Snoop Dogg’s Shrimp Alfredo
Right before I dug in…
Snoop Dogg shares one of his go to pasta recipes for gatherings and celebrations.
Difficulty: 1/5 Ingredient Availability: 5/5 Time:1hr 15min
We all know what Uncle Snoop is known for and historically, it hasn’t been food. However, more recently he’s been venturing out into new things, and it appears cuisine is one of them. I’m sure he has plenty of experience cooking, but who ever predicted that he’d have his own cookbook?! I received Snoop’s From Crook to Cook as a gift this past Christmas and I’m not gonna lie, I was curious to see what kind of things Mr.Dogg cooks up for his family. I can’t remember ever ordering Shrimp Alfredo, or even having it for that matter; I think I’ve only ever had chicken. That didn’t stop me, though, as I needed a big dinner for the week and pasta never fails to fill that role.
Key Ingredients and Omissions:
I didn’t omit anything for this recipe.
I did forget the lemon in this picture.
All of the ingredients for this recipe were easy to find and fairly common, so I didn’t omit anything this time around.
I went with De Cecco Fettuccine for this recipe. When I was in the store deciding between the two, I kinda just thought about what I think would go better with a creamy Alfredo sauce. In my mind, Fettuccine just goes better with Alfredo, so that’s what I chose. The broad and smooth noodles compliment a thick, rich sauce.
I went with shredded parmesan cheese. The recipe says finely grated or ground, but honestly, I think that shredded probably works just as well if not better (as it lacks as much of the anti-caking agents often found in finely grated parm). Ideally, I would’ve bought a block of Parmigiano Reggiano and grated it myself, but the real deal cheese is expensive and I wasn’t really in a grating mood. I had already had block of Grana Padano cheese, which I used to grate over the finished product. (Yes I know this sounds contradictory)
Shrimp is expensive. Some of you may have already known that, but I never knew that until I went shopping for this recipe. The price definitely played a role in my purchasing decision. I went with the shrimp that was already deveined, but not yet peeled to save a few bucks.
Tools:
Cooking Review:
Prep:
50 minutes (keep in mind I took pictures and boiling water takes a while)
Because I saved some money by buying the shrimp with the shell still on, I had to spend some time peeling them. It was pretty easy, but peeling a pound of those things took me 23 minutes. Granted, I stopped about 5 minutes in to get the water started for the pasta, but it definitely takes a decent amount of time either way. After that, I went ahead and zested and sliced the lemon and prepared the garlic. There’s not much else to prep for this recipe.
Cooking:
24 minutes
I waited until I dropped the pasta in the water to start the real cooking. I cooked the lemon and garlic in the butter for 3 minutes before adding the shrimp and cooking for 3 minutes more. If you don’t know, shrimp cooks really quickly. You don’t want it to start turning white, or it’ll be dry and rubbery, which would really ruin the whole dish. Essentially, once all of the shrimp turn pink, take them off the heat and onto a separate plate or bowl. I assembled the sauce and let it simmer for 7 minutes. I added a little extra cheese than what the recipe called for and opted to leave the garlic cloves in the sauce because I loved cooked down garlic. 3 minutes later I was ready to dig into a bowl of The Last Meal Shrimp Alfredo, as Unc calls it.
Do not over cook your shrimp, it’ll ruin the dish. I decided to leave the garlic in rather than discarding it.
Analysis:
Right off the bat you can smell and taste the lemon, which is really nice for something you expect to be rich and creamy. The freshness and acidity that the lemon adds definitely allows you to eat more of it without feeling too bad about yourself. I can see some of you even adding an extra squeeze of fresh lemon juice to cut the fattiness even a little more (because yes it is still fatty). There’s also a nice base note of garlic in every bite. The shrimp were perfectly cooked, so take my advice and try not to overcook them. The time range will vary so be sure to pay attention to the color. You can use the picture above as reference. The recipe could use a little more salt, but just a little bit, It’s not bland by any means. I also had the idea of using a cajun or blackened seasoning along side the salt if the seasoning doesn’t include salt or instead of salt if it does include salt. As expected, the Fettuccine was a great match to the sauce, which coated every noodle fully and perfectly. The texture of this dish as a whole was top notch. No complaints there. The only thing I can really say that’s kinda negative about the dish is that it didn’t blow me away on any level. Everything was as it should be for an Alfredo, in my mind. Creamy, rich, and smooth. Perhaps it could have still used a little more cheese (or maybe the grated cheese would’ve been a better choice after all) and if you’re a big fan of garlic feel free to add a couple more cloves. Overall, this is a solid recipe. A great starting point for any Alfredo. With a few minor tweaks I can definitely see this being a truly special pasta dish. I can’t be mad at “The Doggfather’s” Shrimp Alfredo, in fact I’d gladly make this again on a busy weekday given how simple and easy it is. With all that being said, I’m giving this recipe a 8/10. Really, the flavor is a 7/10, but for how easy it is to make I have to give it an extra point.
The finished product makes at least 4 generous servings
