Shrimp Fra Diavolo aka Devil's Shrimp

  Fra Diavolo (Italian for "Brother Devil") is the name given to a spicy sauce for pasta or seafood. Most versions are tomato-based and use chili peppers for spice, but the term is also used for sauces that include no tomato, or that use cayenne or other forms of pepper. According to chef Mario Batali, the spicy sauce is an Italian-American creation and is rarely served in Italy. (Excerpt courtesy of Wikipedia)

  However if you search it a bit further you will find some very interesting stories including this info about Michele Pezza that dates back to 1771. There is great controversy as to whether or not this is truly an Italian dish as you can read here NY Times Article by Florence Fabricant .I have been making this dish with shrimp forever and just found this research to be utterly fascinating. I never knew all of this as I actually thought it was of Italian origin all these years. 

  My recipe for this spicy dish comes to you from Cooking Light Magazine - January 2010 .

Assemble your ingredients as this recipe cooks up fast.

Add oil to pan and saute shrimp and garlilc over med - high heat until shrimp are done. Remove from pan, set aside and keep warm.

Add a bit more oil and saute onion until softened. Add garlic, pepper, basil and oregano and cook stirring constantly for a minute to infuse flavors.Stir in tomato paste and lemon juice and cook until slightly darkened. More flavor infusing.

Stir in remaining tomatoes and salt. Cook until thickened.

Return cooked shrimp to sauce and cook until thoroughly heated.

Shrimp Fra Diavolo

Recipe Courtesy of Cooking Light

Ingredients

8 ounces uncooked linguine

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided

1 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic, divided

1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined

3/4 cup diced onion

1 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1/2 teaspoon dried basil

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1 3/4 cups canned crushed tomatoes

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, drained

Preparation

1. Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain; keep warm.

2. While pasta cooks, heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic and shrimp; sauté or 3 minutes or until shrimp are done. Remove from pan; keep warm.

3. Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil and onion to pan; sauté 5 minutes or until softened. Stir in remaining 1 tablespoon garlic, pepper, basil, and oregano; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in tomato paste and lemon juice; cook 1 minute or until slightly darkened. Stir in crushed tomatoes, salt, and diced tomatoes; cook 5 minutes or until thickened. Return shrimp to pan; cook for 2 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Serve over pasta.

I like to serve this with additional lemon wedges and parmesan. This is a very simple, light and very quick supper, about 20 minutes total and you can fire it up or tame it down to your heat preference.Serve with crusty bread and a caesar salad.

Michael and Carla