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Shrimp Fra Diavolo

Shrimp Fra Diavolo is classic Italian cuisine known for bringing the heat, but you can easily control the amount of heat. This delicious dish comes together in under and hour and it is a wonderful main course.

Course dinner, Main Course, Main Entrée
Cuisine Italian
Keyword Easy Entertaining, Fra Diavolo, Shrimp Dinner, Shrimp Pasta, Shrimp Recipe, Spicy Pasta
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 35 minutes
Servings 8 servings
Author The Tiny Fairy

Ingredients

SHRIMP

  • 2 lbs extra large or jumbo shrimp I source my jumbo shrimp at Costco
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt prefer Diamond brand
  • ½ - 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes or more according to heat tolerance see Recipe Notes

SAUCE

  • 1 28 ounce can San Marzano whole peeled tomatoes with juices
  • reserved shrimp shells mentioned above
  • 1 cup dry white wine, such as Chardonnay
  • 3 Tablespoons olive oil, divided
  • 1 medium onion, sliced thin
  • 5 cloves garlic, finely minced or mashed
  • ½ teaspoon dry oregano prefer Mexican oregano
  • ½ teaspoon Italian seasonings
  • 3 Tablespoons Italian flat leaf parsley, chopped
  • 3 Tablespoons fresh basil, chopped or in ribbons plus extra for garnish

PASTA

  • 1 lb pasta - your choice of linguine, angel hair, fettuccini or spaghetti
  • water, 2 big pinches of kosher salt and a splash olive oil prefer Diamond kosher salt

Instructions

PREPARING THE SHRIMP

  1. Peel, devein and reserve the shells. Optional: remove the tails when peeling for a more enjoyable eating experience. This step can be done the day before and refrigerated.

  2. Pat dry the shrimp with paper towels and place in a mixing bowl. Add kosher salt, crushed red pepper flakes and toss well to evenly distribute the seasonings. Set aside.

    Note: See Recipe Notes for suggested amounts of crushed red pepper flakes.

MAKING THE SAUCE

  1. Place a colander over a large bowl, like a Pyrex mixing bowl, and empty the canned San Marzano 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. Transfer the crushed solid tomato pieces into a bowl and the tomato liquid into another bowl. Set both bowls aside.

  2. 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.

  3. 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.

  4. Remove any shrimp particles from the skillet. Coat the skillet with a little olive oil and working in batches, sear the shrimp 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: You shouldn't use more than a Tablespoon of olive oil to sear all the shrimp.

  5. In the same skillet, add the final tablespoon of olive oil and sauté the onion slices 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.

  6. Add the reserved tomato crushed solids and liquid to the skillet with the onions and herbs and slightly reduce the heat. Combine well and simmer until the sauce slightly thickens, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Taste the sauce and adjust the seasonings sparingly as the pasta will cook in salted water.

    Note: If you didn’t use San Marzano tomatoes, you may need to add a pinch of sugar to cut the acidity.

IF SERVING WITH PASTA

  1. Fill a stock pot with water, add a few pinches of Diamond kosher salt, a splash of olive oil and bring to a boil over high heat.

  2. Add the pasta to the boiling water when you add the tomatoes to the sauce.

    Note: A lb. of pasta takes about 10 minutes to cook al dente. Time the pasta cooking time according to your desired firmness, but remember the pasta will continue to cook when tossed in the sauce with the shrimp.

ASSEMBLY

  1. Using a pasta fork, remove the pasta and allow the excess pasta water to drain off before transferring it to the skillet. Reserve the pasta water.

    Note: If the sauce is too thick, add a little pasta water at a time to thin the sauce. Discard the remaining water. I did not add any pasta water to my sauce.

  2. Add the parsley and basil and toss to coat the pasta with the sauce.

  3. 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.

  4. Remove from heat and transfer to a serving platter. Garnish with extra parsley and basil.

Recipe Notes

Standard ratio is 1 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes for every lb of shrimp.  Scale back according to your personal taste.  Below is my guide for 2 lbs of shrimp: 
1/2 teaspoon for very mild heat, just a hint of spice, 
1 teaspoon for mild-medium,
2 teaspoons for medium-moderate,
3 teaspoons for very spicy, and
4 teaspoons if you're brave enough for a fiery inferno!

OMITTING SHRIMP SHELLS
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.  Follow the other steps as written.