After a break from cooking last year, this was the first dish I made and I found it so simple but tasty. I’d never had another use for my Chinese rice wine which just sits in the cupboard from my sushi making but makes the sauce beautifully creamy. It’s a luxury, meat-free Monday meal in a hurry!
Ingredients (serves 2):
- 1/2 tsp dried chilli flakes
- 171g raw peeled king prawns
- 190g linguine
- 50g cream cheese
- 16g tomato puree
- 2 garlic cloves
- 30ml Chinese rice wine
- 1 red pepper
- 45g red pesto
- Olive oil
- Salt & pepper
Method:
- Add the linguine to a pot of boiled water with a large pinch of salt and bring to the boil over a high heat. Cook the linguine for 8-10 min or until al dente. Once done, drain the linguine, reserving a cup of starchy pasta water.
- While the linguine is cooking, chop the red pepper into thin strips.
- Heat a large, wide-based pan (preferably non-stick) with a drizzle of olive oil over a medium-low heat. Once hot, add the pepper strips and cook for 5-7 min or until softened.
- While the pepper is cooking, peel and finely slice the garlic.
- Drain the king prawns. Once the pepper has softened, add the sliced garlic and king prawns to the pan and cook for 1-2 min.
- Add the tomato puree and Chinese rice wine to the pan and cook for 1 min.
- Add the cream cheese, pesto, chilli flakes (can’t handle the heat? Go easy!) and 75ml starchy pasta water to the pan and cook for 2 min or until a thick sauce remains – this is your pink pesto. Season with a generous pinch of salt and pepper
- Add the drained linguine to the pan and give everything a mix up then serve and enjoy!
the real gail's kitchen 