oh boy, oh boy, oh boy! This Spicy Shrimp Tomato Pasta has me excited.
I’m not a person that goes crazy over anything that has shrimp in it, but this Spicy Shrimp Tomato Pasta might be a game changer. It’s basically a scaled back Shrimp Fra Diavolo. It’s so simple and delicious. Did you hear me? SIMPLE. *dramatic pause*
What we have here is a really basic sauce made with olive oil, butter (for richness), garlic, diced tomatoes, crushed red pepper, and a little salt and pepper. It’s just that simple. The shrimp helps give the sauce a little depth and the crushed red pepper adds just enough zing to balance the richness of the butter. It’s perfect.
…Although, if you wanted to, you could add a little dry white wine to the sauce. It’s not exactly economical, but it tastes awesome and if you’re going to pop a cork to serve some with dinner anyway, you might as well add a splash or two to the sauce. Just an options for ya.
I already know that some of you will try to cut the fat in the recipe and if you do, I beg you not to skip the butter. If needed, just use one tablespoon each of olive oil and butter, but DO. NOT. skip the butter. You’ll hurt my feelings.
It’s perfectly okay to use frozen shrimp in this – I did. It can be thawed super fast by running cool water over it. Just don’t let the shrimp sit in standing water.
Anyway, make this. It’s perfect for summer. Nom nom nom.
Spicy Shrimp Tomato Pasta
Spicy Shrimp Tomato Pasta
Servings 4Ingredients
- 8 oz. fettuccine ($0.95)
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.32)
- 1 Tbsp butter ($0.15)
- 4 cloves garlic ($0.32)
- 1/2 lb. peeled & deveined shrimp, 41/50 size ($3.50)
- 1 15 oz. can diced tomatoes ($0.69)
- 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes ($0.02)
- 1/4 tsp salt ($0.02)
- Freshly cracked pepper to taste ($0.05)
- Handful fresh parsley ($0.22)
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add the pasta, and continue to boil for 7-10 minutes, or until tender. Drain the pasta in a colander.
- While the pasta is cooking, add the olive oil and butter to a large skillet and place over medium heat. Mince the garlic while waiting for the butter to melt.
- Rinse the shrimp with cool water and allow the excess water to drain away. Add the shrimp and minced garlic to the skillet. Saute the shrimp and garlic for 3-5 minutes, or just until the shrimp turns opaque and slightly pink (no longer grey and translucent). Remove the shrimp from the skillet and set it aside until later.
- Add the can of tomatoes with juices to the skillet, along with the crushed red pepper flakes, salt, and some freshly cracked pepper. Stir to combine and let the sauce simmer over medium heat for about five minutes.
- When the sauce has thickened slightly, add the cooked and drained pasta. Toss to coat in the sauce. Add the cooked shrimp back to the skillet and toss to combine with the pasta. Taste and adjust the salt if needed.
- Roughly chop a handful of parsley leaves and sprinkle over top before serving.
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Nutrition
Step by Step Photos
Start bring a large pot of water to a boil for the pasta. Add the olive oil and butter to a skillet and melt over medium heat. Mince the garlic while the butter is melting.
Rinse the shrimp under cool water and allow the excess water to drain away. When the butter has melted, add the rinsed shrimp and minced garlic. Saute for a few minutes or until the shrimp is no longer translucent.
They turn white/pink and curl up when they’re done. It really only takes a few minutes. You want to remove them from the skillet at this point so that they don’t continue to cook as you finish the sauce. Continuing to cook the shrimp will make it shrink up and get very rubbery.
At this point your water is probably boiling, so you can add the pasta. Boil the pasta until it is tender. I used fancy/expensive pasta this time, and the whole dish was still very inexpensive!
After removing the shrimp from the skillet, add the can of diced tomatoes (with juices), red pepper flakes, salt, and some freshly cracked pepper. The juices left over in the skillet from the cooking shrimp adds a lot of flavor to the sauce. Stir this together and let it simmer for a few minutes while the pasta finishes cooking. (This is also where you can add a little white wine if you have it. Maybe 1/4 to 1/2 cup.)
Add the cooked and drained pasta to the skillet with the sauce. Toss to coat the pasta in the sauce.
Now that it’s pretty much done, you can add the shrimp back in. Toss to mix the shrimp into the pasta.
Finish it off with a little roughly chopped fresh parsley and you’re ready to eat! So Pretty!
Oh boy oh boy oh boy…
I love this recipe. I’ve made it many times before and made it again tonight. Thanks Beth.
I’ve been using your site for about 5 years and I must say I’ve made this dish several dozens of times. It’s one of those dishes that I share with company and my boyfriend always requests it. I like to add the butter at the end and use olive oil to start off the shrimp. Extra red pepper flakes of course and sometimes we’ll use fresh linguini from a pasta shop in the Italian market near my house. The leftovers are worth fighting over too! Thanks Beth for making me a confident cook!
Wow, what a lovely pasta recipe you have shared. It is looking very delicious and yummy. Yes I made this recipe for my friend and now he is one of your biggest fan and me too. Thanks for sharing nice recipe.
This is a very tasty recipe and so simple. I used half the red pepper flakes as my husband does not like things too hot. I did not have fettuccine so I used linguine. Otherwise I made the recipe as directed. What a great way to stretch shrimp! It’s a keeper!! Thanks!
Are you freaking kidding me? This looks delicious! :D I will definitely be making this sometime next week, even though it is 20 degrees right now and this is technically a summer dish. But what summer doesn’t know, won’t hurt her.
You’re simply amazing !!!!!!! Congrats!
Can I make this a couple hours ahead of time?
This one is definitely best when served immediately.
My family lined this dish! I followed the recipe almost to a t. However, I had to make a few minor changes. I used fire roasted tomatoes and added a sprinkle of garlic salt at the end. And because my hubby gets heartburn I added a little sugar on the tomatoes. I will definitely be making this again! Thanks Beth!!
This dish rocks! This is now the only pasta dish that exhists in my house. It’s got a lot of flavor, then again I cooked mine in the shell, and then had to remove them before each bite. I really think it adds a depth to the dish, though. Thanks so much!
Just made this tonight. It was SO good! Had it with italian bread & salad. Will definitely be making it again!
This sounds like a very simple recipe and I can not wait to make this for dinner. However, I want to add brocolli into it, any suggestions about when I should add it in? Thank you!
After you remove the shrimp from the skillet, add the broccoli florets and sauté until crisp/tender. Then proceed as usual. OR, add the florets to the pasta water during the last minute to lightly cook them (crisp/tender again), and then drain and add it along with the pasta. :)
love this recipe, i throw in a can of spinach to add some greens at the end.
I just made this for dinner for my (incredibly picky) son and he ate it without too much complaining!
I did cut the shrimp in his serving into teeny tiny pieces so they weren’t overwhelming.
And I added spinach, because spinach makes everything better :)
This meal was both easy and delicious. My daughter kept asking if it came from a restaurant. This one is going into my monthly rotation.
I thought I had everything to make this for dinner tonight.
Everything except the tomatoes, and parsley. BUT I did have a jar of Newman’s Sockarooni and I otherwise followed the recipe. The butter and the garlic really helped out the jarred sauce. Not to mention the shrimp. A winner! Thanks!