Bucatini Seafood Pasta (Shrimp, Scallops, & More)

Bucatini Seafood Pasta features succulent shellfish and bucatini pasta immersed in a brothy tomato sauce. The sauce and shellfish combine to create an irresistible mouthwatering flavor medley.

This rich and briny pasta dish is easy to make and perfect for any occasion. You can make it for a weeknight dinner, entertaining friends, or as we often enjoy it, for Italian Christmas. The entire dish only takes 35 minutes to make from start to finish — giving you plenty of time to set up for a dinner party.

Jump to:

• Which Type of Pasta Should I Use?
• Key Ingredients
• How to Make Seafood Pasta
• Substitutions
• Variations
• Storage
• Pro Tips
• Related Recipes
• Did You Like this Recipe?
• 📖 Recipe

Which Type of Pasta Should I Use?

For tomato based sauces, we recommend a long pasta because the sauce will coat each strand evenly. Bucatini is the perfect shape for this seafood pasta. This textured pasta with a hollow center catches the flavorful seafood broth, making each bite wonderfully savory and saucy.

Key Ingredients

• San Marzano tomatoes - San marzano tomatoes are sweet and mildly acidic. They make a great sauce base.
• Extra virgin olive oil - Olive oil is a flavorful base for cooking the ingredients.
• Minced garlic cloves - Garlic cloves are an aromatic that adds a pungent flavor to the pasta sauce.
• Red Chili flakes - Red chili flakes add a hint of heat to the sauce.
• Dry white wine - White wine adds a light fruitiness to the pasta.
• Shrimp - Provide a crunch to the pasta. Purchase shrimp with tails, shelled and deveined. 
• Scallops - Scallops have a mild and sweet taste.
• Crab Claws and Legs - Crab claws and legs are another delicious salty and lightly sweet shellfish.
• Mussels - Mussels are a briny shellfish that blend well with the other shellfish and sauce.
• Italian parsley - Chopped fresh parsley adds an earthy and peppery flavor to the sauce.

How to Make Seafood Pasta

• Sauté the garlic cloves and simmer white wine - In a deep sauté pan or braising pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Then sauté the garlic cloves in the olive for 3 minutes to release the garlic aroma. Add the white wine and simmer for 1-2 minutes.
• Cook remaining ingredients - Stir in the chili flakes and tomatoes, and allow to simmer for 2 minutes. Then add the shrimp, scallops, mussels and crab. Sprinkle parsley and a pinch of sea salt on top and allow to cool on low for 20 minutes.
• Cook the pasta - While the sauce is cooking, bring 4-6 quarts of salted water to a boil. Once the water reaches a rolling boil, add the bucatini and cook for 7 minutes or until al dente. Then drain the pasta water, but reserve 1 cup of pasta water. If sauce looks dry, stir in the reserved pasta water ¼ cup at a time.
• Add pasta to seafood sauce - Using a pasta fork or tongs, carefully add pasta to the pan, coating the noodles in the seafood pasta sauce. Then plate the pasta in shallow bowls and evenly distribute the seafood on top of each bowl. Enjoy immediately.

Substitutions

• Tonnarelli - Substitute this type of pasta for bucatini if you prefer a thicker pasta. Tonnarelli, also known as spaghetti alla chitarra, is great because it has a rough and textured surface that holds onto sauces well.
• Homemade Pasta - Use homemade pasta from scratch instead of store bought spaghetti.
• Gluten free - Use a gluten-free pasta if you are gluten intolerant. We recommend Garofalo Gluten-Free pasta, which tastes like traditional wheat-based pasta.

Variations

• Extra Spicy - add freshly ground black pepper or more chili pepper flakes while cooking to imbue more heat into the dish.
• Onion - Add onion to the pasta for extra aromatic flavor. 
• Lemon - Add a squeeze of lemon juice to brighten the pasta.
• Fresh Basil Leaves - Fresh torn basil adds a pungent freshness to the pasta.
• Squid - Add squid if you want to add its light seafood flavor and chewy texture.

Storage

Refrigerate leftover Italian seafood pasta for up to 3 days in an air-tight container. To reheat, simply place the desired amount of leftover pasta and sauce in a braiser or dutch oven. Reheat the leftovers on low heat and occasionally stir until the sauce is hot.

Pro Tips

• Don't top the seafood pasta with shredded parmesan cheese because it will overpower the delicate flavors of the dish.
• Use fresh seafood or seafood that has been flash frozen to ensure the dish has the best flavors.

Related Recipes

Did You Like this Recipe?

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