Mediterranean-style Monkfish Pasta (30 Minute Meal)

This Mediterranean-style Monkfish Pasta is quick, delicious and sure to impress! Light, fresh ingredients such as cherry tomatoes, anchovies, capers, lemon and fresh parsley will have you feeling like you're dining alfreso on the Amalfi coast in Italy. Monkfish makes the meal feel rich and decadent, a real treat! Plus it comes together in only 30 minutes.

It’s one of those recipes that looks and tastes luxurious but is surprisingly simple to pull together.

Perfect for date nights, dinner parties or when you just fancy something a little special without the fuss.

What is Monkfish?

I'm seeing monkfish on fine dining restaurants more and more nowadays. It has all the qualities of lobster; firm, succulent flesh that is firm and holds its shape when cooked, but without the hefty price tag (although it's still a pretty penny).

Monkfish is a deep sea fish, which is what contributes to its cost, as catching them is harder than other widely available fish. But the fillets are thick and typically uniform in shape, which lends itself well to even cooking.

Monkfish can be stewed, fried, grilled or roasted and holds up well to more robust cooking methods than traditional fish (it doesn't flake like most other fish). And although you may see a lot of parma-ham wrapped monkfish and monkfish curries, I want to hero it in something lighter and suitable for spring and summer dining.

Ingredients and Notes

Please be sure to scroll down to the recipe card for the complete ingredient list and details.

• Monkfish: "the poor man's lobster" - monkfish is a firm, white and mild-flavoured slightly sweet fish that isn't overly fishy. This makes it versatile for pairing with bold flavours like in this Monkfish Pasta (lemon, garlic etc.). I buy my monkfish from a local fishmonger as it's guaranteed to be excellent quality and it's not widely available in supermarkets.
• Anchovy fillets: these provide a wonderful savoury and umami-rich base for the pasta by dissolving into the olive oil (it's non-fishy overall, but if you'd prefer to omit them from the recipe then you can)
• Tomatoes: cherry or plum tomatoes work really well in this dish
• Salted Butter: I like to use Kerrygold butter
• White Wine
• Pasta: I personally like linguini, but you can switch for spaghetti, tagliatelle or any other pasta or noodle shape you prefer or have available
• Other: capers, fresh garlic, fresh red chilli (or dried chilli flakes), fresh lemon juice and fresh parsley (dill and/or chives could be used)

Monkfish Variations

Other proteins that would work especially well in this recipe:

• lobster (monkfish firms up like lobster when cooked, so it's an obvious choice if somewhat more expensive)
• prawns (lobster and monkfish's younger cousin because they cook in such a similar way)
• scallops (I would pan-sear these separately and serve on top so you have a nice crust on them, rather than cooking in the sauce)
• clams (Spaghetti Vongole uses a similar flavour profile)
• mussels (light and fresh and in keeping with the flavour profile)
• seafood mix / seafood medley (supermarket friendly seafood pasta option)
• or alternatively opt for a simplified version with no monkfish or any other additional protein and you'll have something similar to Spaghetti Puttanesca

How to make Monkfish Pasta

Melt: add half the butter in a pan with olive oil and allow to melt.

Soften: cook finely chopped red chilli and halved cherry tomatoes with anchovies in the pan. They'll start to disintegrate as you cook them and disperse evenly throughout the olive oil and sauce.

Boil: cook linguine in salted water until al dente then drain (ensuring to retain some pasta water for the sauce) and leave to the side until needed.

Flavour + Fragrance: pour in white wine and add sliced garlic cloves.

Reduce: the liquid volume on high heat until it's half the amount you started with.

Mash: use a potato masher to mash the tomatoes until totally broken down (discard any skins that stick to the masher rather than adding back into the sauce).

Thicken: add the capers and reserved pasta water (from cooking the linguine noodles / pasta) - as this will help to bind and thicken the sauce.

Cut + cook: the monkfish (chopped into bite sized pieces) - simmer for a few minutes until monkfish has cooked through. It's best cooked until just opaque to maintain a succulent, lobster-like texture. If overcooked, the monkfish can become quite rubbery.

Finishing Touches: stir through lemon juice, remaining butter and chopped fresh parsley. 

Finish + Serve: add cooked linguine, mix to coat the pasta in the sauce, then serve straight away.

Serving Suggestions and Storage

Serve with

• garlic bread
• salad (a light rocket and plum tomato salad)

And I wouldn't recommend offering parmigiano reggiano (parmesan) as Italians would never serve parmesan cheese with seafood dishes. However if you were catering for an Italian pasta feast, then you could also make my Creamy Tomato Beef Pasta, Prosecco Pasta with Italian Sausage and Lasagne. All of which could be drenched in parmesan cheese!

Storage

I wouldn't recommend storing and reheating this specific monkfish pasta dish (made with a light white wine, butter sauce emulsified with pasta water). This style of sauce doesn't reheat very well, and reheating the monkfish would turn it rubbery.

Although best enjoyed on the day, if you do need to reheat it:

• ideally remove the monkfish
• add a splash of water to the dish and start to warm in a pot on the hob
• once the pasta is warmed through, add the monkfish back in and heat until just warmed through (to avoid overcooking)

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