Lobster Fra Diavolo (Sorta…)
My family is obsessed with a little Italian restaurant in Boston’s North End called, The Daily Catch. Anytime we are downtown, we wait in line to get a small cramped table to devour their famous Lobster Fra Diavolo. Filled with fresh New England lobster, shrimp, calamari and clams - this dish is spicy, briny, and just plain nourishing. It’s a must try. Once you’ve consumed every noodle and seafood morsel, do not forget to sop up the delicious sauce with the Clear Flour Bakery bread. Since we can’t always make it down to the North End for dinner, we started making a “cheater” version at home. This is dish is both easier to make and eat than the original - that’s why I love it.
Ingredients: Feeds 4 People
3x 1.5LBS Soft Shell Lobsters
1 LBS Scallops
1.5 LBS Good Quality Spaghetti or Bucatini
28oz Can of Song E Napoli San Marzano Tomatoes
2 TBS Calabrian Chili Paste
4 Cloves of Garlic, Grated
Basil
Olive Oil
Grated pecorino, to finish
Step 1: Prepping the Lobster
Par steam your lobsters in about 1-2 inches of water for 6 mins. Your lobster will finish cooking in the sauce, so do not worry about fully cooking during this step. Remove from the pot, and immediately place in an ice bath to cool. Once cooled, crack and clean the lobsters, remove all the meat and setting aside. NOTE - Keep the juice from the body of the lobster. This is liquid gold and will be use for the sauce later!
Step 2: Prepping the Scallops
Preheat a cast iron or carbon steel skillet over high heat. Season scallops with kosher salt, and pat dry (this is VERY important to getting a good crust on your scallops). Once hot, add a liberal amount of olive oil and sear scallops on their larger side for 3-4 minutes until deep golden brown crust forms on one side. Remove from heat and seat aside. Similar to the lobster, this will finish cooking in the sauce.
Step 3: Building the sauce
Sauté grated garlic in a tablespoon of olive oil. Once fragrant, all crushed San Marzano tomatoes, salt, and calabrian chili. Bring sauce up to a simmer.
Step 4: Bringing it all together
While sauce is simmering, cook pasta to al dente. Drop lobster and scallops into the sauce to bring up to temperature. Once pasta is ready, transfer over to the pot with the sauce. Toss together liberally, folding in basil.
Top with fresh grated pecorino, high quality Brightlands olive oil and Maldon salt.
