Italian Sweet Corn Pasta with Shrimp
This Sweet Corn Pasta with Shrimp is full of sautéed corn, shrimp, parmesan cheese, and a hefty dose of butter swirled into angel hair pasta. The perfect 30-minute summer meal.
When I came across Osara’s recipe for Pappardelle with Jersey Corn Sauce on Instagram, my mouth instantly started watering. The simple combination of sweet corn, pasta, and a hefty dose of parmesan cheese and butter looked not only doable but the perfect summer dish.
I suddenly ditched my lackluster dinner plans and went to the store to buy out-of-season corn and make it that night. As a side note, I seriously need to reconsider my tactics because spending money on gas to buy three ears of corn is quite ridiculous. Still, this dish was worth it.
The simplicity of this dish crept up on me. I found myself ditching my bowl and eating the pasta out of the skillet. I couldn’t control my hand. Nor my mouth. I ate every last bite. While sweet corn and butter is a classic combination, the addition of the parmesan cheese and shrimp made it over-the-top into something unexpected. I kept exclaiming, “I can’t believe this is that good.” When I made it again, I added shrimp for extra protein and found it perfectly complemented the corn and parmesan and made it almost a one-pot meal. It will be on repeat all summer long.
Possible Substitutions
SHRIMP. Feel free to skip the shrimp; this recipe is still delicious without it.
How to Make Sweet Corn Pasta with Shrimp
- Heat a skillet over medium-high heat and sauté the shrimp until opaque and fully cooked.
- Remove the cooked shrimp from the pan and set aside. Add the butter to the skillet and sauté the corn kernels until cooked-through.
- While the pasta is cooking, add pasta water and milk to the corn.
- Toss in the cooked pasta, shrimp, and the rest of the butter.
- Toss in the parmesan cheese. Serve immediately.
More Summer-Inspired Recipes
- Three Bean Salad with Lemon and Dill
- Grilled Carrots with jalapeño, lime, and cotija
- 4-Ingredient Shredded Carrot Salad
- Olive Oil Slow-Roasted Tomatoes with Garlic
Italian Sweet Corn Pasta with Shrimp
This Sweet Corn Pasta with Shrimp is full of sautéed corn, shrimp, parmesan cheese, and a hefty dose of butter swirled into angel hair pasta. The perfect 30-minute summer meal.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 3 servings 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
- 1/2 lb. shrimp, peeled and deveined, tails removed
- olive oil for the pan
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, divided, plus more for cooking the pasta
- 3 ears of corn, husked
- 3 tablespoons (42g) butter, divided
- 1/4 lb angel hair pasta*
- 1/2 cup reserved pasta water
- 1/4 cup (60g) milk*
- 1/4 cup (23g) parmesan cheese, finely shredded
Instructions
- Boil the water. Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil over high heat. If the pot boils before you are ready to cook the pasta, turn it down until you are ready (step 5).
- Cut the corn off the cob. Hold the corn by the stem and place it upright on a cutting board. Using a sharp knife, starting from the top, and getting as close to the cob as possible, cut the kernels off of the cob. Rotate the cob clockwise on the cutting board as you cut strips of corn off of the cob from a top to bottom motion. Repeat with each cob.
- Sauté the Shrimp. Pat the shrimp dry with paper towels. Heat a drizzle of oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the shrimp to the hot pan and sprinkle with salt. Sauté, flipping occasionally, until the shrimp turn opaque and form a “c” shape, about 5-6 minutes. Remove the shrimp from the skillet into a small bowl and set aside.
- Sauté the corn. Decrease the heat to medium and add 2 tablespoons butter to the skillet. Add the corn and a sprinkle of salt to the skillet. Sauté, stirring occasionally, until the kernels are cooked through and translucent, about 5 minutes.
- Cook the pasta. While the corn cooks, generously salt the boiling water, and add the pasta. Cook the pasta according to package instructions. Once cooked, reserve 1/2 cup pasta water before draining the pasta.
- Smash the corn. Once the corn is cooked, smash the corn with a fork or potato masher to release the corn juices.
- Make the corn sauce. Add 1/4 cup pasta water with 1/4 cup milk to the corn. Increase the heat to medium- high, and simmer the corn until the mixture reduces by 1/2, about 3 minutes. Toss the cooked pasta and shrimp into the corn sauce until evenly combined. Add the remaining tablespoon of butter to pan and toss to melt.
- Add the parmesan cheese. Toss the parmesan cheese into the pasta mixture. If the pasta mixture looks thick, use the remaining pasta water to loosen the sauce.
- Serve. Adjust salt and parmesan cheese to taste and eat right away!
Notes
Inspired by Osara’s Pappardelle with Jersey Corn Sauce.
PASTA. Pappardelle shape also works great.
MILK. 1%, 2%, and whole milk all work great.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/3 recipe
- Calories: 464 calories
- Sugar: 5.9g
- Sodium: 892mg
- Fat: 17.5g
- Saturated Fat: 9.5g
- Carbohydrates: 54.1g
- Fiber: 10.2g
- Protein: 30.5g
- Cholesterol: 146mg
Keywords: creamy corn pasta