Easy Bacon Shrimp “Zucchini Noodle” Scampi

Shrimp Scampi Zoodles with Bacon

Whoever said “opposites attract” was definitely on to something. Case in point: Lu and I....

Easy Bacon Shrimp “Zucchini Noodle” Scampi

Whoever said “opposites attract” was definitely on to something. Case in point: Lu and I.

Don’t get me wrong, Lu and I certainly have many similarities, but we do have our different habits and personality quirks – he’s super neat around the apartment and I’m, well, not so super neat. He usually has to remind me to close the cabinets and drawers after cooking or squeegee the glass shower door.

Just earlier this week, he left for work in the morning and found my keys in the door lock, from the night before. Oops!

Easy Bacon Shrimp “Zucchini Noodle” Scampi

I’m also known to lose important receipts, misplace the car keys, or forget to blow the candles out before leaving the apartment. What can I say? I don’t like to stress! As for Lu? Well, let’s just say that he folds his shirts all differently, depending on type and size. Me? Folding? Ha!

Easy Bacon Shrimp “Zucchini Noodle” Scampi

Having said all of this, one of the reasons that I love him with all of my heart is that he’s incredibly supportive of me and my dreams for Inspiralized. He gives me constructive criticism (although he’ll tell you that I fight him “tooth and nail“) and advice on every move I make (in a very low-key, caring way).

Easy Bacon Shrimp “Zucchini Noodle” Scampi

One of his constant comments is this: “Why don’t you make simpler recipes for those who just want to make an easy bowl of pasta?”

We definitely fight on this one. I feel like all of my recipes are pretty simple – yet delicious! And listen, he’s dashingly handsome, but he’s not exactly Mario Batali in the kitchen.

Easy Bacon Shrimp “Zucchini Noodle” Scampi

But alas, as always, I’m taking his advice (well, sort of). Today, I’ve created a super easy Shrimp Scampi recipe. I’ve taken a classic Italian favorite and transformed it into a healthier, low-carb, gluten-free and low-cal version of it’s former self. However, I couldn’t resist the urge to spice it up a bit – with bacon!

Are any of you complaining? It’s bacon!

What are your thoughts on this? Would you like to see more easy, classic dishes Inspiralized? I won’t fight back, I promise!

Easy Bacon Shrimp “Zucchini Noodle” Scampi

Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes
Servings 2

Ingredients

  • 2 piece of bacon
  • 1 garlic clove minced
  • 1 pinch red pepper flakes
  • 1/4 cup minced shallots
  • 12 shrimps defrosted, deveined and shells removed
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 4 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • 2-3 medium zucchinis peeled, Blade C
  • 2 tsp lemon zest
  • 2 tbsp freshly chopped parsley

Instructions

  • Place a large skillet over medium heat and add in the bacon. Cook bacon for 3 minutes on each side or until cooked to your crunchy preference. Remove with a slotted spoon and transfer to a plate lined with paper towel.
  • Leave only 1 tbsp of bacon fat in the skillet and add in the garlic. Cook the garlic for 30 seconds and then add in the red pepper flakes, shallots and shrimp. Season with salt and pepper and let shrimp cook for about 2 minutes, flip over, add in the lemon juice and zest and cook an additional two minutes. Remove the shrimps with a slotted spoon and set aside.
  • In the same skillet, add in the zucchini noodles and toss to combine, for about 2 minutes and then add in the shrimp and crumble in the bacon. Toss to combine. Divide onto two plates and garnish with chopped parsley.

Recipe Notes

Optional: Throw in 1/4 cup of grated Parmesan cheese to the noodles before adding in the shrimp for extra flavor.
with love, Ali

