Linguine with prawns, garlic and chilli
Linguine ai gamberi
Coastal Italian linguine with prawns, garlic, chilli, white wine and a few cherry tomatoes, finished in a quick stock made from the shells. No cheese.
Recipe by I Want Some Food · Reviewed by the editorial kitchen. Native name preserved: Linguine ai gamberi.
- Prep
- 20 min
- Cook
- 25 min
- Rest
- None
- Total
- 45 min
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Spice
- Medium heat
- Cost
- A bit special$16–28 USD · indicative, not a store price
About
Linguine ai gamberi is southern coastal cooking: garlic and chilli warmed in olive oil, prawns seared just until pink, a splash of white wine, a few halved cherry tomatoes, and linguine finished in the pan with parsley. The trick that makes it taste of the sea is the shells. Fry the heads and shells in oil, crush them, add water and simmer for ten minutes, and use that stock to finish the pasta. There is no cream, no lime, no fromage frais, no salad on the side and no cheese: Italians do not put cheese on prawns. Cook the prawns briefly and take them out while the pasta finishes, or they turn to rubber.
What you'll need
9 ingredients. Tap each one once it's out on the bench.
Ingredients
- Linguine360 g
- Prawn, whole raw, shells and heads kept600 g
- Garlic, sliced3 clove
- Fresh chilli, fresh red, sliced, or dried peperoncino1
- Olive oil, extra virgin89 ml
- White wine, dry100 ml
- Cherry tomatoes, halved200 g
- Parsley, flat-leaf, chopped1 handful
- Salt4.9 ml
Scaling multiplies the written quantities. Baking still prefers a scale.
Steps
Step 1
Peel the prawns, keeping heads and shells. Fry the shells in 2 tbsp oil for 3 minutes, crushing the heads. Add 400 ml water, simmer 10 minutes and strain.
15 min
Step 2
Put the linguine on to boil in salted water. In a wide pan warm the rest of the oil with garlic and chilli until the garlic is pale gold.
4 min
Step 3
Add the prawns and cook until just pink, about 1 minute a side. Lift them out. Add the wine, let it bubble, then the tomatoes and a ladle of shell stock.
5 min
Step 4
Drain the linguine 2 minutes early and finish them in the pan, adding stock until glossy. Return the prawns with the parsley, toss and serve.
3 min
Nutrition
Per serving · estimate
- Calories
- 677 kcal
- Protein
- 48.5 g
- Carbs
- 71.8 g
- Fat
- 20 g
- Saturated fat
- 3 g
- Fibre
- 3.7 g
- Sugar
- 4.1 g
- Sodium
- 663 mg
Calculated from canonical ingredient data (USDA FoodData Central averages and equivalent published tables). Estimates only.
Allergens
Informational only. Not a medical guarantee. Cross-contamination happens in real kitchens.
- Wheat
- Shellfish
- Pescatarian
- Dairy-free
Adapt this recipe
The original recipe stays as it is. Personal versions are labelled. Serving changes are simple maths.
Adaptations · 0 / 15 used. Resets 10 November.
Substitutions
Whole prawns → Peeled raw prawns
Use fish stock in place of the shell stock.
Tips
- The shell stock is the difference between nice and Italian. Do not skip it.
- No cheese at the table. Bread for the sauce, yes.
History & culture
This plate is on every seaside trattoria menu from Liguria to Sicily, and on summer tables at home when the fish shop has good prawns. Red prawns from Mazara del Vallo in Sicily are the prized ones. The no-cheese-with-seafood rule is one of the few nearly every Italian cook agrees on.
Pasta with seafood and garlic belongs to the coastal cooking of Campania, Puglia and Sicily, where dried pasta and the day's catch met. Tomato joined in the nineteenth century. Restaurant menus of the twentieth century made prawn linguine a standard across all of Italy's coasts.
Traditional — Prawns, garlic, chilli, wine, a few tomatoes and a shell stock. No cheese, cream or lime.
Provenance: Editorial adaptation.
Questions about this recipe
Answers taken from this dish's times, amounts, swaps and tips.
How long does Linguine with prawns, garlic and chilli take?
45 min all in — 20 min prep, 25 min cook. Cook and rest follow the method. Leftover storage and optional extra waits are not included.
How many does it serve?
The recipe is written for 4 plates. Scale the ingredient list on the page if you are cooking for a different number.
How hard is it?
Medium.
How spicy is it?
Medium heat.
What allergens should I watch?
This recipe is labelled for Wheat, Shellfish. Labels are informational — check the packets in your kitchen. This is not medical advice.
Does it fit a diet?
The published recipe is labelled Pescatarian, Dairy-free.
6 more questionsFewer questions
What does it cost to cook?
A bit special — about $16–28 USD, as a grocery budget for this recipe, not a restaurant price.
What equipment do I need?
Frying pan, Saucepan.
How much salt do I put in?
The recipe lists Salt at 1 tsp.
What can I use instead?
Whole prawns → Peeled raw prawns. Use fish stock in place of the shell stock.
Any tips from this recipe?
The shell stock is the difference between nice and Italian. Do not skip it. No cheese at the table. Bread for the sauce, yes.
Can I use an air fryer?
This method is not written for an air fryer. The core technique on the page still applies.
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