Ingredients
Pesto Pasta
- 1 lb dry pasta, penne, tagliatelle, etc.
- salt
- ½ cup pesto
Shrimp
- 1 lb shrimp, 25-30/lb
- 2 tsp butter
- ¼ tsp fine sea salt
- freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- ¼ tsp red pepper flakes
Method
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil, salt well, and cook the pasta to al dente.
- While the pasta is cooking, prep the shrimp (peel and devein if necessary) and pat it dry. Season with salt, black pepper, and red pepper flakes.
- About 3-4 minutes before the pasta is cooked, preheat a skillet over medium heat. When ready to cook, add the butter and let it melt and foam before adding in the shrimp in a single layer.
- Flip each shrimp once the tail begins to curl and it resembles the U shape (about 30s-1 min). Once flipped, cook until it fully curls in and the back of the shrimp is no longer translucent but opaque (~30 seconds). Careful not to overcook, it happens quickly!
- Once they are cooked remove them from the heat into a separate dish.
- Drain the pasta and toss well with the pesto. Optionally add the shrimp to the pasta or leave it on the side. This easily allows people to choose how much shrimp they'd like while avoiding continuing to cook the shrimp.
- Top with parmesan if desired and enjoy!