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This Greek shrimp recipe is made in a skillet with a silky lemon butter sauce, perfect for serving over rice or to accompany crusty bread.
Dill Butter Shrimp (garides me ánitho) is a classic Greek shrimp dish with bright lemon, fresh dill and a rich butter sauce. It is often served in coastal taverns in Greece with a glass of ouzo. This version is adapted from Zaytinya: delicious Mediterranean dishes from Greece, Turkey and Lebanon by José Andrés and is served at his DC restaurant, Zaytinya. This is one of those dishes that is a bit special but surprisingly easy to make at home. Shallots and garlic form the base, followed by fresh lemon juice and a touch of grainy mustard, which brighten the buttery sauce and balance the sweetness of the shrimp. Serve it over rice or with plenty of crusty bread to soak up every last drop of sauce.
Contents
What You’ll Need to Make Butter-Dill Shrimp
To make garides me ánitho you will need: olive oil, unsalted butter, shallots, garlic, shrimp, salt, pepper, lemon zest and juice, whole grain mustard and dill.
Step by step instructions
Step 1: Brown the aromatics. Heat olive oil and 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add shallots and cook, stirring frequently, until softened but not browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the garlic and stir constantly for 1 additional minute; don’t let it brown.
Step 2: Cook the shrimp. Add the shrimp, salt, and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until the shrimp turn pink and just begin to cook, 2 to 3 minutes.
Step 3: Prepare the sauce. Add the lemon zest, lemon juice and mustard, then reduce the heat to low. Add the remaining 6 tablespoons butter 2 tablespoons at a time, stirring or swirling the pan until melted and creamy. Once all the butter is incorporated, the shrimp should be barely cooked. If necessary, let them sit in the hot sauce for another minute. Remove from the heat, stir in the dill and taste; adjust with more lemon juice, salt and pepper, if necessary.
Pro tip: Low heat is key here: too much heat and the butter will break down and become greasy instead of giving you a silky, cohesive sauce.
Step 4: Finish and serve. Serve hot with crusty bread or over rice to soak up the sauce.
More Greek Dishes You’ll Love
Shrimp with Butter and Dill (Garides Me Ánitho)
This Greek shrimp recipe delivers big flavor with very little effort, perfect for easy weeknight dinners and casual entertaining.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces, divided
- ⅔ cup finely chopped shallots, from 2 medium shallots
- 3 garlic cloves, chopped
- 2 kg shrimp (21/25), peeled and deveined, thawed if frozen
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon lemon zest, from 1 lemon
- 4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, from 2 lemons, plus more to taste
- 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon whole grain mustard
- 3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh dill
- Lemon wedges, to serve (optional)
Instructions
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Heat olive oil and 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add shallots and cook, stirring frequently, until softened but not browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute, stirring constantly. don’t let it brown.
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Add the shrimp, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the shrimp turn pink and just begin to cook, 2 to 3 minutes.
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Add the lemon zest, lemon juice and mustard, then reduce the heat to low. Add the remaining 6 tablespoons butter, 2 tablespoons at a time, stirring or swirling the pan until melted to create a creamy, emulsified sauce. This should take 2-3 minutes. Once all the butter is added, the shrimp should be barely cooked; if necessary, let them sit in the hot sauce for another minute to finish cooking.
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Remove from the heat, stir in the dill and taste; add more lemon juice and season with salt and pepper, if necessary. Serve hot with crusty bread or over rice to soak up the sauce.
Nutritional information
Per serving (6 servings)Calories: 324kilocaloriesCarbohydrates: 5gProtein: 31gFat: 21gSaturated fat: 10gCholesterol: 284mgSodium: 416mgFiber: 1gSugar: 2g
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional information on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutrition information is provided as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. Data is calculated via an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these numbers should only be considered estimates. Various factors such as types of produce or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and how ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information of a given recipe. Additionally, different online calculators provide different results based on their own nutritional data sources and algorithms. To get the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your favorite nutritional calculator.
Gluten-free adaptable note
To the best of my knowledge, all ingredients used in this recipe are gluten free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; If you are following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with a gluten allergy, always read the labels on your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
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