Greek Shrimp with Tomatoes and Feta Cheese (Skillet)

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Greek Shrimp with Tomatoes and Feta Cheese brings healthy Mediterranean ingredients together quickly in one pan. Serve it over pasta, spiralized zucchini noodles or with your favorite vegetables for an easy and elegant dinner.

This recipe combines two easy cooking techniques into one fabulous dinner and provides plenty of opportunities for customization too! It doesn't require a lot of fancy ingredients either! In fact, we made this during our pantry challenge!

• It uses our skillet shrimp in 10 minutes or less method to perfectly cook shrimp using Greek-inspired spices.
• A few tweaks plus a little simmer time takes tomatoes from a can or box to a saucy base that is company-worthy!

I can't say that it always takes less than 30 minutes to make (it will probably take you 40 start to finish.) BUT, much of the cooking time is hands-off so a complete meal is ready and did I mention there is just one pan to clean! 

Here's the basic timeline:

5:00 - 5:10 Prepare the sauce (dice and saute onion, add tomatoes, juices and red wine vinegar to the skillet.) 

5:10 - 5:15 While the sauce is simmering, prepare shrimp (it's an easy marinade with olive oil and dried spices.)

5:15 - 5:30 Use this 15-minute stretch to prepare vegetables or pasta to go with the shrimp. Or, peel and devein shrimp if necessary.

5:30 - 5:40 When the sauce is done, remove it from the pan and cook the shrimp.

5:40 Enjoy!!! 

Canned Tomato Reduction

Even if you turn your nose up at canned tomatoes, you will not be disappointed when they are jazzed up with onions, garlic, and red wine vinegar. Simmering this mixture on the stove-top allows the tomato juices to thicken and the flavors to intensify. The end result pairs perfectly with Greek Shrimp and it smells divine too!

Here's how to do it:

Soften diced onion and pressed garlic in a large skillet. Next, pour tomatoes and juices into the skillet and stir in red wine vinegar.

Tip: You can pour off some of the juices, which will speed up the cooking time. However, you will also end up with a little less sauce. I usually compromise and pour off a little juice from just one can.

Bring the mixture to a boil and then reduce the heat to low and simmer until the mixture has thickened to the desired consistency. In the picture below, the tomatoes cooked for about 15 minutes.

You really could stop right here. This mixture stands alone as a sauce for pasta, chicken...you name it.

Do you have to use canned tomatoes?

Of course not! Fresh would be fantastic. Check out how to can diced tomatoes by The Daring Gourmet and use those in this recipe.

Note that the brand of tomatoes used will change the recipe depending upon the amount of sodium. If using boxed tomatoes, then you will need to add salt to taste. 

Skillet Greek Shrimp 

While the tomato reduction is happening, prepare shrimp for the skillet. This method of cooking shrimp on the stove-top has become my tried and true method. The basic technique will work with any flavor profile, from spicy shrimp to lemon garlic butter rock shrimp. 

I prefer it over baking in the oven because it is so easy to cook shrimp to the perfect doneness and then pluck them out of the pan. So, yes...it requires your undivided attention. But only for a short span of time!

You're also limited by the size of your skillet because the shrimp should not be crowded. My 12-inch skillet will hold no more than 1-½ pounds of shrimp and I always push it to the limit so I will have leftovers.

Here's the stove-top process:

Remove the tail from the shrimp, if desired. Shrimp should be peeled and deveined.

Pat shrimp dry then toss them with extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) and sprinkle oregano, dill and fresh, pressed garlic over the top. It's easy for the spices to clump together if you don't take a little extra care to evenly sprinkle, toss, sprinkle toss.

Using the same skillet the tomatoes cooked in. swirl more olive oil in the bottom of the skillet and turn heat to medium-high. Arrange shrimp in a single layer in the bottom of the skillet. 

Cook for about 3 minutes and then flip each shrimp to the other side. I use two forks to quickly flip each one. For larger shrimp, it may take 4-5 minutes per side. Shrimp is done when it just turns pink and curls a bit. Cooking it too long makes it tough and rubbery. (Nope...we don't want that!)

Have some leftovers? Use this recipe for make-ahead lunch prep. Store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days!

📋 Recipe