Spicy seafood pasta

Tags

bucatini, Calamari, crab, mussels, Pasta, Seafood, shrimp, spicy

 

As you may have read Nadia has just gone through carpal tunnel surgery on her left hand so this is Stuart, her husband and trusty assistant, with my first guest blog post.  I don’t know how many of these I will do but it might be interesting for some and maybe especially for anyone who isn’t the primary cook in the household.  I always try and help prep things but Nadia is in charge.  I will give my opinions from the viewpoint of someone who doesn’t do this often other than helping.

This recipe is inspired from a Jamie Oliver recipe.  I needed something to work from but it also has a few changes and my insights.

This recipe is just for two people so you can adjust it accordingly.  I went and did the shopping and managed to get the correct items using my best French.

The recipe includes crab meat but we really didn’t think that it added anything to the dish.  In my opinion you either should leave it out or add quite a bit more to make sure that you can really taste it.

The bucatini seems to be a really good match for this dish so I think it is well worth making sure you get this pasta.

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Serves 2

Sauce (this might make a bit more sauce than some people would like)
Ingredients:

1 800g / 28oz can of crushed tomatoes
2 or 3 cloves of garlic, crushed
1 tbsp olive oil

Preparation:
Heat the oil over medium heat in a large saucepan
Saute garlic for 30 seconds
Add tomatoes
Bring to a boil then cover, simmer and stir occasionally until the sauce thickens up (about 45-60 mins)

Main dish

Here are the main ingredients ready to get started:

Ingredients:

200g / 7oz crab meat (cooked)
1 clove garlic, crushed
1/2 tsp red chili flakes (to taste)
250g / 9oz mussels
150g / 5.5oz calamari/squid
200g / 7oz shrimp
bucatini (85g / 3oz pp uncooked)
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh oregano, chopped

Preparation:

You should have already prepared the sauce since that takes time (see above)
Clean and beard the mussels
We had a whole squid so you remove the head and discard.  Clean the remainder thoroughly and cut into small rings.
Use a large sauce pan with plenty of water.  Heat it until boiling then add the bucatini.  Let it boil for about 8 minutes until it is al dente.
A few minutes before the pasta is ready heat uncovered the butter, crushed garlic and oil in a large, heavy bottomed pan
Add the shrimp, crab meat, calamari/squid and mussels
Cook them all on high heat, with a lid on the pan, shaking once or twice for about 4 minutes (all mussels should be opened)
Add the tomato sauce into the seafood
Strain the bucatini and add to the pan with the seafood and sauce
Stir everything up well
Sprinkle with some parsley and oregano
Enjoy!

 

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Moules Marinière

Tags

cream, french classic, garlic, mussels, parsley, wine

Mussels with wine, cream, garlic and parsley. A quintessential French bistro dish.

Examine mussels before using. If they’re gritty or have lots of beards (it’ll look like bits of hair coming out from between their shells), scrub them well under cold water and pull out the beards by grabbing them and pulling towards the hinge-end of the mussels. Farm-raised mussels are generally quite clean when they are sold. Discard any cracked mussels or open mussels that don’t close when tapped with another mussel.

Serves 2

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 shallots, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 kg / 2 pounds mussels, cleaned
1 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1/2 bunch fresh parsley, chopped
Kosher salt
Crusty baguette, to serve

Preparation:

Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat
Add the shallots and garlic and cook until softened, about 5 minutes
Add the mussels, wine and butter, and season well with salt
Give it a good stir, cover the pot, and cook until mussels open and are cooked through, about 5 minutes
Add the cream and the chopped parsley and remove from the heat
Spoon into two large warmed bowls and serve with lots of crusty bread
Enjoy!

 

 

 

Moules et Praires Provençale- mussels and clams with tomatoes, garlic,olive oil and wine

Tags

clams, mussels, tomatoes, white wine

 

Serve with warm baguette and a nice chilled glass of white or rosé. You can do the recipe with just mussels or use a combination of mussels and small clams. Remember that clams take a little longer to cook than mussels so add the clams first if using.

Serves 4 as an appetizer or 2 as a main course

Ingredients:

750 g / 1 1/2 pounds fresh mussels or half mussels, half clams
250 ml / 1 cup dry white wine
4 garlic cloves, crushed
2 bay leaves
4 shallots, chopped
1 can (794 g / 28 oz ) tomatoes, drained
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

Preparation:

Scrub, clean and beard the mussels and clams
Discard any open ones
In a large pot, add the wine, garlic, shallots, bay leaf and bring to the boil
Add the clams, cover and cook until the clams open, about 3  minutes
Add the mussels and cook another 2 to 3 minutes until the mussels open
Remove from heat
Remove the mussels and clams , discard any that did not open and keep warm
Strain the cooking liquid to remove any traces of sand
Return the liquid to the pot and add the tomatoes and red pepper flakes
Bring to the boil, cook for 5 minutes
Stir in the olive oil
Return the mussels and clams to the pot and give it all a good shake
Sprinkle with parsley
Enjoy!