Cassie’s Ruminations

Smoked Salmon Fra Diavolo

Another re-jiggering of my fra diavolo iterations. This one uses some tasty local salmon, from SeaBear. I chose the sockeye, as it has a more robust flavor to stand up in the spicy sauce. Even then it melded more with the sauce than the other versions I’ve tried. This is not a bad thing, as it lent a nice subtle smokey undertone to the sauce. This time around I also toasted the red pepper flakes in the oil with the garlic to help release the essential oils. It was a successful experiment that stretched a little protein a long way, which is good for our health and our wallets 🙂

Smoked Salmon Fra Diavolo
Serves 4

2 tbsp olive oil
6 cloves garlic
2 cans diced tomatoes, 14.5 oz each (I used one plain and one fire roasted)
½ tsp dried oregano
½ tsp dried basil
¼ tsp black pepper
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tbsp tomato paste
6 oz hot smoked salmon

1 lb pasta of your choice (I used spaghetti here)

Boil salted water for the pasta. Add the pasta to the water when it reaches a rollicking boil. Cook as directed on the package.

As the pasta boils, press the cloves of garlic into the olive oil and add the red pepper flakes to a medium saucepan. Turn the heat to medium. When the garlic is just starting to turn golden and is fragrant, add the tomatoes, oregano, basil, black pepper, and tomato paste. Bring to a gentle boil then turn the heat down to simmer. Add the salmon and flake it into the sauce, making some very small bits and leaving some larger pieces. Let simmer until the pasta is done. Drain the pasta and serve hot over the noodles.