Confession time.
We all know the basics of how to measure ingredients. For example, how you’re never supposed to crack your eggs directly into your batter (in case there’s a bad one)? Or how you should always pour vanilla into your measuring spoons away from (instead of above) your mixing bowl? Or how you should never, ever, ever measure out a teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes just inches above a simmering sauce?!?
Yep. Pretty sure I took a shortcut. And pretty sure that, thanks to a faulty lid, pretty much the entire jar of crushed red pepper poured out like an avalanche in my diavolo sauce. (“The Devil’s Shrimp” indeed…) I was so shocked I just stood and stared at it for a minute. But then reality kicked in and I sprang into action, and by some miracle was actually able to remove most of the extraneous crushed red peppers and salvage the sauce.
Surprisingly, it ended up being super delicious! But just to doublecheck ingredient amounts, I happily made it again a week later. And once again, absolutely loved it. For anyone who has never had “shrimp fra diavolo”, it is a shrimp dish with a simple garlicky tomato sauce, accented by a little extra crushed red pepper. I wouldn’t say it’s really “spicy”, but it does pack a little bit of subtle heat near the end of each bite. I served mine over pasta, with some extra Parmesan, basil, and parsley for garnish. Definitely an easy, crowd-pleasing dish .
I would just highly recommend measuring your crushed red pepper away from the sauce… :)
Shrimp Fra Diavolo Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 lb. pasta (I used mostaccioli)
- 1 lb. large uncooked shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 4 Tbsp. olive oil
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 1 (28 oz.) can crushed tomatoes
- 1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
- 1/4 tsp. dried oregano
- 1/4 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
- 1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped
- grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Heat 3 Tbsp. oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season shrimp with salt and pepper, then add to the skillet. Saute for one minute, then flip shrimp and saute until the shrimp is cooked and no longer translucent. Transfer shrimp to a separate plate.
- Add the onions and an additional 1 Tbsp. oil to the skillet and saute for another 5 minutes, or until translucent. Add garlic and saute for one minute. Add wine, and deglaze pan for one minute. Then add tomatoes, crushed red pepper, and oregano. Reduce heat to medium-low, and let sauce simmer and reduce for 10-15 minutes until it is your desired thickness. Then return shrimp to the sauce, and stir to coat.
- Meanwhile, bring a large pot of generously-salted water to boil, and cook pasta according to package instructions. Drain the pasta, then toss with the sauce and shrimp. Garnish with chopped parsley, basil and/or Parmesan cheese.
Did you make this?Let me know how it turned out in the comments below!Ali’s Tip:
This classic dish is also often made with lobster. But if you wanted to break the mold, I’m sure it would also be great with grilled chicken. :)
at a high school band dinner while chatting with the others at the table I ripped open a packet of parmesan and sprinkled it on my plate. I then pu on another and realized they were red pepper flakes. My husband graciously swapped plates with me
Your photos are so gorgeous! This dish reminds me of something I’ve eaten at Figlio’s on the Plaza before.
Sounds fantastic….even at 9am.
But I have to laugh. Cooking mistakes are a source of family memories. Oldest daughter, when she was in middle school, decided to make my mother’s meatloaf for dinner. Left her too it. Beautiful meatloaf. However, the 1 tsp of salt in my handwriting she took to be 1 cup of salt. You can’t always judge a meatloaf by it’s sauce! Needless to say, this has been a source of laughter for several years now.
This is perfecto!!! I love the heat in this sauce!
I just made this recipe- so yummy! Glad I have plenty of leftovers. (And my mouth is still burning a bit!)
So glad you enjoyed it, Alex! :)
~A
I do that all of the time with my vanilla extract – I guess it doesn’t hurt to make your desserts even sweeter? I love shrimp and will definitely have to try this recipe. Thanks for sharing!
This looks awesome! I’ve been wanting to make a different shrimp dish..I don’t know why this wasn’t on my radar..it’s always been a favorite. Thanks for sharing.
I’ve absolutely made the same mistake before. I think I was making chicken burgers or something, and I usually just season the ground chicken with whatever. Oops…there goes the whole thing of red pepper flakes. However, we really love spicy, so I didn’t bother taking any of the extra out. It ended up being really delicious. I’ll still try and be more careful next time :)
Oh I just LOVE shrimp fra diavolo!!! This is definitely going on the top of my “things to make when I can eat tomatoes again” list! Thanks for posting! :o)
And I have done the same thing with my peppers before… good thing (most of) my family likes it hot!! ;o)
GORGEOUS pics!