Recipe Overview
This spaghetti with shrimp highlights the clean flavor of seafood with aromatic garlic, fresh sage, peeled tomato, white wine, and parsley. The sauce remains light but expressive, coating the pasta without hiding the sweetness of the shrimp. It is the kind of pasta that feels suitable for both a refined dinner and a comforting coastal Italian meal.
Ingredients
- 450 g dry spaghetti
- 15 g garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 60 g peeled Roma tomatoes, chopped
- 90 ml olive oil, plus extra for finishing
- 55 g fresh sage, roughly chopped
- 225 g fresh shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 120 ml dry white wine
- 30 g fresh Italian parsley leaves, finely chopped
- 225 g tomato sauce
- Sea salt, to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Preparation
- Cut the garlic cloves into thin slices. Remove the stems from the parsley and finely chop the leaves. Peel and devein the shrimp, leaving them whole or cutting larger shrimp into bite-size pieces.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the dry spaghetti until al dente.
- In a large sauté pan, warm the olive oil over medium heat. Add the sliced garlic first, followed by the chopped sage, and cook until fragrant.
- Add the chopped peeled Roma tomatoes and cook briefly, then add the prepared shrimp. Sauté until the shrimp are just cooked and opaque.
- Deglaze the pan with the white wine. Simmer and reduce until the wine has mostly evaporated and the flavors are concentrated.
- Add the tomato sauce and cook for a few minutes to reduce slightly, creating a rich, glossy sauce.
- Drain the al dente spaghetti and transfer it into the pan. Add the chopped parsley and toss everything together until the pasta absorbs and incorporates the sauce.
- Finish with a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil just before serving in warm pasta bowls.
History & Tradition
Pasta with shellfish and crustaceans has always belonged to the broader language of coastal Italian cooking, where the sea meets the pantry of olive oil, wine, herbs, and tomato. This preparation follows that spirit: simple ingredients handled with attention, layered in the pan, and united at the last moment with pasta.
While this dish is not tied to one rigid historic formula, it expresses a classic Italian principle: respect for the ingredient, balance in the sauce, and a finish that keeps the seafood lively and clean on the palate.
Explore more on the culture of handmade pasta in the Tuscany Cuisine journal: Flour & Water Pasta Journal .