That Spicy Chick

Cream Sauce Seafood Pasta

This Cream Sauce Seafood Pasta is luxuriously creamy, elegant, and easy to make! Two types of linguini pasta are tossed with a gorgeous medley of seafood in a heavenly white wine cream sauce! Perfect for date nights, entertaining, or treating yourself on a weeknight in!

And friends, here we are today at a crossroads. Our little Noodles & Pasta mini-series is culminating, and it’s time for the final recipe. So obviously, I saved the best for last! 😉

Please meet my latest obsession, which I SERIOUSLY have not been able to stop making, eating, and singing the praises of this past month – Cream Sauce Seafood Pasta!

View of half plate filled with cream sauce seafood pasta

You see, there are things in life that make me happy. Like seeing my family (who I don’t live with anymore), going to the movies with my sister, and chilling out over a pint with a long-time-no-see friend. But then there are things in life that make me extremely happy, lively, and possibly even hyper? Like this Cream Sauce Seafood Pasta. 😁

It’s luxuriously creamy, rich, super tasty, and elegant. And it’s very much like something you would order at a fancy Italian restaurant. However, contrary to what you might think, it’s actually incredibly easy to make on any given weeknight.

It shines like a diamond, and it makes my heart do a fluttery dance with its buttery creamy goodness. Friends, this is the cream sauce pasta of dreams, and I want to make ALL your creamy seafood pasta dreams come true with it! 🤗

View of half plate filled with cream sauce seafood pasta with a fork

HERE’S WHAT WE HAVE GOING ON IN THIS CREAM SAUCE SEAFOOD

  • Slurp-ili-cious linguini. Two kinds actually – regular and squid ink, so you know this is a fancy-schmancy pasta dish. 😉
  • The ocean on your plate – we have clams, shrimp, mussels, and squid swimming in the creamy saucy pasta on your plate! 🤤
  • A luxuriously rich and garlicky white wine cream sauce that tastes heavenly when you toss the seafood and pasta in it! 😋
  • Herby goodness from fresh Italian parsley in the white wine cream sauce, as well as Herbs De Provence flavoring the seafood. 🌿
Cream sauce seafood pasta in deep round white pasta plate with freshly chopped parsley garnish. White wine bottle, glass of water, and spoon and fork behind plate.

THE STORY….

So as you know with food, there is usually a story. And with this recipe, it goes back to my Taipei days. As you may recall from my Garlic Cream Sauce Seafood Fettuccine post, I’ve had a long standing love affair with a particular creamy seafood pasta dish that I used to devour at this Italian restaurant called Diamond Tony’s Bistro in Taipei. In fact, I have attempted to recreate their amazing dish on several occasions. But I’ll admit to have never being fully successful before because nobody can do it like Diamond Tony’s.

A few of you from my Taipei days actually messaged to say that you tried the Garlic Cream Sauce Seafood Fettuccine recipe, and that while it’s good and shines in it’s own light, it’s simply just not Tony’s. And you know what? I completely and wholeheartedly agree because, again, nobody can do it exactly like Diamond Tony’s!

Creamy seafood pasta in a deep round white pasta plate with freshly chopped parsley garnish. White wine bottle and glass of water behind plate.

Anyways, a few weeks ago, I went on a recipe testing frenzy with the mission of ACTUALLY recreating Tony’s pasta dish.

And I am happy and proud to say that after multiple and careful rounds of testing, I managed to create a dish that I love EVEN MORE than Tony’s original beauty! Yes, it’s different and not exactly Tony’s. But it’s currently my ultimate favorite recipe, and one that I will be making for years to come, over and over again!

White wine cream sauce pasta with seafood topped with parsley garnish in deep round white pasta plate

I am super excited to be sharing this dish with you today, and hope that you’ll love it as much as I do! 🤗

Right, enough talk! Let’s jump in and make some mind-blowingly delicious Cream Sauce Seafood Pasta!

