Monday, August 29, 2011

Spaghetti with Shrimp and Spicy Tomato Sauce

I need to think of a cooler-sounding/shorter name for this delicious dish. Any votes? My dad makes something similar, usually on Christmas Eve, except his also has scallops and calamari (drool). And he also used to make "shrimp sauce spaghetti" fairly regularly when I was little, now that I think of it.

Shrimp is (are?) one my favorite things. I'm a total sucker for any menu item that mentions shrimp. Grocery shopping the other day, I was thinking about this, and then I realized that I no longer have to be at the mercy of a restaurant menu. I can just cook with shrimp. Anything I want. Any time. Mountains and mountains of succulent shrimp...or, to be more reasonable, I suppose, a handful or so cooked in a spicy tomato sauce.

The husband has returned (hooray!), and he, while not an insane shrimp enthusiast, loved this dish, too. So it's a crowd-pleaser, to boot.

Here's how:

3/4-1 lb spaghetti (angel hair would be great, too, or linguine fine)
1/4 cup olive oil
5-7 small/medium cloves garlic
Red pepper flakes
Ground cayenne pepper
3 small tomatoes, chopped and lightly salted
1 small can tomato sauce
Splash of white wine
25 or so uncooked shrimp, peeled and with tails removed
Dried or fresh parsley

Combine the olive oil and garlic in a pan over medium heat. Sprinkle in red pepper flakes to taste, and a pinch or two of cayenne. Let the garlic cook for a couple of minutes, then add the chopped tomatoes. Let the tomatoes cook with a garlic for a couple minutes, then stir in the tomato sauce. Start the water boiling for your spaghetti. Bring the sauce to a boil and then reduce heat to low. Partially cover if it seems like the sauce is evaporating. Stir occasionally.

When the water boils, add the spaghetti. About 4-5 minutes before the noodles are done, add a splash of white wine to the sauce and turn the heat back up to medium. About 2-3 minutes before the noodles are done, add the shrimp to the sauce and cook until they pink and plump; sprinkle in a pinch of parsley. Turn off the heat, drain the pasta and add it to the sauce pan.

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