I've been obsessed with doobydobap (aka Tina) since last year when she blew up on TikTok. She's got to be by far my favorite creator yet. She's unique & unapologetically her and I live for her vlogs on Youtube. Not too long ago, she posted a video on on gochujang pasta with prawns and my jaw literally dropped. It's such a brilliant recipe and I knew I had to try it. So, this post is in honor of dooby. <3
Although this pasta looks exactly like penne vodka in a rose sauce, its not. On the outside, they could be identical twins but on the inside, this creamy gochujang pasta with shrimp has attitude and spice. Toasting the gochujang in butter and garlic amplifies the flavors and toastes the fermented chilies. Everything becomes insanely fragrant and pouring some cream over is a sad attempt to reduce the spice because it only makes you want to eat more of it. No pain, no gain, right? Adding in some baby shrimp was the cherry on top. Totally not necessary but also kinda is. The addition of the fresh prawn flavor and nice textural crunch to disrupt the spicy pasta is just want this pasta needs to keep you wanting more.
Creamy Gochujang Pasta w. Shrimp
Ingredients:
1/2 bag of short cut noodles (like penne or ziti or fusilli)
2 tablespoons of butter
3 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 heaping tablespoon of gochujang
1/2 cup of cream
Reserved pasta water
1/2 pound of shrimp* , peeled & depooped
Cracked black pepper to taste
Freshly chopped parsley & Parmesan, optional
Instructions:
Get a pot of water boiling and then cook your pasta according to the bags instructions. Were going for al dente. Once cooked, reserve some pasta water and drain out the noodles.
Then, get a saucepan on medium heat and add in the butter, garlic, and gochujang. Using a spoon try to break it apart as best as you can.
After 3 minutes the garlic and gochujang should now be fragrant, nice and toasty. Pour in the cream and whisk until you a beautiful rose colored sauce.
Next, drop in your pasta, reserved pasta water, & shrimp. Toss and let it bubble away for 3 - 4 minutes or until the shrimp is fully cooked. Sprinkle a touch of pepper to taste and finish with chopped parsley and Parmesan cheese!
Notes:
For this dish, I love using smaller shrimp so that they fit on your fork and in your mouth better. Try to find small or medium sized shrimp. They cook quicker as well so when you add everything into the sauce, nothing will become mushy.
I used haechandle brand of gochujang. Its very umami and not super spicy. I love the flavor of this brand and its what I always have on hand. I also love the mother in law brand but use a brand of gochujang that you like and there can be no wrong.
Although you could really use any pasta you wanted, I find with the baby shrimp its the perfect bite when you have a stab of a couple short cut pastas with a baby shrimp.
If you find it too be too spicy, which is impossible, add more cream. It'll help. But if you want it more spicy add another tablespoon of gochujang!