Ligurian cooks grate courgette into ribbons that melt into the pan sauce, thickening it without a drop of cream added.
Prawn and Courgette Spaghetti
Dive into a delightful bowl of Prawn and Courgette Spaghetti, where succulent prawns meet tender courgettes in a zesty garlic and chili sauce. Tossed with a splash of fresh lemon juice, this vibrant dish comes together in a flash, making it the perfect weeknight treat. Get ready to savor every delicious bite!
Prep
15
min
Cook
20
min
Serves
6
people
Level
beginner
The Story
This dish owes less to Rome and more to 1950s Positano, where Amalfi Coast fishermen started tossing their Mediterranean prawn hauls with whatever courgettes grew on the cliffside terraces, essentially inventing a seafood pasta that could feed a boatload of hungry men without needing a proper fish market—proof that Italians accidentally created fusion cuisine just by being too lazy to go shopping twice.
Regional Twist
Down in Puglia's Gallipoli fishing villages, cooks ditch the butter entirely, frying the courgettes in pure olive oil and swapping half the chilli for local Senise peppers, producing a sharper, sun-baked version of this prawn spaghetti that tastes like the Adriatic itself.
📝 Ingredients
Serves 6🥬Fresh Produce(3)
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 1 bunch of fresh dill or flat-leaf parsley
- ½ a lemonoptional
🥛Dairy & Eggs(2)
- 1 large knob of unsalted butter
- optional: Parmesan cheeseoptional
🫙Pantry Staples(2)
- extra virgin olive oil
- 500g dried spaghetti (17.6 oz)
📦Other(4)
- 2 fresh red chillies
- 600g raw peeled prawns, from sustainable sources (21.2 oz)ensure from sustainable sources
- 2 yellow courgettes
- 3 green courgettes
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories
503
Protein
34g
Carbs
67g
Fat
11g
👨🍳 Instructions
- 1
Halve the courgettes lengthways, then finely slice at an angle.
- 2
Peel and finely slice the garlic, then deseed and finely slice the chillies.
- 3
Pick and roughly chop the herbs.
- 4
Cook the pasta according to the packet instructions.
- 5
Melt the butter with a splash of oil in a large frying pan on medium heat.
- 6
Add the courgettes and cook until slightly browned.
- 7
Add the garlic, chilli, and prawns, then cook until the prawns are cooked through.
- 8
Take off the heat and squeeze over the lemon juice.
- 9
Drain the pasta once cooked, reserving a little cooking liquid.
- 10
Add the pasta to the frying pan and toss with the courgettes and prawns.
- 11
Add some cooking liquid if it looks a little dry, then stir in the dill or parsley.
- 12
Season to taste and serve at once, with a grating of Parmesan, if you like.
💡 Pro Tips
- ✓Slice courgettes at 30-45° angles rather than perpendicular cuts to increase surface area by ~40%, allowing faster browning and better butter absorption in the 3-4 minute cook time.technique30-45° angle, 40% surface area increase
- ✓Add prawns only after courgettes are golden (3-4 minutes) because raw prawns release moisture that steams courgettes instead of browning them; cook prawns for exactly 2-3 minutes until the flesh turns opaque and internal temp reaches 63°C.timing2-3 minutes, 63°C internal temperature
- ✓Reserve 240ml of starchy pasta water and add 60-80ml to the pan after removing from heat before tossing, because the 2-3% starch content emulsifies with butter and creates a silky glaze that clings to spaghetti better than oil alone.ingredient60-80ml pasta water, 2-3% starch content
- ✓Use medium heat (not high) for the entire cook because courgettes contain 95% water; high heat causes them to release moisture rapidly, which drops the pan temperature below 160°C and prevents the Maillard browning reaction needed for flavor development.techniqueMedium heat, 160°C minimum for Maillard reaction
- ✓Add lemon juice off-heat and fold immediately because citric acid at high temperatures accelerates protein denaturation in prawns, causing them to toughen within 30 seconds; at 50-60°C it brightens flavors without damage.timing50-60°C, 30-second tolerance window
Share this recipe
Prep
15
min
Cook
20
min
Serves
6
people
Level
beginner
Share this recipe
Ligurian cooks grate courgette into ribbons that melt into the pan sauce, thickening it without a drop of cream added.
