This Seafood Pasta Becomes Insanely Better with These Methods

So you go to a great Italian restaurant, you order the seafood pasta, and it's incredible. A silky sauce that clings to the pasta, perfectly tender seafood, it just feels like a masterpiece. Then you try to make it at home and it's fine. The difference isn't the ingredients, it's technique and timing. Well, I'm gonna show you a few insider tips on how to build the base, cook the seafood properly, and finish it the way that chefs actually do it. Sound good? Let's cook. Now the beauty of this recipe is that you can use whatever you have access to or on hand. I love the combo of fresh mussels, scallops, clams, and shrimp. And if you've got a filet of salmon around or even a piece of halibut, all are good to use in this pasta. But first things first, if you don't plan on eating this the day you pick up the mussels and clams, what you wanna do is place them in a colander that fits inside of a bowl, and from there, cover them in ice. Three important things to remember. They should always be on ice, be uncovered so they can breathe, and don't have them submerged in water. From there, they can stay in the fridge like this for two days for peak freshness, and maybe three days max. After that, toss it. Okay, so when you're ready to make this pasta, the first thing you're gonna wanna do is pick through and make sure all of them are alive. They're slightly open and you give them a few knocks, they should close up. This means they're still fresh. On the other hand, if you give them a few knocks and they stay open, then unfortunately they're no good and you should pitch them. At this stage, you'll wanna remove the threads on one pound of these fresh black mussels. They're also known as bisus threads. What these threads do is attach the mussels to the rocks, and you can use your hands to pull them off, or just use a paper towel if you need to get a better grip. You've got this, my friends. And not all of them are gonna have these threads, and don't worry about the 12 clams because this is a non-issue for them. And at this stage, technically, they're good to go. But first, I'd like to do just a bit more. Give them a rinse under water as there may be some bisus threads on the outside shell. You can just use your hands to scrub them down, or if you want, you can use a brush to do it. But honestly, there's no need to go overboard. It's a simple process to make a cleaner, more delicious-tasting pasta. And little techniques like this always make meals worth remembering, always. I do the same with the clams. Now just give them a good rinse and soak them under cold water for 10 to 15 minutes to get any last sediment off that's in or on the outside of the shell. In the meantime, a bit of prep. We're gonna remove something known as the foot, which is a really tough-chewing adductor muscle from a half pound of 40-60 scallops. And you can definitely use any size scallop you'd like. 30-40, 20-30, U10s-based scallops, all are good to use. Next up, I've got one pound of 16-20 shrimp that I'm gonna peel and devein. And yeah, I leave the tails on. I know it'll annoy a few of you folks, so definitely feel free to remove them. I just love the way they look. So just like the scallops, any size shrimp are good to use. And there's a bonus when shelling these yourselves, which I'll show you in a minute. But first, give the shrimp a quick rinse to remove that intestinal tract. Just place them in the fridge for now. And about those shells and scallop side dishes. Let's pull some flavor from those. In a medium-sized sauce pot with two tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat, add them in and just saute for three to four minutes or just until the shells of the shrimp turn pink. Next, cover them in four cups of water or my preference, chicken stock. And yes, chicken stock will make our sauce that much more flavorful. I've got a great homemade recipe if you wanna check it out. Now, so much of being a good cook is being a good steward of your time. So while our stock simmers on low to medium heat for 10 to 15 minutes, let's knock out a bit more mise. I'm gonna peel and small dice one shallot. And of course, a half cup of small diced red, white, yellow, or sweet onions will work if that's all you have. Next, smash and finely mince six garlic cloves. Feel free to add a few more if you really love garlic. Then remove the stem, slice in half, and remove the pith and seeds from one Fresno pepper and then small dice it. And you could for sure use a serrano or jalapeno or even just some crushed red pepper flakes. At this point, for a little bonus, and yes, this is optional, I'm gonna slice in half one cup of cherry tomatoes. These have a pretty solid flavor profile so that you can make this pasta all year round without suffering any quality. Last but not least, finely mince a quarter cup of fresh parsley. Let's go have a look at our stock and you'll immediately be able to smell how much more intense and shrimp flavor it has. This is such a great way to use up those shells. Just give it a quick strain and then set it to the side. Okay, it's finally time to cook, but first let's drain those mussels and clams. And yeah, that's why we soak them in water because if you don't, all that sediment was about to be in your pasta. Drain and give them one last rinse. All right, before we start cooking, I just wanna say you've spent some time prepping. You've spent a decent amount of money on seafood. It's fresh, it looks amazing, but it is also delicate so you have to take care when cooking it. Of course, you could fly through this and rush through this as fast as you want, but if you just give me a few more minutes, that's when good can go to great. All right, here we go. Start by patting the scallops dry with paper towels. The goal is to get a bit of a sear on these. Then do the same thing with the shrimp. And while I don't mind if they sear, I surely don't want anything to stick. Let's take everything back over to the cooktop and I'm gonna make this pasta in a five quart saucier pan just like this. But any wider pan that is five quarts or more is all good to use. Add in three to four tablespoons of olive oil and crank the heat to medium high and let it heat up for about 90 seconds or until it begins to lightly smoke. Okay, all this is going to move quickly, so watch carefully. Add in the