Frutti di Mare Recipe - Seafood Spaghetti (2024)

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The ultimate spaghetti Frutti di Mare recipe, made with baby clams, mussels, squid and shrimp in a thick red homemade Arrabiata sauce. Fra Diavolo style seafood spaghetti, better than your favorite Italian restaurant.

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Frutti di Mare

A very popular Italian pasta dish meaning “fruit of the sea” made with the freshest seafood you can get your hands on and a thick homemade arrabiata sauce. Perfection!

This fancy looking dinner is one of the most impressive meals usually served during the Feast of Seven Fishes, but it’s also so easy to make that you can have it on the table in 30 minutes on a Tuesday. I swear on my saffron!

I chose wild shrimp, baby manilla clams, mussels and squid tentacles, but you can pretty much make it with whatever shellfish you like.

You can use all clams or just shrimp, add lobster tails even; whatever rocks your tastebuds and looks fresh at the market that day. Baby sea scallops would also make a pretty fabulous addition to the mix.

The real secret here is to not overcook the seafood! Because nobody likes rubbery shrimp or squid or scallops, right?! So keep a close eye on it at all times, this is not the time to watch a movie.

After you make this dish a couple of times it will come naturally to you and you’ll be ready to bring it to that Italian Christmas Eve Feast of the Fishes like a real boss!

How to Make Frutti di Mare Seafood Spaghetti

  1. Quickly saute some garlic and red pepper flakes in some olive oil, about 20 seconds.
  2. Add clams and mussels then hit it with a good slash of dry white wine. Out of this world!
  3. Stir in your shrimp and squid tentacles, then add some good homemade arrabiata sauce. Don’t be stingy!
  4. Toss some spaghetti or linguine with the seafood and the sauce and dive in!

Favorite Italian Recipes

  • Capellini Pomodoro
  • Bruschetta Pasta Salad
  • Aglio e Olio
  • Pasta Puttanesca
  • Focaccia Bread
  • Shrimp Pomodoro.

Frutti di Mare Recipe - Seafood Spaghetti (6)

4.89 from 9 votes

Frutti di Mare Recipe

The ultimate spaghetti Frutti di Marerecipe, made with baby clams, mussels, squid and shrimp in a thick red Arrabiatasauce. Fra Diavolo style seafood spaghetti,better than your favorite Italian restaurant.

Print Recipe

Prep Time:10 minutes mins

Cook Time:20 minutes mins

Total Time:30 minutes mins

Ingredients

  • 1 lb clams & mussels (mixed) cleaned well
  • 1 lb wild shrimp peeled
  • 1/2 lb squid tentacles
  • 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 4 cloves garlic grated
  • 1 tsp red pepper flakes + more to taste
  • 1/2 cup white wine
  • 1 lemon for serving
  • 1/3 cup fresh basil leaves or chopped Italian parsley
  • 3/4 lb spaghetti
  • 1 batch arrabiata tomato sauce (made in advance)
  • sea salt to taste

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the spaghetti according to the package directions until Al Dente. Drain and reserve 1 cup of the salty pasta water.

    3/4 lb spaghetti

  • Meanwhile heat up your largest skillet on medium low flame. Add a lug of olive oil, the garlic and red pepper flakes. Stir quickly making sure not to burn the garlic. Add in the clams and mussels and toss them around.

    1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, 4 cloves garlic grated, 1 tsp red pepper flakes + more to taste, 1 lb clams & mussels (mixed)

  • Pour in the white wine and cover with a lid. Cook for about a minute or so until the clams start to open.

    1/2 cup white wine

  • Add the shrimp to the skillet with clams and give it a stir. Cover and cook for another minute or so.

    1 lb wild shrimp

  • Once all the clams and mussels have opened and the shrimp is almost cooked, add the squid tentacles. Cook another 30 seconds or so until they curl up.

    1/2 lb squid tentacles

  • Taste for seasonings and add more sea salt if needed. ( Remember that shellfish will spit out a lot of sea water during cooking, so wait till the end to season)

  • Meanwhile warm up the sauce in a saucepan. Pour the sauce over the seafood and toss to coat well.

    1 batch arrabiata tomato sauce

  • Add the cooked spaghetti pasta to the skillet with the seafood and toss to coat in the sauce. Add a little bit of the reserved pasta water if needed to stretch out the sauce.

    3/4 lb spaghetti

  • Transfer your seafood spaghetti to a serving platter, drizzle with a lug of olive oil and sprinkle with the basil and parsley.

    1/3 cup fresh basil leaves or chopped Italian parsley

  • Serve with lemon wedges on the side.

