Pescatore Pasta

This seafood pasta is decadently rich and packed with luscious creamy flavours, but it’s deceptively quick and easy to make. It’s perfect for a special occasion or just when you feel like indulging in delicious pasta fare.

Ingredients

200 g pappardelle

400 g good quality marinara mix

125 g cherry tomatoes, halved

2 tbsp butter

1 tbsp olive oil

4 garlic cloves, crushed

2 shallots, finely diced

1 small lemon, zested and juiced

½ tsp Dijon mustard

½ cup white wine

¼ cup cream

1 tbsp plain flour

3 tbsp grated parmesan

3 tbsp chopped parsley

¼ tsp red pepper flakes (or more, to taste)

½ tsp each salt and pepper

Ingredients

7 oz pappardelle

1 lb good quality marinara mix

4 oz cherry tomatoes, halved

2 tbsp butter

1 tbsp olive oil

4 garlic cloves, crushed

2 shallots, finely diced

1 small lemon, zested and juiced

½ tsp Dijon mustard

½ cup white wine

¼ cup cream

1 tbsp plain flour

3 tbsp grated parmesan

3 tbsp chopped parsley

¼ tsp red pepper flakes (or more, to taste)

½ tsp each salt and pepper

Ingredients note

The best type of pasta for this dish is longer, thicker strands such as papparedelle, tagliatelle, linguine or mafaldine.
Invest in a good quality marinara mix or individual seafood, since it’s the hero of the dish.
You can substitute shallots with spring onions.
While they’re not traditional ingredients in Italian pescatore, there’s just enough cream and parmesan in this dish to add rich flavour, without making it overly creamy.

Directions

Cook the pasta

Note: This step assumes you’re using dry pasta with a standard cook time of about 10 minutes. If you’re using fresh pasta with a shorter cook time, make a start on the sauce first and begin cooking the pasta when you add the seafood to the sauce.

1. Fill a medium sized pot with water and place over high heat. Once the water comes to the boil, salt it generously with a few teaspoons of salt, and add the pasta.

2. Stir the pasta with a fork every minute for the first few minutes so that the pasta doesn’t stick together. Then, make a start on the sauce so the sauce and seafood is ready by the time the pasta finishes cooking.

Important: Do not drain the pasta water when the pasta is finished cooking, as the sauce needs some of the pasta water to thicken.

Cook the sauce

1. Choose a large saute pan or skillet with a lid (set the lid aside for later). Heat the butter and the oil in the pan over medium heat.

2. Add the garlic, shallots, red pepper flakes, lemon zest and cherry tomatoes. Saute gently until softened, about 3 minutes.

3. Add the flour and stir until it’s incorporated, then add the Dijon mustard and stir it in as well.

4. Add the seafood, white wine, lemon juice and parsley. Place the lid on the pan and steam the seafood until it’s cooked, at least 4 minutes.

Note: If you increase the quantity of the recipe, the seafood will take longer to cook. Watch for the fish and scallops to turn opaque, and for the prawns to turn orange. Don’t overcook at this stage, because the seafood will continue cooking in the next few steps.

5. Add the cream and parmesan and stir through.

Add the pasta to the sauce

1. Use a spider (pasta scoop) or tongs to transfer the pasta straight from the boiling water to the sauce, and toss the pasta and sauce together.

2. Add some of the pasta water to the sauce, starting with just 1/4 cup, and stir it through. You can continue adding pasta water until the sauce reaches your desired consistency.

3. Finally, add the salt and pepper (to taste), and serve garnished with more chopped parsley.

Wine pairing

Normally, you’d pair a lighter style white wine with seafood, but because the flavours in this dish are creamy and rich you can pair a bolder white instead. Either way, I recommend a wine that’s soft on the palate so the flavours don’t compete.

If you prefer a lighter style – go for a Pinot Gris. Otherwise, try something a little heavier like a Semillon or Roussane. Chardonnay will also work if that’s all you have at hand.