Name: Shrimp Scallop Pasta With Orange Cream Sauce
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 40 min
Ingredients: 1 good squeeze Fresh lemon juice; 12 jumbo Shrimp (peeled and deveined); 12 Sea scallops; 3 Tablespoons All-purpose flour (to dust the seafood); 4 tablespoons butter (divided); 2 small shallots (fine chopped); 2 cloves garlic (chopped); 1/4 cup dry vermouth; 2/3 cup orange juice; 1 cup heavy cream; 1/2 teaspoon basil (dried, or 4 fresh leaves chopped); 1 orange (supreme cleaned and separated into wedges); 1 pound Fettuccini (cooked according to package instructions)

Shrimp and Scallop Pasta with Orange Cream Sauce will soon become your favorite seafood pasta recipe. Tender seafood drenched in a creamy orange sauce and served over fettuccini noodles. A lovely seafood recipe for date night or entertaining.

Top Tip: Cooking Scallops: A perfect seared scallop should have a golden crust on the outside and soft and tender in the middle. Over cooked scallops or shrimp will have a rubbery texture. Don’t be afraid, it’s quite easy. You’ll find tips below.

seared shrimp and scallops over fettuccini pasta with orange cream sauce.

What You Can Expect From This Recipe

If you love shrimp and scallops and a good creamy pasta recipe, you’re going to love this dish.

This is a restaurant quality meal that’s easy to make in your own kitchen. The sweetness of the shrimp and scallops are a very good pairing for a cream sauce that’s laced with garlic, shallots, orange juice and vermouth.

The sauce is easy to make and ready in about 20 minutes. It reminds me of a orange fettuccini Alfredo Sauce. And the shrimp and scallops are lightly floured then pan seared, which only takes a few minutes.

This all can be done while the pasta is cooking and it’s ready to plate before you know it.

And if you’ve never learned how to “supreme” an orange, you’ll add a culinary skill to your repertoire.

You can expect a tremendous amount of deliciousness and a creamy texture that makes this recipe irresistible.

Let’s take a look.

Ingredients You’ll Need

Ingredients to make shrimp scallop pasta with orange cream sauce.

Vermouth: Dry vermouth can be used in many ways in cooking. Use it to deglaze a pan and in this case adding an herbal and slightly sweet flavor to this shrimp and scallop pasta.
Orange: We’ll use both orange juice for the cream sauce and and orange wedges for the final presentation.
Shallots: I can’t tell you how often and how many of shallots we used in Culinary school. A very versatile ingredient. Chef’s like shallots because they’re sweater than onions, and add a more delicate flavor.
Heavy Cream: Will add a luxurious element to the sauce for this recipe. This is not the time to skimp on fat calories and try and use milk.
Pasta: I like Fettuccine noodles for this recipe. You can also use spaghetti, bucatini noodles, or even delicate angel hair pasta. Stick with the longer shapes for ease in eating.

Step by Step Instructions

This isn’t a difficult recipe to make, however, it’s also not one of those bing – bam – on the table in a jiff meals.

How to supreme an orange, Or how to peel an orange and not leave any white or peel.

Step 1: Supreme the orange. Which means slicing off the skin and pith so those oranges will show beautifully when sprinkled over the finished pasta. It’s easy. Just cut off the top and the bottom of the orange. Then stand the orange upright and with a sharp chef knife, start at the top of the orange and slice the skin off, including the white membrane. Slice slices by cutting in between the membranes. Voila, perfect beautiful slices of citrus. Then lift out the orange wedges. Hey look, you’re a restaurant chef!

Coating shrimp and scallops with flour to make shrimp scallop pasta.

Sauteeing shallot and garlic to make orange cream sauce shrimp and scallop pasta.

Step 2: Place the shrimp and scallops in a large bowl. Sprinkle with flour and use a spoon to toss to coat the seafood pieces.
Step 3: Make the orange cream sauce. You can keep it warm on the stovetop while finishing the meal. In a sauce pan melt 2 tablespoons of the butter. Once the butter is melted and bubbles start to subside, add shallots and cook until tender, about two minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

Adding vermouth to shallots and garlic to make shrimp scallop pasta sauce.

