Rosemary Shrimp with Spaghetti

Christmas 2021. The journal is seventy recipes deep. I wrote three more during the cottage visit: Mama's oyster dressing, her pecan pie, and the mystery seasoning for her fried shrimp po'boy, which turned out to be (I am not making this up) a combination of Zatarain's and a pinch of sugar. SUGAR. She puts SUGAR in the shrimp batter. I have been eating sugared shrimp for thirty-eight years and never knew. "It balances the cayenne," she said, as if this was obvious, as if everyone knows that the secret to the world's best fried shrimp is a pinch of sugar, as if I haven't been trying to crack this code for two decades while the answer was a packet of Domino's away.

Christmas morning: Luc got car keys. Not real car keys — the promise of car keys, a wrapped envelope with a note: "Driver's ed starts in January. Don't hit anything. Love, Mom and Dad." He grinned. Actually grinned. Sixteen-year-old Luc, who communicates primarily through nods and grunts, GRINNED. I'm getting him behind the wheel of the truck. Danielle is getting him behind the wheel of her car, because her car has fewer horsepower and better insurance rates and Danielle thinks in terms of actuarial risk.

Colette: a set of oil paints. The upgrade from watercolors. She opened them and said, "Papa, I'm going to paint the cottage in oils." She says it like a vow. Like a promise. Like: the cottage will exist forever if I paint it enough times. Maybe it will. Maybe that's exactly how preservation works.

Rémy: a chef's knife. A real one. Small, sharp, quality steel. He held it with both hands and his face was Christmas morning and birthday morning and first-roux morning all combined. "Now I can chop the trinity," he said. Yes, cher. Now you can chop the trinity. God help us all.

With Rémy still holding that little chef’s knife in both hands like a sacrament, and Mama’s sugar-and-Zatarain’s revelation still ringing in my ears, dinner that evening had to be shrimp — there was no other honest answer. I let him peel, I let him mince the garlic (slowly, carefully, the way you do when the knife is new and the fingers are small), and we made this rosemary shrimp together over a pot of spaghetti while Colette sketched the kitchen from the corner and Luc pretended not to care but ate two bowls. It’s the kind of recipe that meets a family exactly where they are: simple enough for a new cook, good enough to deserve the good knife.

Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 20 min | Total Time: 35 min | Servings: 4

Ingredients

12 oz spaghetti
1 1/2 lbs large shrimp, peeled and deveined
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons fresh rosemary, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup low-sodium chicken or seafood broth
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
Salt and black pepper to taste
Lemon wedges, for serving

Instructions

Cook the pasta. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook spaghetti according to package directions until al dente. Reserve 1/2 cup pasta water, then drain and set aside.
Season the shrimp. Pat shrimp dry with paper towels and season lightly with salt, black pepper, and half the rosemary. Set aside.
Sear the shrimp. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add shrimp in a single layer and cook 1 to 2 minutes per side until pink and just cooked through. Transfer to a plate.
Build the sauce. Reduce heat to medium. Add remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil to the skillet. Add garlic, remaining rosemary, and red pepper flakes. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute until fragrant.
Deglaze. Pour in white wine and scrape up any browned bits from the pan. Cook 2 minutes until slightly reduced. Add broth and simmer 3 minutes more.
Finish the sauce. Stir in butter and lemon juice. Taste and adjust seasoning. If the sauce is too thick, add a splash of reserved pasta water.
Combine. Add drained spaghetti to the skillet and toss to coat. Return the shrimp to the pan and toss gently. Cook 1 minute until everything is heated through.
Serve. Divide among bowls. Top with fresh parsley and serve immediately with lemon wedges on the side.

Nutrition (per serving)

Rosemary Shrimp with Spaghetti — The Night R├⌐my Used His New Knife