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Overhead shot of plated spaghetti with tomato sauce, cooked fish, pepper, and parsley.

Spaghetti with Fish Sauce Recipe

Make pasta night special with a bowl of Spaghetti with Fish Sauce. Each forkful combines savoury sauce and tender fish for a light and satisfying meal at home.

Course: Main, Pasta
Cuisine: Italian
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
Servings: 4 persons
Author: Manuela Zangara

Ingredients

  • 2 small red gurnards – cleaned, I used one for 2 people
  • 1 small onion – thinly chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic – chopped
  • 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 6 to 8 tbsp diced tinned tomatoes
  • ½ glass white wine
  • salt
  • pepper
  • parsley – chopped

Instructions

  1. Put the chopped onion and garlic in a pot with the extra virgin olive oil and sauté for a few minutes over very low heat.
  2. When they are soft and transparent, add the diced tomatoes and let them cook for 3 minutes.
  3. Rinse the cleaned fish and add it to the sauce over the heat.
  4. Pour the white wine on top and increase the heat to burn off the alcohol.
  5. Add salt and a couple of tablespoons of water, then cook over very low heat until the fish almost comes apart. Turn the fish occasionally and add a little more water if needed. The sauce should stay slightly runny.
  6. When ready, remove the fish from the sauce and keep it aside. Do not add the cooked and cleaned red gurnard back into the sauce, or it will absorb too much and leave you without enough for your pasta. Add it only at the end as a topping or serve it separately.

  7. In the meantime, cook the spaghetti following the instructions on How to Cook Pasta al Dente. Drain it and serve with the fish sauce.

  8. Finish with freshly ground pepper, chopped parsley, and a few pieces of cleaned red gurnard if you like.