I first had pasta alla vodka in restaurants back in the 1980’s, when it was probably at its height of popularity. It is not often that I see it on the menu of any restaurant today.
A couple of years ago on a trip to the beach, I was excited to order seafood penne alla vodka at a locally-owned, established restaurant. My daughter tried it and really liked it, but insisted on eating what she ordered instead of it. Since that trip, she asked me to try and make that dish. It took me a few months, but I finally found a great sale price on scallops and shrimp and made my version of the pasta dish.
At my daughter’s request, I used one of her favorite kinds of pasta, orecchiette, instead of penne. I thought it worked well in this dish.
I really like that I could make the sauce in the same pan as I sauteed the seafood and completed the dish. I really dislike washing dishes.
My daughter liked this dish so much that as I am writing this she is asking me to make it again. Although I don’t have any seafood, the vodka sauce is so easy and delicious that I will probably make plain pasta alla vodka for dinner this week.
Seafood Pasta Alla Vodka
Ingredients
- 1 lb. sea scallops, rinsed, cleaned, and dried on towels
- 1 lb. raw shrimp, peeled and cleaned
- 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
- 2 Tbsp. olive oil
- 1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes, to taste
- 2 cloves minced garlic, to taste
- 1/4 c. sweet or yellow onion, diced
- 2 Tbsp. tomato paste
- 28 oz. canned whole Roma/San Marzano tomatoes
- 1 tsp.+ kosher salt, to taste
- 1/4 c. vodka
- 1 Tbsp. +/- brown sugar (optional, if needed)
- 1/2 c. parmesan cheese, grated
- 3/4 c. cream
- 1 lb. cooked pasta
Instructions
- Heat 1 Tbsp. butter and 1 Tbsp. olive oil in a large skillet on medium-high heat.
- Place scallops in the hot skillet at least an inch or two apart and sear until golden brown.
- Turn over and cook until the bottom is opaque with the center section still translucent.
- Remove from the skillet in or on a dish and repeat with remaining scallops.
- Once scallops are cooked, add shrimp and cook until they start to become opaque, but are they still retain some translucency.
- Remove shrimp and place with scallops.
- Add the other Tbsps. of butter and olive oil.
- Once butter is melted, stir in red pepper flakes, onion, then minced garlic.
- When the onion is soft, stir in tomato paste and cook for a couple of minutes.
- Add tomatoes and mash with a spoon and/or potato masher.
- Cook for a few minutes, remove from heat and then stir in salt and vodka.
- Continue to cook, stirring occasionally.
- Stir in parmesan cheese.
- Taste and add brown sugar if needed.
- Stir in cream.
- Cook pasta according to package directions to al dente or just short of al dente.
- Remove pasta from water and add to the sauce.
- You can add some additional pasta water if needed.
- Add the scallops and shrimp to the pasta.
- Cook for a few additional minutes.
- Top with more parmesan cheese to serve, if desired.
Notes
NOT ALL CANNED TOMATOES ARE CREATED EQUALLY. EVEN IF YOU USE THE SAME BRAND, ONE CAN IS SOMETIMES VERY DIFFERENT IN SWEETNESS, ACID, ETC. THAN ANOTHER. AS A BALANCE OF THE ACIDITY OF TOMATOES AND THE SWEETNESS OF CREAM IS IMPORTANT FOR THIS DISH, YOU SHOULD ADJUST THIS RECIPE AS NEEDED.
