Wow! This dish is awesome!!! A few years back, Shrimp Arrabbiata had been on the menu for a few months as a Friday Night dinner selection, but I kept putting it off. Every week, I’d put it on my meal planner for Friday only to take it off again BEFORE investing in fresh, plumb shrimp. That’s pretty much the way it had been. Time wasn’t the issue. This sumptuous dish cooks up quickly – as shrimp usually does. So why all the procrastinating?
I must confess, peeling and deveining shrimp is one of my least favorite “prep” chores. It ranks right up there with oh I don’t know – gutting a fish. The peeling process isn’t so bad, just time-consuming. It’s the deveining that’s a real pain. I know, you can get shrimp that’s already peeled and deveined – if you are willing to pay twice as much for a 30-minute investment of your time. The real trick to deveining shrimp is to not put any thought into what it is you are actually removing from those suckers. Nope, it’s not a vein at all – that dark streak is their digestive track, and it’s full of waste. While it won’t kill you to eat the stuff, or make you ill, thinking about it might. So deveining, in my book, is an unpleasant necessity when working with shrimp.
After reading my original recipe at least a dozen times, and doing a little fine-tuning in my head, I decided I could put it off no longer. Shrimp Arrabbiata sounded too delicious not play around with. So last year, as part of our Lenten observation, back onto my meal planner it went, in the revised form that I was dying to try. Hubby and I picked up some wonderful, large shrimp at the market and there was no turning back. I was committed – financially invested. Boy, were we ever glad that we took the plunge.
Now that the Lenten Season is fast approaching, it is time to pull out a few of my all-time favorite non-meat meals. (Would you believe I have a collection of recipes that I have labeled “Friday’s Cookbook”? As old-school Catholics, we try to avoid meat every Friday, not just during Lent). Throughout the year, there are times when we fail in to abstain from consuming meat on Fridays – the Pizzeria is running a special or Five-Guys pops into our heads. Or better yet, the Mexican Restaurant around the corner is calling our name – and their in-house chorizo is not to be missed. However; during Lent, and by the grace of God, we success. And shrimp is one of our favorites. Especially spicy shrimp dishes.
Arrabbiata sauce is a spicy tomato-and-red-pepper sauce that originated in Rome. Arrabbiata, or sugo all’arrabbiata in Italian, is a spicy red sauce for pasta made from garlic, tomatoes, and red chili peppers that are cooked in olive oil. “Arrabbiata” literally means “angry” in Italian; so named due to the heat of the chili pepper. As promised, this is one spicy sauce. As jus go, it’s thick with tomatoes. The sauce on its own would be great on just about any firm pasta such as Campanella or Rigatoni – and is traditionally paired with Penne. For this dish, Linguine works well, allowing you to twirl a little pasta with the shrimp. If you would rather, Fettuccine would equally be nice.
This dish is so delicious, so packed with flavor and just the right amount of butt-kicking heat that I’d make it again in a heartbeat – even if it means deveining shrimp!
Shrimp Arrabbiata
8 ounces Linguine
1 Tablespoon Butter, soft
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 pound Jumbo Shrimp (21-25 count), peeled and deveined
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup onions, chopped
2 teaspoons garlic from minced bottle
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced Italian tomatoes, with juices
1/4 Cup Red Wine
2 tablespoons parsley, roughly torn
Cook pasta according to the package directions, omitting salt. Drain, add butter to pasta and keep warm.
Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.
Sprinkle shrimp with salt; add shrimp to pan. Cook 2 minutes on each side or until shrimp are done. Transfer shrimp to a bowl.
Heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil in pan.
Add onion, minced garlic, basil, and crushed red pepper to pan; sauté 1 minute.
Add tomato paste, canned tomatoes and wine to the skillet. Scrape up any browned bits in the bottom of the pan and bring sauce to a boil. Continue to cook sauce over medium heat until sauce begins to thicken, about 3 minutes.
Empty pasta onto a large rimmed serving platter. Top with shrimp mixture. Sprinkle with parsley and serve.
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