Yummy tiger prawns!
We often go to the Sydney Markets in Flemington on a Saturday. Actually we go almost every Saturday. The bargains that can be had there are truly amazing. Some of the fresh produce is sold cheaply as there isn’t much life left in them. It just means you need to eat, cook or freeze them quickly. It was here that borne the meal I was about to make – prawn, garlic & chilli fettuccine.
What a lot of people don’t know is that at the end of the day (gates close at 2pm, trading ends at 3pm) the seafood is sold at ridiculously cheap prices. We’ve got 12 whole baby squid for $5 before, or 1kg of salmon fillets for $5. Crazy cheap!
Last weekend we were lucky and bought some cheap prawns. About 2kg of raw unpeeled tiger prawns for $15. I went into my happy place as I totally adore prawns. But I didn’t want to just boil them and eat them cold with lemon juice or some seafood sauce. So I decided to make Prawn, Garlic & Chilli Fettuccine for dinner. The recipe here is using prawns already peeled which saves a lot of time making this a perfect weeknight meal.
What is fettuccine?
Fettuccine is a type of pasta in the ribbon pasta category which literally means “small ribbons” in Italian. It is about 6-7 millimetres in width which means it’s the perfect pasta when you have a tomato or meat-based sauce. But I find that the juices from the tomato and garlic from this recipe stick to the fettuccine ribbons.
DID YOU KNOW…. overcooked pasta has a higher GI than pasta cooked al dente (meaning “to the bite”). This means that if pasta is overcooked, it will be digested and absorbed faster than overcooked mushy pasta.
One thing I can’t stress enough is to reserve between 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup of the drained pasta water every time you cook pasta. Pasta water is a great addition to the sauce. The salty, starchy water adds flavour which helps bind the pasta and sauce together.
Want another delicious recipe?
If you like this recipe, you’ll also love others available here. From pastas to risottos, cookies to desserts, and bliss balls to gluten-free options with everything in between. There is truly something here for everyone. I have developed this website to provide family-friendly recipes where I maximise both fresh produce while minimising cost.
Prawn, Garlic & Chilli Fettuccine
Ingredients
- 450 g dried fettuccine pasta
- 2 kg raw unpeeled prawns
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 8 cloves garlic
- 1/3 cup white wine
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 shallots/spring onions, finely chopped
- 400 g baby tomatoes, cut into halves
- 2 teaspoon fresh chilli, finely chopped (1/2 to 1 teaspoon dried chilli)
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, finely chopped
- salt
Instructions
- In a large pot bring water to the boil with some salt. Once boiling add in your dried pasta and cook according to packet instructions. For fettuccine, it will take about 8 minutes.
- In a wok, add the oil and garlic. Cook over medium heat but don't colour the garlic.
- Then add the spring onions and baby tomatoes. Cook until slightly soft.
- Add your prawns, wine and lemon juice. Sauté the prawns until cooked. Be careful not to overcook your prawns as they will only take a few minutes to get that nice white opaque colour.
- Add in the chillis and parsley. Season with salt as required. Continue to sauté for another 30 seconds to mix through then turn off the heat.
- Drain the pasta when cooked al dente, reserving 1/4 cup of pasta water. Add the water into the prawn mixture.
- Serve with the prawns either mixed through the drained pasta, or on top.
Notes
- I used a medley of tomatoes to give more flavour.
- Substitute the fettuccine for either spaghetti or linguine.
- Add finely chopped fresh chilli if you're seeking more heat.