Prawn Tagliatelle (Shrimp)

🤍 Recipe Highlights

I have summarised everything that you will come to know and love (LOVE ❤) about the prawn tagliatelle recipe in the points below:

• Everyday ingredients: you will be able to get everything you need to make this simple dish from your local grocery store. They are year round available ingredients that will be easy to get your hands on. The prawns will be in the deli section.
• Budget friendly: combining pasta with prawns in a simple sauce reduces the need for extra ingredients. We stick to the basics to keep the recipe cost effective.
• Family friendly: this is a recipe that the whole family can enjoy together. Whilst there is garlic in the dish, it is only a small amount and blends in well with the layers of tagliatelle pasta and other ingredients. The Italian seasoning adds flavour but again, not enough to overwhelm the dish, so give the kids a fork and let them dig in!
• Non spaghetti pasta: spaghetti bolognese is great. A hugely popular much loved pasta recipe. But it can be nice to switch it up a little and have a wide variety of tasty pasta recipes to turn to. This is one of those tasty options.
• Seafood: the other protein that can be forgotten about! Recipes using beef, lamb, pork and chicken can be easy to think about and prepare. But seafood gives us another fantastic option offering taste and textural diversity. It is what I like to call my 'Winner, winner prawn dinner 😂👌'. Or for my American friends shrimp tagliatelle.

🥗 Ingredients

The photo below is to show you everything you need to make the prawn pasta recipe. Please refer to the printable recipe card for specific ingredient measurements as well as detailed instructions.

As you can see the recipe calls for:

• Olive oil: we use a little bit of olive oil to fry off the prawns with the garlic on the stove top.
• Salt and pepper: we use a little bit of salt and black pepper to provide seasoning in the recipe.
• Garlic: you can use 2-3 fresh garlic cloves finely chopped or chunky chopped or minced garlic.
• Italian herbs: this dried Italian seasoning is a handy pantry staple.
• Worcestershire sauce: this gives the sauce a little oomph. Otherwise known as a flavor boost 😉👍.
• Crushed tomatoes: we use crushed tomatoes to create the pasta sauce.
• Tomato paste: we add the tomato paste to the sauce for an extra depth of flavor.
• Prawns: we want to use fresh prawns that we prepare ourselves for maximum flavor.
• Tagliatelle: you will find this in the pasta aisle. It will be sold in a packet and the pasta is in round ball form not straight and long like spaghetti. As the pasta is made with eggs, it often also says 'egg pasta' or 'egg noodles' on the packet.

🍤 Tagliatelle With Prawns

We also want to garnish the dish for serving with some tasty options as seen in the photo below.

• Parsley: I like to use Italian flat leaf parsley for this recipe. We toss some through the pasta as well as chopping some and sprinkling it over the top of the dish.
• Black pepper: a good sprinkle of this across the finished dish to serve.
• Lemon: fresh and bright. It is lovely to squeeze some fresh lemon juice over the prawn tagliatelle when serving.
• Parmesan cheese: freshly grated over the top of the pasta as the perfect finishing touch.

Tasty Tip: I like to provide you with a number of substitutions and variations giving you an array of options when making the recipe. If in doubt of any of the above ingredients, or wanting alternatives, read this section (further below) before jumping into the instructions on how to make the recipe which are coming next 😉👌.

🍳 Instructions

Here are the step by step instructions to make the simple prawn pasta recipe. We start by preparing the seafood.

• Prepare the prawns (Photo 1)
• Add oil, garlic, prawns, salt and pepper to pan (Photo 2)
• Add the sauce ingredients (Photo 3)
• Stir to combine (Photo 4)

👩‍🍳 How to Make Prawn Tagliatelle

To make the prawn pasta, we start by preparing the prawns. You will need a knife and chopping board.

Start by twisting and removing the head of the prawns and then pulling off the tail and shell. Then use a small knife to cut along the back of the prawns and remove the digestive track.

Once done, we want to cook the prawns in some garlic and oil.

Place a large saute pan onto the stove top, turn the heat to high and add the olive oil, garlic and prawns. Cook until the prawns noticeably change color to bright orange and when the flesh is white with no transparent bits.

Once the prawns are cooked, use a slotted spoon to lift them up and out of the pan and place them onto a paper towel lined plate.

Next reduce the heat to medium low and start on the sauce. Add the diced tomatoes, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce and Italian herbs to the pan and stir to combine.

Then read and follow the packet instructions to cook the tagliatelle till it is al dente (a little bit chewy). Moments before it is ready use a heatproof jug to scoop out some of the pasta water like you see me doing in the photos below.

