How to Quickly Cook Shrimp on the Stovetop, Grill, or in the Oven

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Getting dinner on the table is a constant struggle for single dwellers and families alike. We serve a supper consisting of of boiled pasta and jarred tomato sauce a little more than we’d like to admit. However, we have a secret to tell you. With a little more effort (and not that much more time), it’s possible to cook up a complete pasta meal (as in veg, protein, and carb) in one pot. Though we’re showing you the method using a lemony shrimp linguine with spinach, we’ll provide guidelines so you can make you or your fam’s fave combinations.

Choose-Your-Own-Adventure Pasta

(Serves 6)

Recipe Notes: Halve the recipe if you’re cooking for one. That way, you can serve yourself a hefty portion and have plenty of leftovers.

Ingredients:

• salt
• 1 (1-pound) box pasta of your choice (linguine, rotini, spaghetti, etc)
• 1/4 cup oil, plus more to garnish (extra virgin olive oil or ghee)
• 1/4 cup allium vegetable, diced (garlic, onion, shallot, or leek)
• zest of 1 citrus fruit, divided (lemon or orange)
• 1-2 tablespoons acid (lemon juice or wine<)/li>
• 1 pound protein (peeled and deveined shrimp, white or garbanzo beans, smoked salmon, canned tuna, chicken breast cut into bite-sized strips)
• 1 1/2 cups veg (San Marzano canned tomatoes, broccoli florets, mushrooms, spinach, zucchini, or asparagus)
• fresh delicate herbs, chopped, to garnish (parsley, basil, chives)
• hard cheese, grated, to garnish (optional) (Parmesan or pecorino)

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Salt it liberally, as in 1 tablespoon of salt per 4 cups of water.

2. Once it has reached a rapid boil, add pasta all at once. Cook it 1 minute less than package instructions, or roughly 7 minutes.

3. Reserve 1/2-1 cup of pasta water, then quickly drain pasta.

4. Heat a large skillet pan (we’re using a 6-quart pan but you can use the same pot that you cooked the pasta), then pour in 1/4 cup oil. Here, we are using olive oil.

5. Add allium. Cook until translucent. We used ~3 cloves of garlic.

6. Add half of the zest, if using. Above, we sprinkled in Meyer lemon zest for its floral scent and flavor.

7. Before lemon zest caramelizes, add acid. We used the juice of half of a lemon.

8. Add the protein of your choice, sprinkle on a three-finger pinch of salt, and sauté until caramelized and cooked through. Most items will take 5 minutes or less, although chicken may require ~4 minutes per side. We sautéed the shrimp in a single layer on the pan for ~2 minutes on each side.

9. Add your choice of veg to the pan with another pinch of salt. We added freshly chopped spinach.

10. Stir in pasta and add cooking water, 1 small splash at a time, until noodles cook through.

11. Taste and salt as needed. Drizzle on a little more olive oil to keep the noodles slippery so they don’t stick together. Sprinkle remaining zest on top. Grate cheese on top (optional).

12. Use tongs to divide onto plates. Garnish with chopped chives, parsley, and/or basil.

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Chef Timothy Hollingsworth has one impressive resumé. Formally the chef de cuisine at the renowned French Laundry in Napa, California, he won Netflix’s The Final Table cooking competition last winter and currently owns and operates Otium restaurant at the Broad Museum in downtown Los Angeles. Brit + Co sat down with Hollingsworth at Yountville Live in California to talk about life after the show, to learn how his family inspires his cooking, and to score the recipe for those biscuits his restaurant is so famous for.

Brit+Co: How has life changed since winning Netflix’s The Final Table?

Timothy Hollingsworth: There have been great responses from my peers and colleagues. I think people really enjoyed the show. It’s really interesting how many little kids watched the show. That was very surprising to me. There has been an influx of kids wanting to come to Otium and visit us. And that’s been really fun.

