This recipe is featured in my ECookbook:
As I had shared before about my most kept secret of cooking pasta. Well, not a secret anymore. No unnecessary large pot of water and without the need to season the water with loads of salt. Lesser cooking time too. Just the right amount of creaminess without any cream or extra cheeses added.
It all boils down to very simple calculations of math and science; all you need are 2 skillets and good quality pasta.
Perhaps I will talk more about the quality of pasta in the future. Because it does make a lot of difference. Anyway, this recipe popped into my mind while I was searching for ways to incorporate sambal into pasta. I was thinking why not fused Chinese, Indo and Italian into 1 cohesive dish. And the rest is history.
I added some masala seared scallops for some je ne sais quoi to the pasta. You can of cos skip the scallops and the pasta will still be yummilicious on its own. Or should I say, pastalicious? Lol! I will definitely be making this series available as an E-Cookbook shortly. Please stay tuned.
Ingredients:
(Serve 1)
Pasta:
Spaghetti / Any Pasta Of Your Choice, 100g
Hot Water, 400g
Sea Salt, Pinch
Sauce:
High Quality Olive Oil, 2 TBSP
Ginger Finely Minced, 1 Inch
Garlic Finely Minced, 3 Cloves
Tomato Puree / Ketchup, 1 TBSP
Kecap Manis, 2 TBSP
Rice Wine / ShaoXing Wine, 2 TBSP
Sambal Homemade, 3 TBSP (Adjust To Preference)
Scallops:
Canola / Sunflower / Grapeseed / Peanut Oil, 2 TBSP
Scallops, 3
Sea Salt, Pinch
Your Favourite Masala, Pinch (I am using Madras Masala)
Ghee, 1 TBSP
Scallions / Coriander / Parsley Finely Sliced, For Garnish
Equipment:
2 Cast Iron Skillet / Pan
Directions:
Please visit my "How To Make Madras Masala" page for the recipe.
Please visit my "How To Make Sambal" page for the recipe.
Please visit my "How To Make Kecap Manis" page for the recipe.
You will need 2 skillets or pans to prepare this dish.
Prepare the pasta.
In a skillet or pan over medium heat, add pasta and hot water.
Season the water with some salt.
While the pasta is cooking, prepare the sauce.
In another skillet or pan over medium heat, add olive oil.
Once the oil is heated up, add in ginger and garlic.
Sauté until aromatic.
Add in tomato puree, kecap manis, sambal and rice wine.
Remove from heat.
Stir to combine well.
Assemble.
By the time the sauce is done, the pasta should just be under al dente.
Transfer the sauce into the skillet with the pasta.
*Do not drain the pasta. The pasta water will create creaminess to the sauce.*
Toss to combine well.
Remove from heat and set aside.
Prepare the scallops.
Season the scallops with masala and salt on both sides, making sure the scallops are well coated.
In a skillet or pan over medium heat, add oil.
Once the oil reaches the smoking point, add in the scallops, 1 at a time.
Add in ghee, tilt the skillet or pan and baste the scallops with all the liquid until 3/4 way cooked thru’.
Flip and cook for another 15 seconds.
To serve.
Just as you are about to serve, return back the pasta back onto the heat.
Cook for another 30 secs or until the pasta starts to loosen up.
Serve the scallops on top of the pasta.
Garnish with some scallions.
Serve immediately.
How's my pasta pull?
Recipe Video:
This recipe is featured in my ECookbook: