PASTA WITH PRAWNS & MUSHROOMS

This is my adaptation of a very old recipe from Karlos Arguiñano. It is very simple to make, and yet it is delicious to eat. I used pappardelle this time, but in the past I mostly made it with spaghetti. I loved the texture of the pappardelle with the rest of the ingredients. Comfort food at its best!

Ingredients

250g pasta

250g raw prawns, peeled and deveined with tails intact (keep the heads)

250g mushrooms, thinly sliced

6 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

2 small red chillies

big handful of Italian parsley, chopped
a splash of sherry or brandy

1/2 cup dry wine (white or red)

olive oil

salt and freshly ground black pepper

cherry tomatoes 

Method

Preheat the oven to 200C.

Place the tomatoes in an ovenproof dish. Drizzle one tablespoon of oil over the tomatoes, sprinkle with salt and pepper and roast in the oven for about 8 minutes. Keep warm.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. 

Add the pasta and cook, stirring occasionally according to packet instructions, or until al dente.

While the pasta is cooking, trim the prawn heads. Cut the whiskers and legs with scissors and discard. Heat about 100ml of oil in a big frying pan over medium heat and cook the prawn heads until red. 

Transfer to a colander and using a wooden spoon, crush heads to get out as much juice as you can. 

Discard. (This oil is what is going to help to give a fantastic flavour to your pasta.)

Add the garlic, chilli and prawns and saute for about 3 minutes, or until the prawns are just cooked through and the garlic is tender. 

Remove from pan and set aside. Keep warm.

Add a bit more oil to the pan if necessary and add the mushrooms.

Stir-fry for a few minutes until they are nice and golden. Add the parsley and cook for a couple of more minutes. Add the sherry or brandy and cook until it has been absorbed by the mushrooms. Add to the prawns.

Drain the pasta, reserving about 1 cup of the cooking liquid.

Put the cooking liquid and the wine in the frying pan you cooked the prawns. Using a wooden spoon, scrape the bottom to deglaze. Reduce liquid to half and then add the pasta and mix well.

Add the cherry tomatoes, the prawns and mushrooms to the frying pan and toss until well mixed.

 

Serve immediately.

Serves 2