B+C: On your Instagram page you’ve been teaching your kids how to cooks simple things like omelets. Can you tell us a little bit more about that?

TH: I try to get them [my kids] involved in little things. Right now my daughter is learning how to crack eggs. Then I whisk it really well and teach her how to whisk afterward. So she’s basically going through the motions that I’m doing. I just want her to watch as I make the omelet and let her help a little bit. For me, doing something as a family is really important. Food brings people together, so I think teaching my kids to cook will be a real priority as I raise them.

B+C: You’re often seen pictured with a grill too. What do you often grill at home?

TH: I love things over a wood fire — that smokiness and char. I grill some things that are fast and easy like steaks or something that smokes all day like a brisket. I also might grill ribs or a whole chicken. I even make cookies on the grill. I just made chocolate chip cookies on the grill with my kids.

B+C: Your restaurant seems to have a lot of Middle Eastern influence. What are some spices that you are inspired by?

TH:Seven spice is one. Everyone has their own ratio. My mother-in-law went to Lebanon. I told her to go to a spice market and get the seven spices whole [rather than ground]. She brought it back. I weighed everything, blended it together, then I started tweaking it a little so it fit the flavor profile that I was looking for.

Another spice I like is zaatar. It’s really incredible because it’s so regional. It doesn’t matter if people are from Armenia, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, or Israel. Wherever this spice comes from, it’s a blend of wild oregano, wild thyme, sumac, and sesame. If you go to my house right now, I have jars and jars and jars of zaatar, and they’re from different areas in the world. The one that I love the most is from Jordan. I think they use more oregano than thyme. It’s very fluffy, and I love the flavor.

B+C: How did you master your incredible drop biscuits?

TH: I don’t remember this recipe off the top of my head, because I do it by feel. I’ve made these biscuits so many times. It’s just one of those things I grew up making as a kid, and it’s very easy.

There’s a correct ratio. I’ve made it so many times that I can use my hands and know what 2 cups of flour feels like. I can take baking soda and mix it in there and know that’s 1 teaspoon or 1/4 teaspoon or whatever the recipe calls for. Ultimately when you’re making the biscuit, there’s either the appropriate amount of flour or a little bit too much. So as you’re mixing it, you can feel the wetness of the dough. This will help you know that your biscuits are too dry, or you don’t have enough butter in there.

drop biscuits

(Make 8 biscuits)

Recipe Notes: Chef’s original recipe calls for 3 tablespoons of black pepper. We were concerned that might be too spicy, so we reduced it to 1 teaspoon, but do as you see fit!

Ingredients:

Directions:

1. Combine all dry ingredients, then add the butter.

2. Use your hands to rub the butter into the flour mixture, until it resembles wet sand.

3. Add wet ingredients in with the dry.

4. Stir until just combined. Do not over mix.

5. Form 8 biscuits. You can roll and form biscuits but Hollingsworth prefers to drop the biscuits. That way there’s a nice crunch to the crust. If you like golden tops, brush them with buttermilk.

6. Bake at 400°F for 25 to 30 minutes.

7. Serve with jam and butter.

RELATED: Netflix’s ‘The Final Table’ Might Be Its Most Intense Cooking Competition Ever

(Recipe by Timothy Hollingsworth; styling by Cassidy Miller / Brit + Co; photos via Stefanie Keenan / Getty and Brittany Griffin / Brit + Co)

Additional reporting by Anna Monette Roberts

Brit + Co may at times use affiliate links to promote products sold by others, but always offers genuine editorial recommendations.

Sydney Sweeney broke the internet when she announced she'd postponed her engagement. And when she clapped back at her bikini body haters. And when she went topless on Instagram. But her recent Instagram post from filming The Housemaid just broke our Brit + Co group chat because of just how many times Brandon Sklenar appeared — and one very specific video that had us squealing.

Here's a breakdown of Brandon Sklenar & Sydney Sweeney's new Instagram video.

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