Bacon, Shrimp, and Crab Pasta

One of my weaknesses is a good, hearty pasta dish. And you can’t get much more hearty than adding some crispy cooked bacon. I took it next level though and added my two favorite seafoods — crab and shrimp. I’ve been on a seafood kick lately for some reason, so I had a bit left in the fridge I needed to finish up. I have another favorite seafood pasta that’s a copycat of one of my favorite restaurants around here — they unfortunately took it off their menu, but you can find the recipe here: Crab Pasta with a Chardonnay Cream Sauce. 

For the sauce, I made a wine sauce with a shallot and jalapenos. I LOVE spice, but the spice wasn’t overwhelming since I removed the seeds and there was so much pasta. My favorite store-bought pasta I’ve found so far is the Al Dente brand, here I use the Fiesta Fettuccine. It cooks in three minutes and tastes as close to handmade as I can find (around here!). The cornmeal is an heirloom cornmeal from some local (Bon Secour) farmers. Can’t beat it! I also bought some grits from them and can’t wait to share a killer shrimp & grits recipe soon! 

I started by frying up some chopped bacon in a saute pan. I like Wright brand applewood smoked bacon — but use whatever you like

Saute the shallot and jalapenos in with the butter. I used the same pan that I had cooked the bacon and shrimp. This is the flavor base of your sauce. I used a red and green jalapeno because they’re just beautiful (and that’s what I had!)

When the pasta was finished cooking, I added it to the pan with the sauce. I love the color of the sauce — looks like pure flavor, right?!

Add the bacon and crabmeat and stir gently. You don’t want to lose all the chunkier pieces of crab — they are SO yummy!

Add the pan-fried shrimp on top at the end. I now wish I would’ve garnished with something green, but oh well. The flavors were all so beautiful together. Nice and hearty — very comforting for all this cold weather we’ve been having!

Bacon, Shrimp, and Crab Pasta

2016-01-24 08:42:10

Serves 4

Bacon, pan-fried shrimp, and crab claw meat mixed with a spicy Parmesan and wine sauce.

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Prep Time

20 min

Cook Time

20 min

Total Time

40 min

Prep Time

20 min

Cook Time

20 min

Total Time

40 min

Ingredients

1 cup cornmeal

2 tablespoons Old Bay seasoning

Salt & pepper

½ lb. small shrimp, peeled & deveined

4 strips bacon, chopped into ½ inch pieces

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided

1 shallot, minced

2 jalapenos, seeded and minced

⅔ c. white wine

1 cup chicken stock

1 tablespoon cornstarch

1 tablespoon water

3 oz. shredded Parmesan, divided

12 oz. fettuccine

4 oz. crab claw meat, picked over

Instructions

1. In a shallow dish, mix together cornmeal, Old Bay and season with salt and pepper.
2. Add shrimp and coat with mixture.
3. Salt a large pot full of water and bring to a boil for pasta.
4. Heat a large saute pan over medium-high heat and add bacon. Cook until crisp, and remove with a slotted spoon from grease onto paper towels.
5. Add shrimp to grease and cook until opaque (about 1-2 minutes per side). Move to paper towels with bacon (cover with foil to keep warm).
6. Drain excess grease and return to heat. Add 2 tablespoons butter and let melt. Add shallot and jalapenos and saute about one minute until fragrant. Add wine and let simmer, then add chicken stock and bring to a boil.
7. Reduce heat to medium and let simmer. (Now’s a good time to cook your pasta.)
8. Let sauce simmer for about 7 - 8 minutes, and mix cornstarch and water in a small bowl. Add to the sauce to thicken, add 2 ounces Parmesan and 2 tablespoons butter. Remove pasta when finished cooking.
9. Mix fettuccine with the sauce and add crabmeat and bacon. Mix together and move to plates. Top with a few shrimp, and the rest of the Parmesan.

By Whitney @ That Square Plate

That Square Plate https://www.thatsquareplate.com/