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Ingredients
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Pasta & cooking liquid
Shellfish & seafood
Sauce aromatics & vegetables
Finishing & garnish
Method
Pasta & cooking liquid
- 1
Boil pasta
Bring a large pot of water (about 4–5 liters) to a rolling boil. Add 1.5 tbsp fine sea salt. Add 400 g bucatini and cook until al dente according to package instructions minus 1 minute (usually 8–10 minutes). Reserve about 400 ml of the starchy pasta cooking water just before draining, then drain the pasta and set aside.
Shellfish & seafood
- 2
Prepare prawns
If prawns are whole, peel and devein them, keeping the heads if present. Finely chop half of the prawn bodies (about 150 g) to use for flavoring the sauce; leave the rest whole for finishing. Lightly season the whole prawns with a small pinch of salt and set aside.
- 3
Purge and check cockles
Rinse cockles thoroughly under cold water and discard any with broken shells or that do not close when tapped. If sandy, soak in cold salted water for 20 minutes then rinse again.
Sauce aromatics & vegetables
- 4
Make prawn head stock (optional but recommended)
In a medium saucepan over medium heat, add 1 tbsp olive oil. Add reserved prawn heads and cook, pressing heads with a wooden spoon, until fragrant and slightly orange — about 3–4 minutes. Add 120 ml dry white wine and scrape the pan, simmer 1–2 minutes to reduce slightly, then add 300 ml water and simmer gently 6–8 minutes. Strain through a fine sieve, pressing all juices; discard solids. This yields an intensely flavored shellfish stock. Reserve and keep warm (use in place of some reserved pasta water if desired).
- 5
Start the sauce
Heat 3 tbsp olive oil and 20 g butter in a large wide sauté pan over medium heat. Add 3 crushed garlic cloves and 2 finely chopped shallots and sweat gently until translucent, about 3–4 minutes — do not brown. Add 3 anchovy fillets and stir until they dissolve into the oil.
- 6
Build flavors
Stir in 1 tbsp tomato paste and the finely chopped tomato; cook 2 minutes. Add the chopped prawn meat and cook until it turns opaque, about 1–2 minutes, mashing slightly to release juices. Pour in 120 ml dry white wine and increase heat to bring to a simmer; let it reduce by half (2–3 minutes).
- 7
- 8
Finish sauce
Remove the lid. Add 0.5 tsp red chili flakes if using. Stir in the whole prawns and cook 1–2 minutes until just opaque. Check seasoning and add salt sparingly (cockles can be briny). Add a splash more reserved pasta water or prawn stock if sauce seems too tight; you want a silky, lightly saucy consistency that will cling to the bucatini.
Combine & finish
- 9
Toss pasta with sauce
Add the drained bucatini directly to the pan with the cockles and prawns. Over medium-high heat, toss or gently stir while adding up to the remaining reserved pasta water in 50 ml increments to achieve a glossy emulsion that coats the pasta (usually 100–200 ml). Cook together 1–2 minutes so the bucatini finishes cooking and absorbs sauce.
- 10
Final seasoning and garnish
Remove the pan from heat. Stir in 20 g finely chopped flat-leaf parsley, 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice, 0.5 tsp lemon zest, and 1 tsp olive oil. Adjust salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Let the pasta rest a minute so flavors marry.
- 11