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Recipe Rating




comments

  • Yes! I agree with Lu. Simple, classic dishes are definitely what I am looking for. This recipe looks great.
  • This looks delicious! I love how simple yet elegant it is. I'm all about easier recipes, but don't tell Lu (I'm guessing he doesn't need any more encouragement!)
  • This sounds delicious too! Cant wait tp make this!
  • Simple and quick is great sometimes but some days I just want to cook. A little more involved is good, too. And as a side note, my son who won't eat a vegetable unless it's corn or iceburg lettuce ate a plateful of butternut squash noodles. He knew what they were, he had helped make them!
    • Theresa - that makes me so happy, I'm so glad your son is eating veggies! Thanks for the comment.
  • Even your more gourmet recipes have simple ingredients so I think most of your recipes are easy.
  • Wow. This looks divine! I'm not one to spend a lot of time in the kitchen so the simpler the better for me. I work a corporate job well over an hour away from my house (like I want to quit) so the last thing I want to do is cook a meal when I get home. However, I will occasionally and this looks like the perfect meal!!
  • Looks great Ali!! I too am Italian and since I can't have gluten or dairy it's been a challenge. Until you!! Shrimp scampi was one of my FAVORITES!! So I can't thank you enough for your recipes. And I think most of your recipes are pretty simple. Can't wait to try this!!
  • Your relationship sounds VERY much like me and The.Boy! I am definitely the messy disorganized one and he is MUCH neater. And he likes to give advice on the blog. :P I think your recipes are all awesome, so I wouldn't change a thing! But this easy shrimp scampi noodle dish also does look fabulous.
  • Thank god for this recipe! I not only like simple recipes but simple tastes as well. Thanks Lu ! I'm just looking to remove wheat from my diet not be a chef. Having a "simpletons" tab would be nice :) Keep up the good work !
  • i think this recipe looks fantastic and i cant wait to try it. thank you so much.
  • Okay. . .you've got me hooked--just ordered a spiralizer. This will be one of my first recipes--I agree that a mix of super simple and more complex is good--some day, eating right is hard because of limited time, but recipes like this make it easy.
  • Recipe looks great...but I don't get how to make the zucchini noodles.... Not sure what Blade C is... not a very experienced cook....
    • Deb, my blog is called Inspiralized because everything here is made with a spiralizer! To find out how to use a spiralizer and where to get one, go to Inspiralized.com/howto!
  • I made this dish tonight and it was amazing! Just a tip: I doubled the recipe and it only served 2 people so if you want left overs I would quadruple it! I will definitely make this again soon....maybe tomorrow?!?! :) it's that good!
    • I'm so glad you liked this recipe - it's definitely one my go-to weeknight meals!
  • I'm late to the spiralizing but love it! I made this tonight and it was so good. I'm just wondering...the ingredients lists the lemon zest and the directions don't say when to add it. I added it at the end just before putting it in the bowls and adding the parsley. What do you recommend?
  • I made this for dinner tonight. It is easy to prepare and very tasty. I used more shrimp because as written, it would never be enough for two people. Next time I may also add sweet onions. I also used turkey bacon, which has little fat so I ended up adding a little olive oil to cook the garlic, shallot and shrimp. One thing I want to mention....the ingredients call for lemon zest, but I don't see it mentioned in the instructions. I didn't add any zest and it was perfectly yummy without it.
    • Thanks for catching that error, I have adjusted the recipe! I'm glad you liked it!
  • My husband and I really enjoyed this. Had a great flavor. Used 3 mediums zucchini and 3/4 pound large shrimp. Ample portions for two. Wish I had leftovers for lunch!!
    • Oh my gosh!!!!!!!! This recipe is DELICIOUS!!!!!!!!!!! Like others here, I added extra shrimp and then used some grated cheese at the end. It was the yummiest dish I've cooked in a long time and so easy. Thank you!!!! We will be making it again. Next time I may add some peas as well
  • My Spiralizer arrived yesterday and I'm eager to get started, these 'easier' recipes are helpful because if I can do them correctly, I will be more apt to try the others. :) Thanks for all of your hard work on this!
  • I made this last night and it turned out great! I use a thicker cut cherrywood bacon for more flavor.
  • Just used my inspiralizer for the first time and made this recipe. Substituted leeks for shallots as I have an allergy. I can't believe how good this was and so simple. Really glad that I purchased it. Just ordered the cookbook as I noe I will be using a lot!
  • I made this yesterday, as my first meal with my new spiralizer. It was very simple and took less than half an hour including clean up time. The feedback from my BF was overwhelmingly positive! This actually made him eat seafood! Thank you very much for your efforts. I'll deffinitely be back for more AWESOME easy recipes!
  • Hi! I just bought a spiralizer and I'm really excited to start using it. I typically prep my meals for the week as much as possible on Sundays. Can I spiralize the zucchini (or other veggies, depending on the recipe) a few days in advance?
    • Yes! We even have meal plans to help! Here's a guide to meal prepping with the spiralizer: https://inspiralized.com/meal-planning-with-spiralized-vegetables/ and here's our meal plans: inspiralized.com/spiralizer-meal-plans/
  • This was my first spiralled meal. Loved it. Would appreciate nutritional info though so I can enter it into my Fitbit.
  • I love your easy recipe. But also try Shrimp Scampi Zucchini Noodles So delicious! Need to try this recipe!
  • Ate you kidding...it can't get any easier than your recipes!!
  • Hi Ali, I'm really enjoying my Inspiralizer. I love to cook from scratch. If a recipe is too simple, I tend to skip over it, unless the ingredients are really flavorful. Shrimp, bacon, garlic, lemon, red pepper flakes -- all great! So, I'm looking forward to trying this one. I think the sauce makes or breaks a dish for me. Tell Lu, more ingredients doesn't make a recipe less simple to make -- just more tasty! There's nothing sadder than a bland, blah, sauce! Thanks for creating a lot of great recipes!
  • YES! More easy recipes like this one please. Also, maybe I'm in the minority here but many times living in a small-ish town I don't have access to some of the veggies/spices etc that you use. It's like 'if Walmart doesn't carry it I can't get it'. Smaller areas just don't have farmer's markets or specialty stores. Thanks.
  • I CONTINUE TELLING FOLKS THAT I CAN'T TELL THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE BLADES BUT NO ONE EVER ANSWERS MY QUESTIONS!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WTF???? WHY CAN'T I GET ANYONE TO ANSWER MY QUESTION ABOUT THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE BLADES????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! SOMETIMES I HAVE TO USE MY MANDOLINE IN ORDER TO GET THESE ITEMS SLICED BUT WOULD PREFER TO USE THE INSPIRILIZAR. WHY IS NO ONE EVER GOING TO ANSWER MY DAMNED QUESTION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I AM AWARE I'VE POSTED THIS BEFORE BUT STILL NO DAMNED ANSWER!!!!!!!!!!!!!
    • Hi Angela! You can find all of this information on our Inspiralizer page here: https://inspiralized.com/the-inspiralizer/ But to answer your question - BLADE "A" Makes thick, wide ribbons BLADE "B" Makes fettuccine noodles BLADE "C" Makes linguine noodles BLADE "D" Makes spaghetti noodles You can see which blade is which by checking the little green side knob! The letter can be seen on the knob.
  • How do you think this recipe would work with sweet potato noodles?
    • That would be fabulous!! We love subbing in sweet potatoes in the wintertime!
  • Would really like the nutrition facts for this please. Thanks!