Calamarata is a pasta shape from southern Italy that looks like rings of calamari, and it is most often served with a seafood sauce. This fish ragù is very simple and can be prepared while the pasta cooks (provided that you already prepared the fish stock). It is quick, tasty, and simple dish that takes 20 minutes to prepare. In this case I used red mullet, but you can use virtually any fish for this. To keep the fish juicy and flavorful, cook it for only a minute in the tomato sauce. For additional flavor, add fish stock. Here’s what I did…

Ingredients

For 2 servings

150 grams (1/3 lb) calamarata (or other short pasta)

300 grams (2/3 lb) red mullet fillets

120 ml (1/2 cup) fish stock

120 ml (1/2 cup) passata (sieved tomatoes or tomato puree)

80 ml (1/3 cup) dry white wine

1/2 onion, minced

1 small carrot, minced

1 celery stalk, minced

2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 Tbsp minced fresh flat leaf parsley

salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preparation

Season the fish with salt to enhance the flavor.

Since this is supposed to be a quick meal, use the food processor to mince the holy trinity of onion, carrot, and celery.

Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add salt and the pasta and set the time according to package instructions for al dente.

Meanwhile, sauté the onion, celery, and carrot in the olive oil over medium heat for about 5 minutes.

Add the white wine and stir over medium high heat until it has been reduced by half.

Then, add the fish stock…

…and the passata (tomato puree).

Stir and cook over medium heat until the sauce has thickened.

Cut the fish into bite size pieces and add it to the sauce about a minute before the pasta will be done.

When the timer goes off, drain the pasta and add it to the sauce.

Add most of the parsley…

…and toss to mix.

Serve at once on preheated plates, sprinkled with the remaining parsley.

Wine pairing

This works well with a full bodied Italian white, such as a Greco di Tufo.

Flashback

Turnip risotto is not a traditional Italian dish that I know of, but just a demonstration that you can make a great tasting risotto from just about anything using the basic recipe for risotto, fresh ingredients and a good homemade stock.