Shrimp and Sun Dried Tomato Pasta

Make this flavor-packed Shrimp and Sun Dried Tomato Pasta for dinner this week. Filled with juicy shrimp, loads of veggies, and mediterranean flavors, it's a complete meal all in one dish! Cook it up in a little over an hour.

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Why You'll Love This Shrimp and Sun Dried Tomato Pasta
Ingredients
Instructions
Substitutions and Alterations
How to Store Shrimp and Sun Dried Tomato Pasta
Top tip!
Recipe FAQs
Related Recipes
Shrimp and Sun Dried Tomato Pasta
Reviews

Why You'll Love This Shrimp and Sun Dried Tomato Pasta

So delicious! This shrimp and sun dried tomato pasta is packed full of mediterranean flavors, just like these pizza and quiche recipes. With zucchini, sun dried tomatoes, feta, chickpeas, oregano, capers, and artichoke hearts, this hearty pasta is sure to fill you up and become your new favorite dish.
A complete meal! This one pasta makes a great dinner. The shrimp and chickpeas add protein, the zucchini and artichoke hearts are great vegetables, and the pasta adds the carb. No need to worry about side dishes when you have all three meal components in one!
Takes just over an hour! Make this shrimp pasta in just over an hour! With all of the great components, like feta cheese, sun dried tomatoes, shallots, and garlic, it'll taste like you slaved over the stove for hours.

Ingredients

A few notes about the ingredients:

Pasta: Any shape of pasta will work well for this recipe. I personally like shorter noodles, like bowties, penne, or spiral-shaped pastas, but angel hair and spaghetti noodles would work well too. You can also use whole grain or gluten free.
Shrimp: Make sure your shrimp is fully defrosted before adding to the skillet. You'll also want to pat the shrimp dry so it can pan sear without adding too much moisture.
Sun Dried Tomatoes: Sun dried tomatoes add a great flavor to the sauce. I like to buy the julienned tomatoes at the store, so that I don't have to spend a lot of time chopping them. Also make sure to buy the kind that's packed in olive oil in a jar.
Tomato Paste: Tomato paste helps create a rich, tomato-like sauce. It pairs well with the sun dried tomatoes and melts into the olive oil for a subtle creaminess.
Capers: I love capers in this recipe! They add some briny, slightly salty flavor. Don't forget to drain them before adding to the pasta.
Artichoke Hearts: Artichoke hearts also add a briny flavor. If you don't like them, you can easily just leave them out.
Chickpeas: Chickpeas add an additional punch of protein, in addition to the shrimp. They also pair well with the other mediterranean-style ingredients.

⭐️ See recipe card below for descriptions and quantities of each ingredient.

Instructions

Step 1: Cook pasta in salted boiling water for 1 to 2 minutes less than instructed on the package. Reserve 1 cup pasta water, then drain the pasta and set aside.

Step 2: While the pasta cooks, heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the shrimp and cook for about 2 minutes per side, until pink and opaque. Remove shrimp from the skillet.

Oil, shallots, and garlic cooked in a skillet.

Step 3: Pour ½ cup of oil into the skillet. Add the shallots and garlic cloves. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes, or until the shallots start to turn translucent. Stir intermittently so they do not burn.

Sun dried tomatoes, tomato paste, capers, and seasonings added to the skillet.

Step 4: Add sun dried tomatoes, tomato paste, capers, dried oregano, dried basil, kosher salt, and black pepper. Stir until the tomato paste melts into the oil, creating a sauce.

Remaining ingredients added to the skillet before adding the pasta.

Step 5: Add zucchini, artichoke hearts, and chickpeas. Stir together. Cook for another 4 to 5 minutes, or until zucchini is tender.

Shrimp and sun dried tomato pasta in a cast iron skillet, garnished with fresh herbs and feta.

Step 6: Add pasta into the skillet. Stir to mix everything together. Use some of the reserved pasta water to help thin out the sauce and coat the noodles if needed.

Step 7: Serve warm, topped with shrimp and feta crumbles.

⭐️ Tip: Don't overcook the pasta! Cooking it slightly less than the package says ensures that the noodles won't get too mushy when added to the skillet later on.

Substitutions and Alterations

Shrimp - If you don't like shrimp, you can dice up some chicken and cook it in the skillet instead.
Capers - You can omit the capers or substitute them for chopped olives, like black olives, kalamata olives, or castelvetrano olives.
Zucchini - If you'd like to add a different vegetable, you can add chopped asparagus, mushrooms, or bell peppers. You'll want a veggie that cooks fairly quickly, since it's added later on in the cooking process.
Artichoke Hearts - If you prefer not to use artichoke hearts, you can just leave them out.
Chickpeas - You can leave out the chickpeas, or use other beans, such as great northern beans or navy beans.
To make this gluten free: Simply use gluten free pasta!
To make this dairy free: This recipe is naturally dairy free, besides the feta added at the end. You can easily leave it off or use a plant based feta instead.
To make this vegetarian or vegan: This recipe can be made vegetarian by omitting the shrimp. It can be made vegan by omitting the shrimp and feta (or using plant based feta).

Shrimp and sun dried tomato pasta with zucchini, feta, and fresh oregano.

How to Store Shrimp and Sun Dried Tomato Pasta

To store: Store this shrimp pasta with sun dried tomatoes in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

To freeze: Freezing is not recommended.

To reheat: Microwave in 1 minute intervals, stirring in between, until warmed through.

Top tip!

Cooking shrimp is fairly easy! Just look for the signs of doneness: 1) opaque, 2) turns pinky orange, and 3) turns into a c-shape. Make sure to remove it from the skillet as soon as it's done cooking. It cooks fast! Once it's in a tight o-shape, it'll be overcooked and slightly tougher to chew.

Shrimp and sun dried tomato pasta in a bowl with a fork.

Recipe FAQs

What does the reserved pasta water do?

The starches in the pasta water help loosen the sauce and make it creamier. If the pasta looks dry, you can add a bit more, but just add a little at a time!

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