Fiorelli Pasta With Pesto Prawns And Chilli

Introduction
This is an attractive pesto-pasta dish if ever we've seen one. The vibrant tiger prawns and fresh chillies contrast superbly with the herby pesto, and the unique fiorelli pasta shape gives the sauce plenty of places to hide.

Pro tip
If you've ever eaten a prawn and it had a rather unpleasant, gritty texture, that's because the black vein that runs down the length of the prawn hadn't been removed. You can cut down the back of the prawn with a sharp knife and remove the vein that way. However, we prefer to use some chef's tweezers and pull the vein out from where you've removed the head, thereby leaving the prawn completely intact.

Ingredients for two

Method
Bring a pan of lightly salted water to a boil and add the pasta, stirring for the first minute or two to prevent the shapes from sticking to each other.

While the pasta is cooking, pan-fry the prawns and slice the chillies, removing the placenta (yep, that's the correct name for the white fleshy part) if you want less heat.

When the pasta is cooked perfectly al dente, reserve a tablespoon of the water and drain in a sieve or colander. Return the pasta to the pan and, off the heat, stir through the pesto, water, prawns, and chillies.

Serve immediately with a simple garnish of pecorino, parsley, and a squeeze of lemon juice.