Seafood Pasta Aglio e Olio (Print View)

Italian seafood pasta combining shrimp, clams, garlic oil, chili flakes, and fresh parsley tossed with spaghetti.

# What You’ll Need:

→ Seafood

01 - 9 oz large shrimp, peeled and deveined
02 - 1 lb fresh clams, scrubbed and rinsed

→ Pasta

03 - 14 oz spaghetti

→ Aromatics and Flavorings

04 - 6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
05 - 5 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
06 - ½ to 1 tsp red chili flakes, to taste
07 - ½ cup dry white wine
08 - 1 lemon, zested and juiced
09 - ¼ cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
10 - Salt, to taste
11 - Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

→ Garnish (optional)

12 - Additional chopped parsley
13 - Lemon wedges

# Directions:

01 - Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook spaghetti according to package directions until al dente. Reserve ½ cup pasta water and drain pasta.
02 - Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add sliced garlic and red chili flakes; sauté until garlic turns golden and releases fragrance, about 1 minute, taking care not to burn.
03 - Add shrimp to skillet and cook for 2 minutes until just pink. Remove shrimp and set aside.
04 - Add clams and white wine to skillet. Cover and cook for 3 to 5 minutes, shaking pan occasionally, until clams open. Discard any unopened clams.
05 - Return shrimp to skillet. Add drained spaghetti, lemon zest, lemon juice, and most parsley. Toss thoroughly, adding reserved pasta water as needed to achieve a silky sauce consistency.
06 - Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Serve immediately, garnished with additional parsley and lemon wedges if desired.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • It tastes like you spent hours cooking when you actually spent less than half an hour in the kitchen.
  • The combination of sweet shrimp and briny clams creates a seafood depth that feels restaurant-quality but comes together at home with ease.
  • There's something deeply satisfying about tossing everything together in one pan and watching it transform into something elegant.
02 -
  • Don't let garlic burn—it happens in seconds and will ruin the entire oil base, so watch it like you're timing something precious.
  • Reserve that pasta water before draining; those starchy splashes are what transforms a dry pan into a silky sauce that clings to everything.
  • Any clams that don't open after cooking should be discarded without guilt—closed clams weren't going to taste good anyway.
03 -
  • Slice garlic thin by hand rather than mincing it; thin slices toast more gently and evenly than scattered minced pieces.
  • Buy your seafood from someone who knows their stock—talk to the fishmonger about when things came in, and you'll get better results and better advice.
  • Use that pasta water like liquid gold; it's what transforms everything from separate components into one cohesive, elegant dish.
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