Creamy pasta with seafood topped with parsley garnish in a deep round white pasta plate

CREAM SAUCE SEAFOOD PASTA INGREDIENTS

Squid, mussels, shrimp, and clams simmering in white wine with garlic and herbs

Alright! First things first: our shopping list for this Cream Sauce Seafood Pasta! You will need…

  • Seafood: I went with a combination of mussels, clams, squid, and shrimp. But you can use any type of seafood you like really. Using frozen or fresh seafood is up to you, but frozen works perfectly fine. For this recipe, I use a combination of fresh and frozen seafood: fresh squid from the market, and frozen clams, shrimp, and mussels because I usually have the latter three in my freezer.
  • Lemon Juice: As always, I recommend freshly squeezed.
  • Dry White Wine: Any type of crisp dry white wine such as a sauvignon blanc, pinot grigio, or unoaked chardonnay will work. I highly recommend a sauvignon blanc as it’s brightness and acidity brings out the best flavors in cream sauces and seafood. You’ll need just a splash for the seafood, and a full cup for the cream sauce.
  • Unsalted Butter: To cook the seafood and also to make the cream sauce.
  • Extra Virgin Olive Oil: Ok! Important ingredient! Using a high quality extra virgin olive oil is essential to this recipe. So be sure to grab a bottle at the store if you don’t already have it at home. I’m not saying you need to spend a ridiculous amount of $$$$$ on a good bottle of EVOO, but just be sure to pick up a decent bottle at the store. I used an organic extra virgin olive oil from Spain, and used it to cook the seafood and to make the cream sauce.
  • Aromatics: Just some finely minced garlic and onion.
  • Fresh Italian Parsley: Finely minced as well.
  • All-purpose flour: This will help to thicken the sauce.
  • Milk: You’ll need a full three cups! That might seem like a lot, but we’re making an extremely rich and creamy sauce, so the milk is essential (along with the butter and flour) to make a super creamy and dreamy sauce!
  • Seasonings & Spices: You’ll need Herbs De Provence, kosher salt, and freshly cracked black pepper for the seafood. In addition, you’ll need kosher salt, freshly cracked black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, dried thyme, oregano flakes, ground cayenne, and crushed red chili flakes to flavor the cream sauce. By the way, feel free to omit or adjust the amount of the ground cayenne and crushed red chili flakes to taste.
  • Parmigiano Reggiano Cheese: I highly recommend buying a block of cheese at the store and grating it at home yourself. It will melt better and more evenly in the sauce. Plus it won’t have any of the preservatives the bags of pre-shredded cheese at the store do.
  • Pasta: I went with linguini and used a combination of regular and squid ink linguini. But you can use any type of pasta you like or have on hand.
Cooked clams and mussels simmering in pan with white wine, butter, oil, and herbs

HOW TO MAKE CREAM SAUCE SEAFOOD PASTA

First, let’s get all the prep work out of the way.

Garlic, onion, and fresh parsley simmering in pan with white wine
  1. Make the Spice Bowl: Combine all the spices and seasonings for the Cream Sauce Seafood Pasta in a small bowl and set aside until needed.
  2. Prepare the seafood: Rinse and chop the squid into ½ inch wide rings/pieces, then remove the skin, rinse again and pat-dry. Soak the clams for 20 minutes in a bowl of water, then rinse them thoroughly if using fresh. Soak and scrub the mussels with a metal brush to rid them of their grit if using fresh. (Note: If your clams and mussels are frozen and the package they came in indicates that they are ready to cook, you can skip soaking, rinsing and scrubbing them.) Peel and devein the shrimp if needed, rinse thoroughly, and pat-dry with a paper towel. Place the squid, mussels, clams, and shrimp into individual bowls and set aside.
  3. Prepare the fresh ingredients: Finely mince the garlic, onion, and parsley and set aside until needed.
  4. Cook the linguini: Cook the linguini al–dente according to package directions in a large pot or deep sauté pan of boiling salted water. (I like to run water over the pasta to prevent them from sticking and cooking further.) Rinse out the pan and set it back on the stove.
  5. Measure out the liquids: Measure out the milk and wine in individual measuring cups, set aside until needed.
tossing linguini and seafood in white wine cream sauce

Now that we’ve got everything ready to go, it’s time to make this super delicious, decadent, and comforting Cream Sauce Seafood Pasta! Simply…

