Shrimp Fra Diavolo

Shrimp Fra Diavolo is a classic, spicy Italian dish. Don’t let the “fra diavolo” keep you away from enjoying such a delicious dish, simply adjust the amount of crushed red pepper flakes and make it to your liking. I use the shrimp shells to develop a richer more flavorful sauce, but you can omit that step. I love to make this with linguine or serve it with some crusty bread to soak up all that sauce. There’s really no wrong way to enjoy it. This dish makes for a memorable meal.

HISTORY
As with most dishes, the origins are blurry, the claims to fame are abundant and there’s more than one version. Although there’s no link to the dish, Paesana has a charming story dating back to the 1770s and a mischievous little boy, Michele Pezza, who earned the nickname fra diavolo or brother devil. Italian immigrants in NYC claim this was created in America. Grotta Azzurra, located in the famous neighborhood of Little Italy, has been serving Lobster Fra Diavolo since 1908. Even the NY Times tried to unravel the mystery. You can read their article here. Regardless of its origin, the dish is amazing and easy to make.

HERE’S HOW I MADE IT
Peel and devein the shrimp and reserve the shells. If prepping the shrimp the day before, cover and store both shrimp and shells separately in the refrigerator until ready to cook and assemble the dish the following day.
Note: Who wants to fight with their food? I find it more enjoyable to eat shrimp without tails when it’s in a main dish. I typically leave the tails on when I serve them as an appetizer making them easier to serve and eat.

Pat the shrimp dry with a paper towel and in a medium bowl, combine with a teaspoon of kosher salt and 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes or more according to your heat tolerance. Toss until the shrimp are evenly coated with the seasonings and set aside.
Note: It is important to dry the shrimp for two reasons: (1) seasonings adhere better and (2) prevents the shrimp from steaming in the skillet. Don’t pre-season the shrimp and refrigerate overnight. This recipe is made with 2 lbs of shrimp so everyone can enjoy a generous portion, but you could scale back to 1.5 lbs.

• 

• 

HOW SPICY DO YOU WANT YOUR FRA DIAVOLO?
The standard is 1 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes per pound of shrimp, but everyone’s heat tolerance is different. I added 1/2 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes to 2 lbs of shrimp because my family doesn’t enjoy spicy foods. As the only family member who does, I add extra crushed red pepper flakes to my individual serving. If you are not sure how much heat your family can tolerate, I suggest you sparingly season the shrimp and offer extra crushed red pepper flakes on the side. Remember you can always add, but you can’t take away!

Here’s the guide I followed for 2 lbs of shrimp:
1/2 teaspoon for just a hint of spice,
1 teaspoon for mild – medium,
2 teaspoons for medium – spicy,
3 teaspoons for very spicy, and
4 teaspoons if you’re brave enough for a fiery inferno!

MAKING THE SAUCE
Place a colander over a large bowl, like a Pyrex mixing bowl, and empty the canned tomatoes into the colander to separate the liquid from the whole pieces. Crush the whole tomatoes with your hands, removing the hard core and allow the liquids to drain into the bowl. When the liquid has drained, transfer the solid pieces into another bowl. You should have two bowls – one with liquid and one with solids. Set them both aside.
Note: San Marzano tomatoes are a variety of plum tomatoes known for their rich flavor, texture and low acidity. If you don’t use San Marzano, you may need to add a pinch of sugar to the sauce to counter the acidity.

• 

• 

Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a large wide skillet over medium heat. When the oil shimmers, add the shrimp shells and sauté, stirring frequently, until they are pink with some golden spots, about 3 -4 minutes. Add a cup of dry white wine and deglaze the skillet. Use a wooden spoon to scrape any bits and allow the wine to simmer and reduce, about 4 minutes.

While the wine is reducing, fill a stock pot with water, add a few pinches of Diamond kosher salt and a splash of olive oil. Bring to a boil over high heat. As you can see, I have my pasta water coming to a boil in the background. You’ll add and cook the pasta later.

• 

• 

Add the reserved tomato liquid to the shrimp shells and simmer for 5 minutes. Use a colander to strain the shrimp and tomato sauce into a large Pyrex bowl. Press the shells against the colander to release any liquid and drain the shells completely. Once drained, discard the shells and set the fortified tomato juice aside.

• 

• 

Since you’re using the same skillet to cook the shrimp, remove any shell particles. You can also use a paper towel to wipe the skillet, but try not wipe/wash away the layers of flavor in the skillet. Coat the skillet with a little olive oil and sear the shrimp in batches over medium heat for 2 minutes, flip and sear for another minute. Remove from skillet and repeat step with remaining shrimp. Set the cooked shrimp aside.
Note: Use no more than 1 Tablespoon of olive oil to sear all the shrimp. The shrimp will finish cooking when you combine with the sauce and pasta.

• 

• 

In the same skillet, add a tablespoon of olive oil and sauté the onion over medium heat until translucent, about 5 minutes. Mince 5 garlic cloves and add to the skillet along with 1/2 teaspoon each of dry oregano and Italian seasonings. Stir frequently to combine and sauté for another minute.

• 

• 

I wish you could smell my kitchen right now, but you can see the layers of flavors in the pan. The caramelized bits from the shrimp along with the onions, garlic and herbs help create the most rich and amazing sauce. It’s important to use the same pan so you can build layers of flavor.

Chop about 3 tablespoons each of Italian flat leaf parsley and fresh basil. Set aside.

• 

• 

By now the onions and seasoning should be cooked. Add the pasta to the stock pot with boiling water and stir well to prevent the pasta from clumping. Cook the pasta according to packaging instructions. Dry linguine cooks al dente in about 10 minutes, but dry angel hair pasta takes less time. Fresh pasta cooks in no time at all. Time it so the pasta is al dente by the time the tomato sauce has thickened.
Note: “Al dente” is Italian and means “to the tooth”. This term is commonly used in all recipes because pasta should have a slight bite. This allows for carryover cooking when combining with a sauce so the pasta isn’t overcooked.

Add both the tomato liquid and crushed solids to the skillet with the onions and herbs. Slightly reduce the heat and combine the ingredients. Simmer until the sauce slightly thickens, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Taste the sauce and adjust the seasonings sparingly as the pasta you’ll be adding is already seasoned.
Note: If you didn’t use San Marzano tomatoes, you may need to add a pinch of sugar to cut the acidity.

Using a pasta fork, remove the pasta, allowing the excess pasta water to drain off, and transfer it to the skillet. Reserve the pasta water. Add the parsley and basil and toss to coat the pasta with the sauce.
Note: If the sauce is too thick, add a little pasta water at a time until you’ve reached the desired consistency and discard any remaining pasta water. I did not add any pasta water to my sauce.

• 

• 

Add the shrimp and toss to combine. Simmer over low heat for a few minutes to allow the shrimp to warm through and the flavors to marry. Remove from heat and transfer to a serving platter. Garnish with extra parsley and basil.

• 

• 

The shrimp shells added a uniquely rich flavor to the sauce that makes it outstanding; however, if you wish to omit the shrimp shells, add the white wine to the sautéed onions and seasonings and reduce the wine before adding the tomato liquid and crushed pieces. You can also make the sauce the day before making entertaining and clean up a lot easier.

I just love this pasta dish! It yields 6-8 servings depending on what you pair it with and how hungry your guests are. I like to serve it with a nice salad, crusty bread, a bottle of good Italian wine or sangria. Don’t forget to place extra crushed red pepper flakes on the table for those who enjoy a fiery kick!

Enjoy!