Seafood Marinara Pasta Dish (Printable)

Italian dish combining fresh seafood simmered in tomato sauce with al dente pasta and fresh herbs.

# What You'll Need:

→ Seafood

01 - 7 oz large shrimp, peeled and deveined
02 - 7 oz mussels, cleaned and debearded
03 - 5 oz squid rings
04 - 5 oz sea scallops

→ Pasta

05 - 12 oz spaghetti or linguine

→ Marinara Sauce

06 - 2 tbsp olive oil
07 - 1 small onion, finely chopped
08 - 3 garlic cloves, minced
09 - 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
10 - 28 oz canned crushed tomatoes
11 - 2 tbsp tomato paste
12 - 1/3 cup + 1 tbsp dry white wine
13 - 1 tsp dried oregano
14 - 1 tsp dried basil
15 - 1/2 tsp sugar
16 - Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

→ Garnish

17 - 2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
18 - Lemon wedges, to serve

# How to Make It:

01 - Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta until al dente according to package directions. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup of pasta water.
02 - Heat olive oil in a large deep skillet over medium heat. Add chopped onion and cook for 2 to 3 minutes until translucent. Stir in minced garlic and red pepper flakes; cook for an additional minute.
03 - Pour in dry white wine and simmer for 2 minutes to reduce slightly.
04 - Add crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, dried oregano, dried basil, sugar, sea salt, and black pepper. Stir well and simmer uncovered for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
05 - Add squid rings and sea scallops to the sauce; simmer for 2 minutes. Then add shrimp and mussels, cover, and cook for 3 to 4 minutes until shrimp turn pink and mussels open; discard any unopened mussels.
06 - Add drained pasta to the skillet and gently toss to combine. Use reserved pasta water to loosen the sauce if necessary.
07 - Adjust seasoning to taste and serve immediately, garnished with fresh parsley and lemon wedges.

# Expert Tips:

01 -
  • Four different seafoods cook perfectly in under five minutes, making this feel fancy but genuinely quick.
  • The sauce is pure comfort—rich tomato with garlic and white wine that somehow tastes like you've been simmering it all afternoon.
  • It's naturally gluten-free if you swap the pasta, and it impresses everyone without requiring restaurant-level skill.
02 -
  • Mussels are finicky about doneness—if they don't open, they're not safe to eat, so don't try to pry them open or convince yourself they're fine.
  • The whole dish lives or dies by the timing; everything cooks fast once the seafood goes in, so have everything prepped and ready before you start adding things to the pan.
  • Overcooking seafood by even a minute or two will leave you with rubber shrimp and tough squid, so trust your instincts about when things look done rather than watching the clock.
03 -
  • Buy seafood from a fishmonger who can tell you exactly when it arrived, not the grocery store, and use it the same day or the next day at the latest.
  • If you're nervous about timing everything, prep all your ingredients before you turn on the stove—this dish moves fast once it starts, and you don't want to be chopping garlic while your mussels are cooking.
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