1 minute, whisking constantly.
- Add the broth and milk to the pot, whisk thoroughly to combine. Whisking frequently, bring to a simmer. Add the orzo to the pot, stir, reduce heat to medium-low and cook for about 8 minutes, stirring frequently. Mixture will thicken substantially by the end of 8 minutes.
- Add corn, basil and parmesan cheese, stir to combine and remove from heat. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
FOR THE TOMATOES:
- Place the olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the tomatoes and toss to combine in the oil. Add the vinegar to the skillet, shake and cook for about 5 minutes until blistered on all sides. Remove from heat and set aside.
FOR THE SHRIMP:
- In a large, clean skillet add the butter over medium heat. Stir gently and let butter become foamy and start to darken. Once this happens, add the shrimp to the pan in the melted butter. Cook for about 2 minutes per side until pink and cooked through.
- To serve, spoon the orzo in the bottom of a bowl, top with shrimp and tomatoes. Garnish with additional basil and parmesan.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Zzysh. The opinions and text are all mine.
Gina Matsoukas is an AP syndicated writer. She is the founder, photographer and recipe developer of Running to the Kitchen — a food website focused on providing healthy, wholesome recipes using fresh and seasonal ingredients. Her work has been featured in numerous media outlets both digital and print, including MSN, Huffington post, Buzzfeed, Women’s Health and Food Network.
I made this orzo last night and served it with pan seared scallops. We loved it! I added an extra ear of corn kernels but otherwise followed the recipe. Super fresh tasting and quick and easy to make. I did have to cook a couple minutes longer as the orzo was a little crunchy at 8 minutes. Will definitely make this again.
glad you enjoyed it!
Is there anything better than brown butter?!? This looks so delicious!!!!
What a cool gadget! I need to get my hands on one. And this orzo is stunning! Anything with brown butter is something I want to eat. :)
Does the corn need to be cooked before its cut off the cob?
Thanks!
No, you can cut it off raw.