Serves 4 generously or 6 smaller portions
We’ve had the idea for this seafood pasta in our minds for some time, and we decided now was a perfect time. If you are a pasta and seafood lover, this recipe is for you! In this dish, we have whole New England lobsters, wild-caught sea scallops, Little Neck clams, calamari (tubes and tentacles), shrimp, and chopped clams in an aglio e olio sauce over fresh gluten-free Linguine.
Equipment
Frying pan
Large sauté simmer pan
Large pot
Chef’s knife
Cutting board
Lobster cracker and pick
Seafood scissors (optional)
Rolling pin
Ingredients
Lobster meat (claws, knuckles, tails, and legs) from two good-sized chickens, steamed (lobsters that are 1 1/4 to 1 3/4 lbs are called chickens). Shred the tail and knuckle meat by hand.
Note: You can crack and pick apart your cooked lobsters the evening before you intend to use the meat. Store it in a storage container in the refrigerator. Take it out of the fridge about 30 minutes before using to allow it to come to room temperature. If you have access to fresh, shelled, never-frozen lobster from your local fish market, you could also use that. We wouldn’t recommend using frozen lobster because we find that the process of freezing lobster degrades both its flavor and texture.
1/4 cup of olive oil
1 to 3 garlic cloves (depending on your preference), minced or processed through a garlic press
Pinch of red pepper flakes (optional)
12 to 15 Sea Scallops, halved horizontally. (After cutting in half, your scallops should look like coins)
12 large shrimp (e.g. 21/30), uncooked, deveined, and shelled
Calamari – 2 tubes sliced into rings, plus a handful of tentacles
2 cans of chopped clams
10 Little Neck clams
Gluten-free linguine (We love this fresh pasta from Taste Republic. We also love this linguine and this spaghetti from Rummo if using dry pasta.)
To Serve
Fresh parsley
Method
- Prepare all your seafood.
Shell your lobsters using your preferred combination of tools from the above list. You can use your rolling pin to push out any lobster meat from the lobster legs. Begin at the bottom, rolling the pin up the leg toward where you disconnected it from the body, and the contained meat should be pushed out. - Get your pasta pot filled with water and review your pasta cooking instructions to determine when you should bring your water to a boil, and then drop your pasta to time its finish with the rest of the dish.
If using our favorite fresh linguine pasta from Taste Republic, the cooking time is just three minutes. If using our favorite dry pasta from Rummo, the cooking time is about nine to ten minutes. - Add your olive oil, garlic, and red pepper flakes (if using) to the sauté simmer pan. Turn the heat on low.
- Meanwhile, heat up your frying pan on medium-high. Test that the pan is ready by adding a drop of water to it. When the water sizzles and evaporates, the pan is ready. Add your scallops to the pan, searing for about a minute or two (you’re looking for your scallops to show that they are cooked about halfway through vertically). Flip your scallops and cook for another 30 seconds to one minute more. Remove from heat, set aside. (Remember, we’ll add these back to the pan later on, so we don’t want to overcook them.)
- When the garlic in the sauté simmer pan becomes translucent and aromatic, add your canned clams, juice included, and turn up your heat to medium.
- Add your shrimp, calamari, scallops, and Little Neck clams. Sauté and cover to steam your clams. (When the Little Necks open, they are done. About 5 minutes.)
- When the seafood is nearly done, add to the pan your lobster meat and heat until warmed through.
- Plate your pasta, top with your seafood aglio e olio sauce, and finish with fresh parsley.
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Related: What is Gluten? What is Gluten Free?