• Reserve some of the pasta water (Photo 5)
• Add the cooked pasta to the sauce (Photo 6)
• Pour in the reserved water (Photo 7)
• Toss to combine (Photo 8)

Once you have scooped out some of the pasta water, use a colander over the sink to drain the rest of the pasta water and discard. Then add the hot pasta to the sauce.

Next measure and add ½ cup (125ml) of the reserved pasta water to the pan as you see me doing in the photo above. This helps to give the sauce a creamy texture.

Then use a pair of tongs to toss and combine the pasta, sauce and starchy pasta water.

• Add the parsley (Photo 9)

Next add the chopped parsley to the pan as you see in the photo above.

• Add the cooked prawns (Photo 10)

Once done add the cooked prawns back to the pan as you see in the photo above.

Then gently toss to fold them in and allow them to heat through.

Next get your garnish on with a generous sprinkle of parmesan cheese, black pepper, chopped parsley and a lemon wedge or 2.

They combine to bring the finishing touches to the dish for extra deliciousness 😉👌.

🍽 Serving Suggestions

If you are a pasta and cheesy garlic bread person, try the Tortilla Garlic Bread, Ciabatta Garlic Bread or the Garlic Pizza Bread.

If a side salad is more your thing, try the Cherry Tomato Caprese Salad, Herb Salad or the Tomato Bread Salad.

For a white wine pairing try a chilled glass of rose or pinot grigio. Or for red wine lovers try a smooth glass of pinot noir.

👍 How to Guide

How to Store

Store leftover pasta in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days. The leftovers need to be heated before being consumed.

How to Freeze

I don't recommend freezing leftovers of the dish. The pasta is quite delicate and is best cooked and consumed fresh.

You can however, as a means of being organised purchase the prawns and freeze them and then remove and thaw prior to using them.

How to Reheat

Add the leftovers to a bowl and place cling wrap over the top. Then microwave on high for 2-3 minutes until warmed through.

😉 Substitutions and Variations

Here are my sub ins and outs that you might be thinking about as you read the post and I will tell you if I think they will work or why they won't:

• You can use dried basil, dried parsley or dried oregano in place of the Italian herbs if you wish too.
• King prawns, tiger prawns or banana prawns are all good choices for the prawns/shrimp.
• For pasta options, try fettuccine, pappardelle or linguine. Or your favorite kind of pasta 😁👌.
• You can use diced tomatoes in place of the crushed tomatoes (equivalent amount).
• You can use curly parsley in place of the flat leaf parsley if you want to. Or use fresh basil leaves.
• Or use some lemon zest for a bright fresh note as a way to finish the dish for serving.
• For a chilli prawn tagliatelle add 1 teaspoon of fresh chilli or dried chilli flakes when you are cooking the prawns.
• If you want to remove the tails from the prawns before cooking them you can.

💡 Tasty Tips

Here are my top tips and tricks that I want to share with you so that you master the recipe from the get go:

• Peeling and preparing the prawns is definitely the most labour intensive part of the recipe. However, it is worth it. Sometimes frozen prawns are thoroughly wet and rubbery. Fresh prawns don't have this same problem.
• When getting the crushed tomatoes opt for a plain variety with no additional herbs or flavours. ie no 'Italian style crushed tomatoes'.
• In place of the parmesan cheese you can use pecorino romano if you wish to.
• If you are after a pasta bake try the Chorizo Pasta Bake, Meatball Rigatoni, Mince Pasta Bake or the Baked Ziti With Meatballs.

🤓 Frequently Asked Questions

What is special about tagliatelle?

Tagliatelle is a wonderful pasta to use as its flat, wide surface enables sauces to cling to it.

What is the difference between tagliatelle and fettuccine?

Tagliatelle and fettuccine are very similar pastas made from wheat flour and egg. They are also both wide flat pastas. Fettuccine is slightly less wide and thicker than tagliatelle and both are less wide than pappardelle.

Why does tagliatelle come in balls?

Tagliatelle pasta comes in balls as a means to prevent the delicate pasta from breaking.

😍 More Easy Dinner Recipes

If you have lots of options to turn to dinner is never 'same, same'. I like to offer you a number of options with different proteins, cook times and methods. Here they are:

• Chicken Ribs (Baked then Grilled)
• Slow Cooker Pulled Lamb
• Spinach and Feta Pizza
• Grilled Chicken Alfredo
• Pork Leg Roast
• Chicken Pesto Linguine
• Tagliatelle Pesto
• Tagliatelle Bolognese
• Roast Pork Shoulder

It is time to get our tagliatelle on my friend! You can also find all of my pasta recipes or seafood recipes in the one spot.

Adrianne

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