scallops and immediately spread them across the pan as best you can, followed up with a season of salt. These are gonna cook for about 20 to 25 seconds per side, maybe. All I'm looking for is a light brown to help give us some more umami flavor in our pasta and without completely cooking them through. Nothing worse than a tough scallop and I promise you can absolutely pull this off. Just set them to the side on a plate and now over medium heat, add in the shrimp, spread them out and season those with salt. These will cook for about 45 seconds per side. That's it. And like I said earlier, it's okay if you get a little brown on them. The most important part is that they're slightly undercooked and I'll explain why in a few minutes. But first, once the shrimp are done, they'll be pink and they should be in a loosey shape like this. If they're tight-sea, it's too late and they're overcooked, so be sure to pay attention because this part is so important to ensuring your shrimp are perfectly cooked. Also good to account for carryover cooking here as well. Okay, add them right to the plate with the scallops. Let's return the pan right to the burner over medium heat and add in one tablespoon of unsalted butter, the shallots, and then the garlic. Give it a gentle season of salt and saute for just one to two minutes or until the edges start to brown slightly. At this stage, turn the heat down to low and we're gonna cook while occasionally stirring for about three to four minutes. And while we're waiting, let's talk pasta. There are so many things you can use, spaghetti, bucatini, tagliatelle, or linguine. I personally like a longer pasta here, or you can even make fresh pasta if you have the time. Yes, for the record, I think fresh is better for any pasta dish, but in this case, it's all about timing. And one of the biggest questions I get, and hands down one that chefs have absolutely mastered in the restaurant industry, is around timing. How can I get everything done at the same time and so it's cooked perfectly? Well, first of all, we know that the clams and mussels are gonna take about five to six minutes to cook, plus a few extra minutes to finish the sauce. And for me, I'm gonna go with bucatini and that's gonna take nine to 11 minutes. So now is when I drop that pasta. In a large pot of boiling salted water, let's add in the pasta. And once they're all submerged, let's go have a look at our shallots and garlic and yeah, beautiful. The smell in here, incredible. Let's add in the Fresno pepper and cook just for about one minute. All I wanna do is help to start to marry up those flavors. At this stage, I'm gonna add in our mussels and clams, turn the heat up to medium and I'm just going to saute them for one to two minutes. Just wanna start to heat them up. Then is when we deglaze with about one cup of dry white wine. All right, so what do I mean when I say dry white wine? How about Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio, Sauvignon Blanc, those three always available, always good to use. One of my old culinary instructors, Chef Getchell, who taught us saucier, would just say, hey, if you wouldn't drink it, I probably wouldn't cook with it. Just remember that and let it stick with you when you use wine. Okay, let's add in our stock, turn the heat to high and cover everything up. Size of lid, dude. With a lid that actually fits, my bad. These will cook pretty quickly and you'll definitely see everything start to open up if you're cheating like I am and removing the cover every 30 seconds. Can't help myself. All right, it smells too good in here, I can tell you that. And let's have a look. We're done. And I know this is a little annoying, but I promise you it makes things easier. Remove the mussels and clams and just set them right to the side on the plate with scallops and shrimp. Now what we're gonna do is season up that broth really well with salt and pepper. This should be extremely flavorful. You are gonna love this pasta. Next up, we're gonna mount in four tablespoons of cold unsalted butter. Once it's in there, let's go grab our pasta and it is perfectly al dente. Firm, but not crunchy. Then I'm gonna ruffle some feathers. And yes, I definitely know and understand how sacrilegious it is to mix cheese with seafood. But I mean, come on now. It really does only make it better. That I can promise you. Don't yell at me. Add in a half cup of finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano and then the finely minced parsley. Using some tongs or some Chef Bro tweezers, vigorously mix everything together to emulsify the cheese and pasta into the sauce and until it's coated. At this stage, I'm going to add in all the seafood. I'm going to gently toss everything while over low heat to reheat everything. This is why it's so important to slightly undercook the shrimp and scallops. One, they'll carry over cook and two, once they're reheated in here, they are going to be to the perfect tenderness and consistency. And like I said earlier, this is optional but this is when you want to toss in your tomatoes. There's no need to cook them down completely. Let them be bright and stand out of this dish. Don't hide them. And then let's plate this up. But first, while this is absolutely the perfect meal, if you're looking for a quick complimentary side dish, I highly recommend my roasted garlic garlic bread, a little ciabatta, olive oil, Parmigiano, salt and pepper, broiled until crispy. Then whether you use garlic confit or roasted garlic, both are good. Just add the cloves and spread them onto the toasty bread like jam. Finish with some more Parmigiano and parsley. My only guarantee is that you are going to love this. Grab this full recipe on my site at billyparisi.com. Garlic confit explosion. So let's finish up this pasta. I'm actually just going to leave it right here in this pot because it looks so beautiful. And I'm going to hit it with just a few optional garnishes. Some finely grated lemon zest, a bit more Parmigiano. Sorry. Okay. It just makes it better. Then last but not least, some crushed red pepper flakes and a bit more parsley. Let's get in this. Now, if you're looking for the perfect way to finish off this pasta, my ricotta olive oil cake, it's amazing. You are going to love it. See you on that video. It just kept coming. Flavor after, oh man, that's so good. You're going to love this.