Bold, briny, and unapologetically coastal. Rigatoni isn’t traditional (spaghetti usually is), but those ridges catch the sauce like a champ, so I’m fully on board.
Rigatoni ai Frutti di Mare
Seafood mix (flexible)
Use what’s fresh — the holy rule.
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½ lb mussels, scrubbed
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½ lb clams, scrubbed
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½ lb shrimp, peeled & deveined
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½ lb calamari, sliced into rings
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Optional flex: scallops, langoustines
Other ingredients
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1 lb rigatoni
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4 tbsp good olive oil
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4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
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½ tsp chili flakes (or to taste)
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½ cup dry white wine
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1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved or crushed tomatoes (light hand!)
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Salt (careful — seafood brings its own)
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Fresh parsley, chopped
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Lemon zest (optional but lovely)
❌ No cheese. Ever. 🇮🇹
How to make it
1) Cook the pasta
Boil rigatoni in well-salted water until very al dente. Reserve 1 cup pasta water.
2) Start the sauce
In a wide pan, heat olive oil over medium.
Add garlic and chili flakes — let it gently sizzle, not brown.
3) Shellfish first
Add mussels and clams.
Pour in white wine, cover, and steam 3–4 minutes until they open.
Remove shellfish, discard unopened ones, and strain the cooking liquid (important).
4) Build the sauce
Add tomatoes and the strained shellfish liquid to the pan.
Simmer 5 minutes — you want it savory, not soupy.
5) Quick-cooking seafood
Add calamari, cook 1–2 minutes.
Add shrimp (and scallops if using), cook just until opaque.
6) Pasta time
Add rigatoni and a splash of pasta water.
Toss hard for 1–2 minutes until glossy and emulsified.
7) Finish
Return mussels and clams to the pan.
Add parsley, lemon zest, drizzle of olive oil.
Taste — then salt if needed.
Italian-level tips
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Overcooked seafood = instant sadness. Pull early.
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If it smells like the ocean (in a good way), you nailed it.
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Serve immediately — this dish does not wait.
If you want, I can:
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Make it bianco (no tomato at all)
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Turn it into a Christmas Eve Feast of the Seven Fishes centerpiece
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Or do a restaurant-style plating flex 😌