Shrimp pasta is, to many, a dish too scary to make at home, and one they’re convinced can only be prepared successfully in popular fish tavernas. It’s true that, in one restaurant or another, we all have tasted memorable shrimp pasta – although other times the attempt failed miserably, but let’s stick to the good times.
Speaking for myself, I had epic, unforgettable shrimp pasta many years ago at the taverna of Popi and Nektaria at the port of Anafi, as well as in Elafonisos, at Antonis and Chrysoula’s place (Antonis Taverna).
But it’s such a shame to never try making your own shrimp pasta at home; there are so many good recipes, with helpful instructions (and I hope mine is one of them) that it’s worth a shot. If you feel like it, experiment a few times and if the end result satisfies you, then surely you’ll be proud of the intricate dish you cooked up with your own two hands.
INGREDIENTS
For 2 (quite hungry) persons
- 300g of spaghetti
- 8 pieces of shrimp No 1, fresh or frozen
- 2 medium size tomatoes & one tbsp of tomato paste or a can of tomatoes
- 2 small dry onions
- 2 garlic cloves
- 2 tbsp of olive oil
- 1 shot of ouzo or raki (alternatively, use about 100ml of wine)
- 1 cinnamon stick and ½ tsp of cinnamon
- 1 tbsp of sugar
- 2 laurel leaves
- Salt and pepper
INSTRUCTIONS
Fill a large pot with water, to make the pasta. While the water boils, make the shrimp sauce.
In a spacious, shallow pot or wok, sauté the onion and garlic with cinnamon and laurel, in medium heat.
Pour some ouzo or wino and let it boil for a couple of minutes, until the alcohol evaporates. Add the tomato, the sugar, the salt and the pepper. Lower the heat and cook for 7-8 minutes.
Meanwhile, the water is boiled so pour in the pasta and don’t forget to also use a tablespoon of salt. Boil the pasta 2-3 minutes less than what the package says, or what you usually do.
Now back to the sauce: it’s time to add the shrimp, which only need 5 minutes of cooking before getting hard to chew and lose their taste. So cook the shrimp for two minutes, then drop the pasta in the sauce.
Grab the pasta with a large fork and drop it in the sauce in a way that will let them keep a bit of their water, which will help them boil enough. If needed, that is, if the sauce is too thick, pour in some of the water you boiled the pasta in.
You are now ready to serve your shrimp pasta! If you like, add some finely chopped parsley, since it gives your dish colour and helps keep your memory sharp. In the photos you see there is no parsley, seeing as I… forgot about it!
