Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
I was wondering whether it is permissible to eat scampi according to the Hanafi school of Fiqh- is it Halal?
Walaikum assalam wa rahmatullah,
I pray that this finds you well, and in the best of health and spirits. May Allah grant you all good and success in this life and the next.
The term “scampi” is used for different things:
(a) in America (and sometimes elsewhere), “scampi” refers to a shrimp dish made with garlic butter. Given the permissibility of shrimp, according to the sounder position in the Hanafi school, this dish would be permitted. [ Please search SunniPath Answers (http://qa.sunnipath.com) for related answers on shrimp or prawn. ]
(b) in much of Europe, “scampi” is used to refer to a type of lobster dish. Given the impermissibility of lobsters in the Hanafi school, this “scampi” would be impermissible.
However, Ustadha Zaynab Ansari points out the following important details:
“… but here in the US, especially in the popular Red Lobster seafood restaurants, shrimp scampi is made with garlic butter and white wine.
“Although Red Lobster’s website doesn’t mention it, if you go into the actual restaurant, the menu will tell you that the shrimp scampi is made with white wine.
“I’ve included a couple websites that feature shrimp scampi. Please note the use of white wine.
http://www.cdkitchen.com/recipes/recs/527/Red_Lobster_Shrimp_Scampi44256.shtml
http://southernfood.about.com/od/shrimprecipes/r/bln81.htm
Generally, when dining out, it pays for people to ask the food server what’s in the recipe. You’d be amazed at the number of dishes that contain alcohol or pork, the latter being very prevalent here in the South.” [End of Ustadha Zaynab’s words]
And Allah alone gives success.
Faraz Rabbani