A garlic and prawn pasta recipe to remind you of being by the seaside
In the heat of summer, crafting the perfect pasta dish demands a trifecta: simplicity, speed, lightness.
Whether it’s a quick mid-week meal, entertaining friends, or an alfresco picnic, pasta effortlessly steps up to the plate every time. In the heat of summer, crafting the perfect pasta dish demands a trifecta: simplicity, speed, lightness. But most importantly, the dishes must make the most of the season’s best produce. This is one of my favourite summertime pasta recipes, best enjoyed basking in the warm summer sun.
First up is a prawn and garlic butter pasta that smells like lunch by the seaside (surely one of summer’s greatest moments). Rendering the prawn head and shells packs the dish full of flavour. It’s a simple yet effective step to make the most of the prawns. The addition of tomato paste gives an umami hit, yet the dish still feels light.
It’s a trick I keep in my recipe playbook for adding depth and savouriness to a dish, especially in the warmer months when dishes spend less time on the stove.
Chopping up the prawns allows the meat to get tangled among the pasta, making each mouthful sweet and luxurious. Tossed with garlic, chilli and parsley, this dish has a knack for spreading happiness, earning a resounding round of applause at the table.
Garlic prawn pasta
Ingredients
- 12 green prawns, in shells
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 25g butter
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 small chilli, deseeded and chopped
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- ½ cup dry white wine or fish stock
- Salt, to taste
- Zest and juice of 1 lemon
- Handful of parsley, finely chopped
- Linguine, for two
Method
- Cut prawn heads off, peel, remove tails and devein, reserving shells and heads to make an easy prawn oil with them. Roughly chop up prawn meat into small pieces and set aside.
- Bring a large saucepan of water to a lively boil. Season as salty as the sea. Cook the pasta until just al dente, no more, as it will finish cooking in the sauce.
- In a deep frypan over medium-low heat, add olive oil and prawn shells and heads. Fry the shells until golden and their flavours have rendered out, about 5 minutes. Press down on the heads and shells to extract more flavour. Remove shells and heads, discarding them, and leave the fragrant orange oil in the pan.
- Add butter to the pan and melt. Once melted, add garlic and chilli, cooking for about 1 minute. Add a tablespoon of tomato paste and cook for an additional 30 seconds. Pour in the wine or stock, season with salt, and let it simmer for 5 minutes before adding prawn meat.
- Cook the prawn meat for 1 minute, then toss in the cooked pasta, a splash of pasta cooking water (about ¼ cup, adjust as needed, always reserve more pasta water than needed), lemon zest, and a squeeze of lemon juice. Simmer and toss for 1 minute more to allow the pasta to absorb the flavours, maintaining a lovely, loose consistency.
- Taste and adjust the seasoning for balance. Throw in parsley, toss, and turn off heat. Serve immediately, finishing off with an extra drizzle of olive oil.
Serves 2