Shrimp pasta with burst grape tomatoes is an elegant, restaurant-quality pasta dish that you can throw together in under 20 minutes! One of the keys is this recipe is to cook the shrimp just right. Shrimp are cooked best on higher heat, and very quickly. Join Eric from Simply Elegant Home Cooking as he walks you through this process. You also want to buy the highest quality tomatoes you can find. Today Eric is using grape tomatoes, but cherry tomatoes work equally well. For the pasta, any long strand works well such as spaghetti or linguine.
Ingredients:
-3/4 pound large wild shrimp
-4 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
-2/3 pint grape or cherry tomatoes
-3 cloves garlic, sliced
-1/3 cup shrimp stock
-1/3 Italian dry white wine
-2 tablespoons tomato paste
-1/4 lemon, juiced
-1/2 pound spaghetti or linguine
-15 leaves fresh basil, torn into pieces
-1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
-salt and pepper to taste
Directions
-Peel and devein the shrimp, blot them dry with paper towels, and season both sides liberally with salt and pepper.
-Preheat a large pot of pasta water on high heat and a large skillet on medium-high heat.
-Once skillet is fully preheated, add 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, swirl to coat the pan, and then add the shrimp. Sear the shrimp for 1 minute per side. DO NOT go beyond one minute or the shrimp will be overcooked!
-After shrimp is seared on both sides, turn the heat off and remove them to a plate. Add in the remaining olive oil (to cool the pan) and add in the sliced garlic. Cook the garlic, stirring constantly, for 1 minute.
-Add in the grape or cherry tomatoes. Season with crushed red pepper, salt, and pepper. Stir the sauce to evenly incorporate.
-Right after adding the tomatoes, add the pasta to the boiling pasta water.
-Add in the shrimp stock and white wine to the skillet. You can substitute more wine if you do not have shrimp stock.
-Once the sauce is simmering, add in the tomato paste and stir to incorporate.
-About 5 minutes after adding the tomatoes, they should be beginning to burst. You can speed the process along by gently mashing them with a fork or spatula.
-Once the pasta is fully cooked, add it to the pasta sauce, along with a small amount of the starchy pasta water. Stir to incorporate everything.
-Add in the lemon juice, along with the shrimp.
-Turn off the heat and add the fresh basil. Stir to incorporate.
-Serve and enjoy!