If you’re a fan of creamy and spicy shrimp pasta sauces, you’ll love this spicy jerk shrimp pasta dish. It has an incredibly flavorful sauce that’s made with a homemade jerk seasoning spice blend.
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Why make this recipe?
This is a fantastic dish that tastes like a lot of work went into it but that’s actually very easy to make. The jerk spice blend gives the shrimp and the creamy tomato sauce a delicious and complex spicy flavor. A little bit of brown sugar adds just a hint of sweetness that’s balanced by fresh and fragrant lime zest and lime juice.
What is Jamaican jerk seasoning?
In the context of food, the term jerk refers to a style of cooking that originated in Jamaica. It involves a dry rub or marinade made with herbs, spices and a little bit of sugar.
Jerk spice blends are made with many of the spices typically found in Caribbean cuisine, such as allspice, cinnamon, nutmeg and hot chili pepper.
For my take on Jamaican jerk seasoning I used:
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ½ teaspoon grated nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon dark brown sugar
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
To make the blend, simply stir all ingredients together.
Traditionally, the dry-rubbed or marinated meat or seafood is cooked over a wood fire but for the recipe here I sauteed the marinated shrimp in a cast iron pan. This makes the preparation a lot easier and still produces an amazing-tasting result.
Is jerk seasoning spicy?
Yes, jerk seasoning is quite spicy! Traditionally, the ingredient responsible for the heat in jerk seasoning is scotch bonnet, a pepper more than 10 times hotter than a jalapeno. Since scotch bonnets aren’t easy to find, I used crushed red pepper flakes in my seasoning blend. Red pepper flakes are readily available and are just as capable of adding a hefty amount of heat. If you want to make the dish less spicy, simply reduce the amount of red pepper flakes in the seasoning.
How to make jerk shrimp pasta:
See full ingredients & instructions in the recipe card below!
Step 1. Mix oil and shrimp with the jerk seasoning. Cover and marinate in the fridge for 20 minutes.
Step 2. While the shrimp are marinating, cook the pasta.
Step 3. Heat oil in a pan and saute diced onion. Add the shrimp along with any marinade that’s still in the bowl and cook until the shrimp are beginning to turn pink.
Step 4. Add chicken broth, tomato paste and heavy cream. Simmer for a few minutes until the sauce has thickened a bit. Stir in lime zest and lime juice.
How to serve it:
Mix the pasta into the sauce and season to taste with more fresh lime juice. Sprinkle with roughly chopped fresh thyme leaves (about 1 small sprig per portion) and serve.
How to store leftovers:
Store pasta and sauce in separate, airtight containers in the fridge for up to 2 days.
Frequently asked questions:
Yes, you can, if you want to. Just be sure to get the blend from a dedicated spice shop to ensure quality and freshness.
This is a very saucy dish and I find that medium pasta shells are best suited for it. The shells are like tiny cups that can hold the sauce in them.
Use a neutral-flavored oil for this dish, such as vegetable oil or canola oil, or a mild olive oil.
Any size shrimp will work for this recipe because you will cut the shrimp into bite-sized chunks before cooking.
No, I just prefer to cook with cast iron but you can use a non-stick pan instead.
More delicious spicy pasta recipes:
Did you make this recipe? It would be awesome if you could leave a rating. Either tap or click the stars in the recipe card or leave a comment below. Thanks!
Full Printable Recipe
Jerk Shrimp Pasta
Equipment
- measuring spoons and cups
- mixing bowl
- rubber spatula
- plastic wrap
- large pot
- colander
- knife and cutting board
- lime zester
- large cast iron or non-stick pan
- wooden spoon
Ingredients
For the jerk seasoning:
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- ½ teaspoon grated nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon dark brown sugar
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
For the shrimp pasta:
- 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon neutral oil (such as vegetable oil, canola oil or light olive oil) divided
- ¾ pound raw shrimp,* thawed, peeled, deveined and cut into bite-size chunks
- 3 cups uncooked medium pasta shells (8 ounces)
- ¼ yellow onion, diced
- 1 cup chicken broth
- ¼ cup tomato paste**
- 1 cup heavy cream
- ½ teaspoon lime zest
- ½ teaspoon lime juice, more to taste
- leaves from 4 small sprigs of fresh thyme, roughly chopped
Instructions
For the jerk seasoning:
- In a large bowl, stir together all jerk seasoning ingredients.
For the shrimp pasta:
- Mix 1 tablespoon oil into the spice mix, then add the shrimp and stir around until well coated. Cover the bowl and marinate the shrimp in the fridge for 20 minutes.
- While the shrimp are marinating, bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook the pasta.
- Once the shrimp had 20 minutes in the marinade, make the sauce:
- Heat the remaining oil in a large cast iron or non-stick pan, then add the diced onion and saute until translucent (~2 minutes).
- Stir in the shrimp along with any marinade that's still in the bowl and cook until the shrimp are just starting to turn pink (3-4 minutes).
- Stir in chicken broth, tomato paste and cream. Bring to a simmer and cook until the sauce has thickened a bit (about 5 minutes after it started to simmer).
- Stir in lime zest and juice and season to taste with more lime juice. Mix the sauce with the pasta, sprinkle with roughly chopped fresh thyme leaves and serve.
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