  1. Cook the seafood: Heat extra virgin olive oil and unsalted butter in a medium sized sauté pan over medium-high heat, Once hot, add all of the seafood, lemon juice, kosher salt, freshly cracked black pepper, Herbs De Provence and sauté for a minute. Add garlic and a splash of dry white wine, give everything a good stir, then cover and steam for 4-6 minutes. Uncover the pan and transfer shrimp and squid to a clean bowl once they have just cooked through. Cover again and steam the clams and mussels for a further 3-5 minutes, or until their shells have opened and most of the wine has evaporated. Then, switch off the heat. (Note: Discard any clams or mussels after this point if their shells are still closed tight. They are not suitable to eat.)
  2. Sauté the aromatics: In another large deep sauté pan, heat extra virgin olive oil and unsalted butter over medium-high heat until the butter has melted and is nice and bubbly. Once hot, add the onion and garlic and sauté for 1-2 minutes until fragrant.
  3. Add Parsley: Then add the fresh Italian parsley and sauté for another minute to combine.
  4. Make the white wine cream sauce: Whisk in the flour and cook for 2 minutes until thickened. Then pour in the dry white wine and continue whisking. Simmer until the mixture thickens and the wine has reduced, then lower the heat to medium and gradually pour in the milk while continuing to whisk. Stir in the spices & seasonings in the Spice Bowl and the freshly grated cheese. Mix until the cheese has melted.
  5. Combine everything together: Add the linguini and all of the seafood to the cream sauce and toss continuously to combine. Cook for 3-5 minutes or until heated through. The starches in the pasta will break down and the sauce will further thicken. Then, switch off the heat.
  6. To Serve: Divide the Cream Sauce Seafood Pasta into four plates or transfer to a serving dish. Garnish with extra freshly chopped parsley if desired and serve immediately!

Full instructions in recipe card below.

Spaghetti spoon holding up linguini with a piece of shrimp and mussell above a deep large sauté pan filled with the creamy pasta.

FROZEN VS. FRESH SEAFOOD

I use both fresh and frozen seafood in this recipe: fresh squid from the market, and frozen clams, shrimp, and mussels. Both work perfectly fine, and you can use fresh or frozen based on your personal preference or what you might already have on hand in your freezer.

Spaghetti spoon in pan with linguini and creamy sauce with shrimp

REHEATING LEFTOVERS

I question your creamy pasta loving soul for having any leftovers at all. But if you do, microwaving with a few sprinkles of water will work just fine. As will reheating with a few sprinkles of water on the stovetop. But generally, this Cream Sauce Seafood Pasta tastes the best on the day of cooking. At the most, it will keep well in the fridge in a sealed airtight dish/container for 2-3 days.

Cream sauce seafood pasta in deep round white pasta plate with freshly chopped parsley garnish. White wine bottle and glass of water behind plate. Forks and spoons on side of plate.

Guys, this Cream Sauce Seafood Pasta is comfort and homecooked FANCY food at it’s best, and I guarantee that it will disappear off your, your family’s, and friends’ plates FAST!

So what are you waiting for? Go grab everything you need to make this tantalizing and tasty pasta dish and have yourself a romantic feast for dinner tonight! 🤗

White wine creamy seafood pasta in round white plate. Fork sticking out from center of plate with creamy linguini twirled around it.

MADE THIS RECIPE? If you make this recipe, leave a comment below and let me know how you liked it! Take a photo and tag it with @thatspicychick on Instagram and hashtag it #thatspicychick and I’ll be sure to share your masterpiece!

Cream Sauce Seafood Pasta on deep white round plate. Seafood and linguini in pan with creamy white sauce.

MORE EASY WEEKNIGHT PASTAS

Looking for more easy and quick pasta recipes? Below are some of my all-time favorites!

Check out the other recipes from this Noodles & Pasta mini-series!

Print

Cream Sauce Seafood Pasta

Cream Sauce Seafood Pasta with parsley garnish in deep round white pasta plate

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

4.5 from 10 reviews

This Cream Sauce Seafood Pasta is luxuriously creamy, elegant, and easy to make! Two types of linguini pasta are tossed with a gorgeous medley of seafood in a heavenly white wine cream sauce! Perfect for date nights, entertaining, or treating yourself on a weeknight in!

  • Author: Lavina
  • Prep Time: 20
  • Cook Time: 20
  • Total Time: 40 minutes
  • Yield: 4 1x
  • Category: Pasta
  • Method: Sauté
  • Cuisine: Italian

Ingredients

Scale

For the Seafood:

  • 10 pieces frozen or fresh Mussels
  • 10 pieces frozen or fresh Littleneck Clams
  • 100g Squid – cut into rings, skin removed, rinsed thoroughly, and pat-dried
  • 810 pieces Shrimp – peeled and deveined, rinsed thoroughly, and pat-dried
  • 1/2 TSP Kosher Salt, to taste
  • 1/2 TSP freshly cracked Black Pepper, to taste
  • 2 TSP Herbs De Provence
  • 4 TSP freshly squeezed Lemon Juice
  • 2 Garlic cloves – finely minced
  • 1 TBLS Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 1 TBLS Unsalted Butter
  • A splash of Dry White Wine, preferably a Sauvignon Blanc as its brightness and acidity brings out the best flavors in seafood and cream sauces

For the Cream Sauce Seafood Pasta:

