This 15-minute recipe makes an easy, quick, delicious meal out of frozen seafood mix. The creamy sauce is made with heavy cream, garlic, and parmesan. It's delicious. Your only task as a chef is to avoid overcooking the dish!
I have quite a few fish and seafood recipes on this site, but I am always looking for more. This one is a keeper - it's delicious and easy. If you happen to have a bag or two of frozen seafood mix in your freezer (mine came from Trader Joe's), this recipe is a great way to turn them into a wonderful meal. We had it for lunch this weekend with steamed broccoli. Perfection!
Ingredients
Here's a look at the ingredients needed for this recipe. The exact measurements are included in the recipe card below.
Frozen seafood mix: The one I like to use has shrimp, calamari rings, and bay scallops. I get it at Trader Joe's:
Butter: I use unsalted butter.
Salt and pepper: I use kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Minced garlic: Please use freshly minced garlic cloves. The garlic is very important here, and jarred minced garlic won't be the same.
Heavy cream and parmesan: These are the creamy ingredients that make the amazing sauce. Make sure to use grated parmesan, not shredded.
Cayenne pepper: Just a pinch to add a subtle hint of spice. You can skip it if you wish.
Parsley: Used purely for garnish. You can skip it if you wish.
Variations
- You can use olive oil instead of butter. I must admit, though, butter tastes really good in this recipe!
- Change up the spices you use. A pinch of dried thyme is very good in this recipe.
- You can sprinkle the finished dish with bacon bits before serving it.
Instructions
Scroll down to the recipe card for detailed instructions. Here are the basic steps for making this recipe:
Defrost the seafood. Season it with salt and pepper. Cook it in butter until opaque, for about 3 minutes. Be careful not to overcook it, or it could become tough and gummy. Remove to a plate, drain the skillet, and wipe it dry.
In the same skillet, cook garlic over medium heat. Add the cream, cayenne, and more salt and pepper. Then add the parmesan, stirring until it melts. You now have a beautiful creamy sauce.
Add the seafood back to the skillet and stir it into the sauce. Garnish with chopped parsley and serve.
Expert Tip
In a previous version of this recipe, I used to simply sauté the seafood in olive oil and spices. But I have found that it releases quite a bit of water into the skillet, so it ends up steaming rather than sautéing, and some of the spices are lost in the liquids released into the pan.
So now, my favorite method is to sauté the seafood in some butter, drain the liquids, then make a quick cream-parmesan sauce and add the seafood to the creamy sauce. This is AMAZING. It's so delicate and creamy as long as you take care not to overcook it.
Recipe FAQs
Generally, the answer is yes, though you'll need to cook it longer and ensure it's fully cooked. But in this recipe, I recommend that you defrost it first. Otherwise, the pieces won’t cook uniformly.
There's no one way! This recipe uses sauteing as its cooking method, but I also have recipes that use baking, such as baked shrimp. Broiling is also good - check out this recipe for broiled scallops.
I find that one of the easiest ways to do that is to keep frozen fish and seafood in the freezer. Whether a mix such as the one used here, bags of shrimp, scallops, or salmon fillets, it's a convenient way to always have it available.
Serving Suggestions
This is a saucy dish, so it's perfect on top of cauliflower rice, zucchini noodles, or spaghetti squash noodles. I also like to serve it on top of raw spinach or arugula leaves. The warm sauce wilts the leaves just enough to lightly cook them.
Storing Leftovers
You can keep the leftovers in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat them very gently. It's best to use the microwave at 50% power and reheat them covered.
More Seafood Recipes
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Recipe Card
Seafood Mix In Cream Sauce
Video
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter - divided
- 1 pound frozen seafood mix - thawed - see notes below
- ½ teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt - divided, or ¼ teaspoon divided of any other salt, including Morton kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper - divided
- 4 garlic cloves - minced - see notes below
- 6 tablespoons heavy cream
- Pinch cayenne
- 3 tablespoons parmesan cheese - grated
- 2 tablespoons parsley - chopped
Instructions
- Heat one tablespoon of butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season the seafood with half the kosher salt and black pepper.
- When the butter starts foaming, add the seafood to the skillet and cook, stirring often, until just cooked through and no longer translucent, about 3 minutes.
- Using a slotted spoon, transfer the seafood to a plate, cover it with foil, and set aside.
- Pour the liquids out of the skillet, wipe it clean with paper towels (careful, it’s hot), and add the remaining butter. Reduce the heat to medium.
- When the butter starts foaming, add the garlic to the skillet. Sauté, stirring, until fragrant, 30-60 seconds, depending on how hot your skillet is.
- Reduce the heat to medium-low. Add the cream, cayenne pepper, and the remaining kosher salt and black pepper. Bring the sauce to a gentle simmer, stirring. This should take about 1 minute.
- Add the parmesan cheese and gently stir until melted, about 30 seconds.
- Add the seafood back to the skillet. Gently stir to combine with the sauce and reheat, about 1 more minute.
- Transfer the skillet contents, including the sauce, to a serving plate, sprinkle the dish with parsley, and serve.
Notes
- While you can theoretically cook the seafood from frozen (though it will take longer and won't cook as evenly), I prefer to thaw it first, either overnight in the fridge or by submerging it in a bowl of cool water for 5 minutes, replacing the water once, and then drying the pieces on paper towels.
- Please use freshly minced garlic cloves. The garlic is very important here, and jarred minced garlic won't be the same.
- You can keep the leftovers in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat them gently, though. It's best to use the microwave at 50% power and reheat them covered.
- You can freeze the cooled leftovers in a freezer-safe container for up to three months. Thaw them overnight in the fridge and reheat covered in the microwave.
Nutrition per Serving
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Most recipes are low-carb and gluten-free, but some are not. Recommended and linked products are not guaranteed to be gluten-free. Nutrition info is approximate. Please verify it independently. The carb count excludes non-nutritive sweeteners. Please read these Terms of Use before using any of my recipes.
Gabby says
I made this tonight and it turned out really good. I had to substitute the heavy cream with evaporated milk with corn starch for thickening. And I also added spinach to have at least one vegetable. I also used a little bit of Old Bay, which gave it a slightly spicy taste. Lastly, I cooked some spaghetti and pour the creamy seafood over. It was great!
Vered DeLeeuw says
Your meal sounds amazing, Gabby! Thank you very much for the review and for sharing your delicious tweaks.
Angie O says
I made this last night. Delicious! I live in a small town and don't have the luxury of Trader Joe's or other 'fancy' grocery stores, so I used a frozen seafood mix from Wal Mart. Shrimp, calamari, mussels and clams. It is a surprisingly good mix! I thawed the mix, then made sure to pat it very dry before sauteeing in butter. I poured off about half of the juices that were produced, kept the rest in the pan and proceeded with the recipe as written. I did double the amount of sauce. I will be making this frequently
Vered DeLeeuw says
Glad you liked it, Angie! Thanks for the review.
Penny says
Delicious! I followed the recipe, and also added Aldi mushroom tortellini and a handful of frozen peas! Perfect!
Vered DeLeeuw says
I'm glad you enjoyed this recipe, Penny! Your meal sounds delicious.