Watts says: “A simple pasta dish given piquancy with garlic, crème fraîche and lemon to cut through the richness of chorizo. Don’t be afraid to add the Parmesan here: anyone claiming that cheese ‘doesn’t go’ with seafood doesn’t know what they’re talking about! Trust me: try it out and see for yourself.”

Serves: 2
Prep time: 10 mins
Cook time: 15 mins

Ingredients

200g spaghetti
1 tbsp vegetable or sunflower oil
120g chorizo, cut into small chunks
150g raw shelled king prawns
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
200ml crème fraîche
finely grated zest of 1 lemon (optional) and the juice of ½ a lemon
50g finely grated Parmesan cheese, plus more to serve
10g parsley leaves, chopped
salt and black pepper

Method

Drop the pasta into salted boiling water and cook according to the packet instructions. Drain, but reserve the pasta water.

Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large frying pan and cook the chorizo over a medium-high heat for a few minutes, until it starts to turn crispy at the edges.

Add the prawns and the garlic and cook for another 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. The prawns should turn pink.

Use a ladle to add some of the pasta water to the pan, then add the crème fraîche, lemon juice, Parmesan and parsley. Stir together.

Now add the drained pasta to the pan and toss to coat. If the sauce needs thickening, stir it over the heat to reduce it a little. If it needs loosening up, add another ladle of pasta water.

Taste for seasoning, adjust if needed, then finish with grated Parmesan and lemon zest, if you like.

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