This Seafood Pasta Is the Be-All, End-All Supper for a Crowd

Jenny Huang In the northeastern U.S. where I grew up and still reside, summer and seafood go hand in hand. Even when we were half the size, we knew that pasta was the answer to keeping things easy, affordable. Filling. (We’re Italian-American , after all.) A skillet chock-full of fresh seafood Jenny Huang This is why, when it comes to big-batch meal planning, marrying these principles and my love for these two dinner categories—pasta and seafood—was a no-brainer.

And I find it hard to walk by a good seafood counter without scooping up a bag of bivalves and some shell-on shrimp. (I eat the shells, too. More on that below.) Finally, when fresh tomatoes are in season and my backyard plants are booming with them, I love to find ways to use up the fruit beyond just a tomato sandwich or tomato salad .

Get the method for Seafood Pasta with Tomatoes, Chiles, and Mint » Dry scallops and a piping hot pan are key for that coveted sear. The bonus: the fond leftover in the bottom of the skillet after searing will add loads of extra savor to the sauce.

Thoroughly pat the scallops dry on a few layers of paper towels, season very lightly with salt (most wild seafood is naturally salty), and let them sit out for a few minutes at room temperature before searing. I in addition sneak in oil-packed anchovies, and though I swear you and your guests will never taste or be able to identify them in the sauce, they’ll add a saltiness and an unbeatable depth of taste to the fresh tomatoes as they melt down in the pan.

Finally, good olive oil is an aromatic itself: I use it twice, to sear the seafood and to finish the pasta at the end, so its savor and aroma shines through. Splurge on head-on, shell-on shrimp Jenny Huang Leave the Shells On (And Use Them to Flavor the Sauce) It’s a widely known fact among chefs that most of a shellfish’s savor resides in its hard outer covering.

French chefs in particular use shells to infuse sauces, bisques, and broths, which is why it’s best to cook this pasta sauce with fresh, shell-on seafood. Pouring the seafood mixture on top of the pasta makes for the prettiest presentation. Jenny Huang Top, Don’t Toss Cooks have been touting the “rule” for years that you should finish preparation your pasta in the sauce so the flavors and components meld.

Instead of tossing them together in the pot, pour the sauce atop the pasta in a rimmed platter, then use tongs or two forks to gently shimmy. Shift the pasta around gently on the plate to coat it in the sauce. In a large, deep (ideally 14-inch) skillet over medium-high heat, add the oil.

Quickly add the onion to the skillet and season lightly with salt and pepper. Lower the heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 1 minute. Cover and cook, shaking the skillet occasionally, until the mussels are fully began trading, about 6 minutes.

Stir the seafood mixture in the skillet and add 2 to 4 tablespoons of the pasta cookery water if needed for sauciness, then cover and continue cookery 2 minutes more. Pour the seafood mixture over the top, gently shifting the pasta with tongs to coat in the sauce.