Spicy Salmon Pasta
This spicy salmon pasta is creamy, fiery, rich and absolutely delicious!
Servings: 2
Cost: £5 / $6.50
Equipment
- Sharp Knife & Chopping Board
- Large Non-Stick Pan & Wooden Spoon
- Large Pot & Tongs (for cooking pasta)
- Jug (for stock)
- Fine Cheese Grater
Ingredients
Salmon
- 2x 120-150g / 4-5oz boneless skinless Salmon Fillets, brought close to room temp (see notes)
- 1/2 tsp EACH: Smoked Paprika, Cayenne Pepper
- 1/4 tsp EACH: Salt, Black Pepper
- 2 tsp Olive Oil
- 1 tbsp Butter
Pasta
- 200g / 7oz Linguine (or other long-cut pasta)
- 1 small White Onion, finely diced
- 2 cloves of Garlic, finely diced
- 6 Sun-Dried Tomatoes, finely diced
- 1/2 tsp Chilli Flakes (see notes)
- 2 tbsp Tomato Puree (Tomato Paste in US)
- 60ml / 1/4 cup Dry White Wine (see notes)
- 80ml / 1/3 cup Chicken Stock
- 160ml / 2/3 cup Double/Heavy Cream (leave at room temp)
- 30g / 1oz / 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan
- 1 tbsp finely diced Fresh Parsley
- Salt & Black Pepper, as needed
Instructions
- In a small pot combine the salmon seasoning, then evenly sprinkle over both sides of the fillets.
- Heat 2 tsp oil in a large non-stick pan over medium-high heat. Add the fillets and fry for 3 minutes until lightly charred and crisp on the bottom, then flip them over and fry for another 2 minutes. Melt in the butter and baste the fillets for a further minute, or until they're just about cooked through the centre (they will continue cooking so don't worry too much). The salmon will lightly blacken from the seasoning, but you don't want it to burn, so lower the temp slightly if you need to at any time during this. Remove the fillets and place them on a plate to one side, then lower the heat to medium.
- At this point you can add the pasta to salted boiling water and cook it until it is al dente. Don't drain.
- Add the onion to the leftover fat in the pan and fry until soft and golden, then add the garlic, chilli flakes and sun-dried tomatoes and fry for a further minute.
- Stir in the tomato puree and fry for a minute, then pour in the wine. Cook it out for a few minutes, or until it's almost completely evaporated and the pungent smell of alcohol disappears, deglazing the pan with your wooden spoon as needed.
- Pour in the stock and cream then give everything a good stir. Bring to a gentle simmer, then turn the heat to low. Use your tongs to transfer the cooked pasta straight from the pot into the pan, then toss to coat in the sauce. Toss in the parmesan and parsley until the parmesan melts.
- Roughly break up the salmon, then toss that in too (alongside any resting juices). If the sauce over-thickens just toss in a splash of the pasta water.
- Check for seasoning/spice and adjust if needed then serve and enjoy!
Video
Notes
a) Salmon - Depending on how hot your stove runs, you might need to drop it down to a medium so the salmon doesn't burn on the outside before the inside has cooked. I recommend leaving the salmon very slightly undercooked as it'll carry on cooking as it rests. In all cases the finished fillet should have turned from a deep pink to a light pink similar to the outside.
b) Texture - I recommend breaking the cooked salmon into large chunks, just because they'll naturally break up a little more as you toss the pasta. The pasta sauce should be thick and creamy and should cling to the pasta nicely. Just use the excess pasta water to thin out the sauce at any point should you need to.
c) Spice - The spice from the cayenne pepper and chilli flakes offers a good kick of heat, but certainly nothing overbearing. If you're wary then start off with less chilli flakes and work your way up. Of course if you want more heat just add in more!
d) White Wine - It's not a lot, but it does add a nice background flavour and cuts through the richness of the sauce. Most (if not all) of the alcohol will burn off, but if for whatever reason you don't want to use it just sub with more chicken stock.
e) Calories - Whole recipe divided by 2.
Nutrition
Calories: 984kcal | Carbohydrates: 93.68g | Protein: 40.19g | Fat: 51.68g | Saturated Fat: 26.2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4.073g | Monounsaturated Fat: 16.563g | Trans Fat: 0.407g | Cholesterol: 193mg | Sodium: 907mg | Potassium: 1204mg | Fiber: 13.2g | Sugar: 7.06g | Vitamin A: 2579IU | Vitamin C: 10.9mg | Calcium: 225mg | Iron: 2.8mg