Life

James Street South Cookery School: Black pasta with scallops; smoked salmon pasta

Niall McKenna's black pasta with scallops
Niall McKenna's black pasta with scallops Niall McKenna's black pasta with scallops

WITH good weather comes great memories of holidays in the sun and, in particular, al fresco dining.

These dishes are really quick so you don’t need to spend too much time away from the back garden. The black pasta also makes for a conversation piece.

This coming week the Balmoral Show returns for four days of fantastic local produce, innovation, fun and farming, so I would urge everyone to make a visit and support our local agricultural, tourism, retail and hospitality industries.

BLACK PASTA WITH SCALLOPS

8 large scallops, cleaned and removed from shell

6 tblsp extra virgin olive oil

1 clove garlic, finely diced

1 small red chilli, deseeded and finely diced

150ml dry white wine

1 sprig fresh parsley, removed from stalk and chopped

370g black angel’s hair pasta

Remove the scallops from the shell, clean and slice in half and cut the coral from the white meat. Heat the oil in a large pan and add the scallops, garlic, chilli and the dry white wine and cook off for one minute. Add the parsley to taste.

Place a pot of salted water on the hob and bring to the boil; cook the pasta in the water for two-to-three minutes or until al dente. Remove from the water and drain and add in the scallop and chilli mixture and dress with the chopped parsley.

SMOKED SALMON PASTA

30g butter

small onion, finely chopped

150g smoked salmon

200ml single cream

500g fresh pasta (For our cookery school recipe for fresh pasta have a look at our Facebook page or click onto the news pages of jamesstreetsouth.co.uk)

Start by making the pasta if you are going homemade. When ready to cook, melt the butter and cook the onion until soft but do not colour. Add in half the smoked salmon, roughly chopped, and the cream and warm through gently.

Cook the pasta, drain and place into a serving bowl. Stir in the salmon and sauce; mix thoroughly and add a little black pepper. With the rest of the salmon, cut into thin strips and gently stir these in and serve at once.