Tomato chilli prawn pasta is where comfort food meets nutritious tomato prawns. Prawns are baked in a flavorful spicy tomato sauce and added to pasta for a quick and healthy seafood dinner.
1teaspoonsea salt(plus 1 tablespoon for cooking pasta)
1tablespoonbutter
3tablespoonsfreshly grated parmesan
parsley a bunch (stems and leaves separated)
pepper to taste
STEP BY STEP IMAGES
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Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350°F/ 175°C. Heat olive oil in a pan and saute the onions and garlic for 2 to 3 minutes. Add tomatoes, chili flakes, paprika, basil, oregano, salt and pepper. Saute until the tomatoes turn mushy. Remove from heat and cool the mixture.Blend the mixture along with the parsley stems. You can keep the sauce chunky or blend it to a smooth consistency, according to your preference.
Grease a baking dish with butter. Place the prawns in a single layer and spread the sauce to cover the prawns. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes. (note 2)
While the prawns and sauce are cooking in the oven, bring 3 litres (12 cups) of water with 1 tablespoon salt to a rolling boil in a large pot. Add the angel hair pasta and cook for 1-3 minutes. (see note 1) Reserve 1/2 cup of pasta water and drain the pasta.
Once the sauce is ready, place the pasta in a wide pan and toss it with the prawns and sauce, adding the reserved pasta water as necessary, one tablespoon at a time (note 3). Top with grated parmesan cheese and parsley.
Video
Notes
Angel hair pasta typically cooks in 2 to 4 minutes, depending on the brand. Cook 1 minute less than the time specified in the package. This is because it cooks again when tossed with the hot sauce.
I used large prawns here that typically take 15 minutes to cook. Smaller prawns take 10 minutes.
Toss in the pasta while the sauce is still hot. This ensures that the pasta absorbs the sauce well and the sauce clings on to each strand of pasta.
Cooking the sauce on stovetop:The sauce can also be cooked on stovetop. Heat butter in a saute pan and add prawns and the blended onion tomato paste. Simmer on medium heat for about 5 to 10 minutes until the prawns are cooked. Make ahead option:The cooked sauce with prawns can be sealed in an airtight container in the fridge. In this case, cook the sauce for 5 minutes less, because the prawns get cooked again when being reheated. Reheat for 5 minutes in the microwave and toss in the pasta.Variations:
Chicken breast can be used instead of shrimps.
Vegetables like roasted or sauteed broccoli or cauliflower, boiled peas or spinach can be added. If using spinach, chop and add to the sauce as soon as you take it out of the oven.
Other pasta like spaghetti or linguini can be used instead of angel hair. It would take about 5 to 10 minutes more to cook the pasta.