    1 lemon

Notes

  • The Seafood - You can use all clams or just shrimp, add lobster tails even, whatever rocks your boat and looks fresh at the market that day. Baby seas scallops would make a fabulous addition to the mix.
  • Recipe Tip - The real secret here is to not overcook the seafood! Because nobody likes rubbery shrimp or squid or scallops, right?! Keep an eye on it all times, it cooks fast.

Nutrition

Calories: 646kcal | Carbohydrates: 68g | Protein: 46g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 423mg | Sodium: 1025mg | Potassium: 463mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 325IU | Vitamin C: 8.6mg | Calcium: 219mg | Iron: 4.5mg

Course: Main

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: frutti di mare, seafood, spaghetti

Servings: 4 people

Calories: 646kcal

Author: CiaoFlorentina.com

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Frutti di Mare Recipe - Seafood Spaghetti (2024)

FAQs

What are frutti di mare made of? ›

Frutti Di Mare literally translates to “fruit of the sea” (referring to seafood) It's a popular Italian pasta dish made with spaghetti, arrabiata sauce and filled with a variety of seafood such as (but not limited to) mussels, clams, shrimp, scallops, squid, and/or octopus.

What is the fruit of the sea in Italian? ›

The Italian term frutti di mare means “fruit of the sea,” and refers to seafood.

What wine goes with pasta frutti di mare? ›

Almost any unoaked Italian dry white will do, such as Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi or Gavi di Gavi.

What does tutto mare mean? ›

Spaghetti tutto Mare. Mare is sea in Italian, so tutto mare, means "all sea". And so is this sauce with various seafood.

Are frutti di mare healthy? ›

100 g of frutti di mare (lieblings 250g) contains 76 Calories. The macronutrient breakdown is 3% carbs, 23% fat, and 74% protein. This is a good source of protein (25% of your Daily Value).

Do Italians eat seafood with pasta? ›

In Italy, you can expect shrimp to be served unpeeled, which is a messier experience than most Americans are accustomed to. It is most often grilled or fried and can be served in conjunction with other forms of shellfish in risotto and pasta dishes.

What does tutti mean in Italy? ›

Tutti is an Italian word literally meaning all or together and is used as a musical term, for the whole orchestra as opposed to the soloist. It is applied similarly to choral music, where the whole section or choir is called to sing.

What seafood do Italians eat? ›

Along the Italian seaside, it will always include crustaceans and mollusks, typically shrimp and squid, and often paranza, which is a collective name for very small whole fish such as fresh anchovies, sardines, baby mackerel, or mullet.

What does banana mean in Italy? ›

Banana is translated in Italian by...

La banana (f)

What is the best white wine to cook with seafood? ›

Best White Wine For Cooking Seafood

Unlike the other dishes we've gone through, seafood dishes generally call for a wine with lower acidity and a higher citrus flavor. This means the best white wines are pinot grigio and muscadet.

What is a good white wine with seafood pasta? ›

Seafood Pasta

A great wine pairing to go with our Linguine Scampi and Vongole Fra Diavolo for example would be a crisp, dry white wine. You don't want to take away from the fresh, delicious seafood flavor so, a Pinot Grigio would be the perfect complement. Other pairing options could be Rosé or Chardonnay.

What is the best red wine for spaghetti sauce? ›

The best red wines to use when cooking pasta sauce are Cabernets, Chianti, Merlot and Pinot Noir. Chianti is an Italian origin wine, created using Sangiovese grapes. It's affordable, and ranges in a wide variety of flavor notes like mushroom, tobacco, and cherry.

Which Italian phrase means first lady? ›

In 19th-century Italy, the leading woman in an opera or commedia dell'arte company was known as the prima donna, literally the "first lady".

What does andiamo al mare mean? ›

We are going to the sea.

What is Tutti Frutti flavor made of? ›

Fruits used for tutti frutti ice cream include cherries, watermelon, raisins, and pineapple, often augmented with nuts. In the Netherlands, tutti-frutti (also "tutti frutti", "tuttifrutti") is a compote of dried fruits, served as a dessert or a side dish to a meat course.

Where is pizza frutti di mare from? ›

One of the most popular seafood pizzas invented in Italy is Frutti di Mare. Its toppings commonly serve scampi, mussels, or squid on top of a tomato sauce with no cheese.

What are the ingredients in Tutti Frutti sweets? ›

Tutti Frutti
  • Description. Ingredients: Sugar, glucose syrup, acidifier (citric acid), natural flavourings, natural colours: curcumin (E100), carmine (E120)
  • Delivery. £4.85 Royal Mail 2nd Class Signed.
  • Wholesale Delivery. All orders below £200.00 will have a carriage charge of £16.43 + VAT applied.

Where did frutti di mare originate? ›

The word “frutti di mare” refers to the fruits of the sea, that is, to shellfish and its different types. This Italian dish is very typical to find in the towns near the coast of Italy and especially in maritime cities such as Sicily and Venice.

References

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