Adding orange juice to pan ingredients to make shrimp scallop pasta sauce.

Step 4: Start cooking fettuccine noodles according to package ingredients. Continue with the sauce: Pour vermouth over shallots and garlic, bring to a simmer and reduce by ½. About 3 minutes.
Step 5: Add orange juice and simmer until reduced by ⅓, about 5 minutes.

Adding cream to sauce ingredients to make shrimp scallop pasta.

Frying shrimp and scallops to make shrimp scallop pasta.

Step 6: Add the heavy cream to the sauce ingredients and simmer for about 10 minutes. Set aside and keep warm.
Step 7: How to sear scallops and shrimp: In a heavy bottomed skillet add the remaining 2 tablespoons butter over medium high heat. When the butter is hot and the bubbles start to subside, add the scallops, standing up. Brown the scallops, this will take 2 – 3 minutes and then with tongs, turn them over. Then add the shrimp. Cook until the shrimp are golden brown and the scallops are cooked through. About another 2 – 3 minutes.

Seared shrimp scallops with fettuccini noodles in an orange cream sauce topped with orange slices and fresh basil.

Step 8: Drain the pasta and return to pan. Pour the orange cream sauce over the pasta and with tongs, turn to mix well. To serve, place the pasta into your favorite pasta bowls and top with the scallops and shrimp dividing them evenly between the bowls. Sprinkle on the orange slices and chopped fresh basil or dried basil.

Pro Tip: Always choose good quality scallops. Some store bought scallops are soaked in a phosphate solution which plumps them up with water with also increases the price. It’s important to look for scallops that are labeled “dry” or “dry packed”. A phosphate soaked scallop can taste soapy. A dry packed scallop will sear quicker and and beautifully.

Tips For Success On Searing Delicate Seafood

Searing Scallops and Shrimp: Don’t be afraid of heat, and choose a cast iron skillet or a French Carbon Steel Skillet. Both are excellent tools that distribute heat very well and will create a lovely brown sear on delicate seafood. Don’t use a non-stick skillet. They’re notorious for not getting hot enough to create a good sear. Save non-stick skillets for scrambled eggs.
Always start with dry scallops and shrimp. Use a paper towel to pat them dry before flouring and searing.
When time to turn the scallops, turn them in the order in which you placed them in the pan. Use the same method once the shrimp are ready to turn.
Don’t overcrowd the skillet. Leave space between the pieces of meat. Overcrowding will cause steam to form and will compromise a good sear.

Resource: I love my French Carbon Steel Pan. It’s lighter weight than a cast iron skillet and easier to manage. Like a cast iron, it can go from stovetop to oven, which is great for searing steaks or seafood then finishing in the oven. I’ve provided an Amazon link for your convenience. If you purchase the Carbon Steel Pan through this link, I receive a small commission with no extra charge to you.

Storage and Reheating

Store any leftovers in air-tight containers in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. I like to store seafood separate from the leftover pasta.

To reheat, the 50% power feature on your microwave is your friend. Gently reheat single serving portions of the pasta in 30 second increments. Then top with very gently reheated shrimp and scallops.

I’m not a fan of freezing creamy leftovers. The texture of the fatty sauce will be compromised when defrosted.

Recipe for Shrimp and Scallop Pasta with Orange Cream Sauce

I hope you give this recipe for creamy shrimp scallops pasta a try. It’s truly one of my favorite pasta recipes on my site. And what a treat to find a creamy reason to prepare scallops and shrimp. And as far as shrimp and scallop pasta recipes go, this is got to be at the top of the list for being “the best”.

More Creamy Pasta Recipes

And the most popular recipe in my Pasta Recipes Category, Flemings Steakhouse Mac and Cheese. Add some steamed lobster meat to this one for an elegant seafood pasta dinner.

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Shrimp Scallop Pasta With Orange Cream Sauce. ..It’s whats for dinner.

Lea Ann Brown

Why Trust My Recipes? I am a Culinary School Graduate and believe that everyone should try to cook as often as they can. I’ve been cooking for 50 years, and my recipes are tried and true tested and tested and then tested again before published. To read more take a look at my About Page.

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