Prawn and Courgette Spaghetti
Dive into a delightful bowl of Prawn and Courgette Spaghetti, where succulent prawns meet tender courgettes in a zesty garlic and chili sauce. Tossed with a splash of fresh lemon juice, this vibrant dish comes together in a flash, making it the perfect weeknight treat. Get ready to savor every delicious bite!
The Story
This dish owes less to Rome and more to 1950s Positano, where Amalfi Coast fishermen started tossing their Mediterranean prawn hauls with whatever courgettes grew on the cliffside terraces, essentially inventing a seafood pasta that could feed a boatload of hungry men without needing a proper fish market—proof that Italians accidentally created fusion cuisine just by being too lazy to go shopping twice.
Regional Twist
Down in Puglia's Gallipoli fishing villages, cooks ditch the butter entirely, frying the courgettes in pure olive oil and swapping half the chilli for local Senise peppers, producing a sharper, sun-baked version of this prawn spaghetti that tastes like the Adriatic itself.
📝 Ingredients
Serves 6🥬Fresh Produce(3)
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 1 bunch of fresh dill or flat-leaf parsley
- ½ a lemonoptional
🥛Dairy & Eggs(2)
- 1 large knob of unsalted butter
- optional: Parmesan cheeseoptional
🫙Pantry Staples(2)
- extra virgin olive oil
- 500g dried spaghetti (17.6 oz)
📦Other(4)
- 2 fresh red chillies
- 600g raw peeled prawns, from sustainable sources (21.2 oz)ensure from sustainable sources
- 2 yellow courgettes
- 3 green courgettes
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories
503
Protein
34g
Carbs
67g
Fat
11g
👨🍳 Instructions
- 1
Halve the courgettes lengthways, then finely slice at an angle.
- 2
Peel and finely slice the garlic, then deseed and finely slice the chillies.
- 3
Pick and roughly chop the herbs.
- 4
Cook the pasta according to the packet instructions.
- 5
Melt the butter with a splash of oil in a large frying pan on medium heat.
- 6
Add the courgettes and cook until slightly browned.
- 7
Add the garlic, chilli, and prawns, then cook until the prawns are cooked through.
- 8
Take off the heat and squeeze over the lemon juice.
- 9
Drain the pasta once cooked, reserving a little cooking liquid.
- 10
Add the pasta to the frying pan and toss with the courgettes and prawns.
- 11
Add some cooking liquid if it looks a little dry, then stir in the dill or parsley.
- 12
Season to taste and serve at once, with a grating of Parmesan, if you like.
💡 Pro Tips
- ✓Slice courgettes at 30-45° angles rather than perpendicular cuts to increase surface area by ~40%, allowing faster browning and better butter absorption in the 3-4 minute cook time.technique30-45° angle, 40% surface area increase
- ✓Add prawns only after courgettes are golden (3-4 minutes) because raw prawns release moisture that steams courgettes instead of browning them; cook prawns for exactly 2-3 minutes until the flesh turns opaque and internal temp reaches 63°C.timing2-3 minutes, 63°C internal temperature
- ✓Reserve 240ml of starchy pasta water and add 60-80ml to the pan after removing from heat before tossing, because the 2-3% starch content emulsifies with butter and creates a silky glaze that clings to spaghetti better than oil alone.ingredient60-80ml pasta water, 2-3% starch content
- ✓Use medium heat (not high) for the entire cook because courgettes contain 95% water; high heat causes them to release moisture rapidly, which drops the pan temperature below 160°C and prevents the Maillard browning reaction needed for flavor development.techniqueMedium heat, 160°C minimum for Maillard reaction
- ✓Add lemon juice off-heat and fold immediately because citric acid at high temperatures accelerates protein denaturation in prawns, causing them to toughen within 30 seconds; at 50-60°C it brightens flavors without damage.timing50-60°C, 30-second tolerance window