  • 8 ounces uncooked Linguini pasta (I use a half and half combination of regular linguini and squid ink linguini)
  • 4 Garlic cloves – finely minced
  • 1/2 Yellow Onion – finely minced
  • 4 TBLS fresh Italian Parsley, plus more for garnish – finely chopped
  • 2 TBLS All-Purpose Flour
  • 1 cup Dry White Wine (I use Sauvignon Blanc)
  • 3 cups Whole Milk
  • 2 TSP Kosher Salt, to taste
  • 1 TSP freshly cracked Black Pepper, to taste
  • 1 TSP Garlic Powder
  • 1 TSP Onion Powder
  • 1 TSP Dried Thyme
  • 1 TSP Oregano Flakes
  • 1.5 TSP ground Cayenne, to taste
  • 1 TSP Crushed Red Pepper Chili Flakes, to taste
  • 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano or Parmesan Cheese
  • 1 TBLS Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 2 TBLS Unsalted Butter

Instructions

Prep:

  1. Make the Spice Bowl: Combine all the spices and seasonings for the Cream Sauce Seafood Pasta in a small bowl. Cover and set aside until needed.
  2. Prepare the Seafood: Rinse and chop the squid into ½ inch wide rings/pieces, then remove the skin, rinse again and pat-dry. Soak the clams for 20 minutes in a bowl of water, then rinse them thoroughly if using fresh. Soak and scrub the mussels (if using fresh) with a metal brush to rid them of their grit. (Note: If your clams and mussels are frozen and the package they came in indicates that they are ready to cook, you can skip soaking, rinsing, and scrubbing them.) Peel and devein the shrimp if needed, rinse thoroughly, and pat-dry with a paper towel. Place the squid, mussels, clams, and shrimp into individual bowls and set aside.
  3. Prepare the fresh ingredients: Finely mince the garlic, onion, and parsley and set aside until needed.
  4. Cook the linguini: Cook the linguini al–dente according to package directions in a large pot or deep sauté pan of boiling salted water. (I like to run water over my pasta to prevent them from sticking and cooking further.) Rinse out the pan and set it back on the stove.
  5. Measure out the liquids: Measure out the milk and wine in individual measuring cups, set aside until needed.

For the Seafood:

  1. Cook the seafood: Heat extra virgin olive oil and unsalted butter in a medium sized sauté pan over medium-high heat, Once hot, add all of the seafood, lemon juice, kosher salt, freshly cracked black pepper, Herbs De Provence and sauté for a minute. Add garlic and a splash of dry white wine, give everything a good stir, then cover and steam for 4-6 minutes. Uncover the pan and transfer shrimp and squid to a clean bowl once they have just cooked through. Cover again and steam the clams and mussels for a further 3-5 minutes, or until their shells have opened and most of the wine has evaporated. Then, switch off the heat. (Note: Discard any clams or mussels after this point if their shells are still closed tight. They are not suitable to eat.)

For the Cream Sauce Seafood Pasta:

  1. Sauté the onion and garlic: In another large deep sauté pan, heat extra virgin olive oil and unsalted butter over medium-high heat until the butter has melted and is nice and bubbly. Once hot, add the onion and garlic and sauté for 1-2 minutes until fragrant.
  2. Add the parsley: Add the fresh Italian parsley and sauté for another minute to combine.
  3. Add flour and wine: Whisk in the flour and cook for 2 minutes, then slowly pour in the dry white wine and continue whisking. Simmer until the mixture thickens the wine has reduced – about 2-4 minutes.
  4. Stir in milk, seasonings and cheese: Lower the heat to medium and gradually pour in the milk while continuing to whisk. Stir in the spices and seasonings and freshly grated cheese. Mix until the cheese has fully melted and the sauce starts to thicken.
  5. Toss through pasta and seafood: Add the linguini and all of the seafood to the sauce and toss continuously to combine. Cook for 3-5 minutes or until heated through. The starches in the pasta will break down and the sauce will further thicken. Then, switch off the heat.
  6. To Serve: Divide the Cream Sauce Seafood Pasta into four plates or transfer to a serving dish. Garnish with extra freshly chopped parsley if desired and serve immediately!

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1 plate
  • Calories: 690
  • Sugar: 12g
  • Sodium: 1450.9mg
  • Fat: 28.6g
  • Saturated Fat: 12.5g
  • Unsaturated Fat: 12.4g
  • Trans Fat: 0.1g
  • Carbohydrates: 63.6g
  • Fiber: 3.4g
  • Protein: 43.3g
  • Cholesterol: 223.5mg
Cream Sauce Seafood Pasta with parsley garnish in a large deep sauté pan

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23 comments on “Cream Sauce Seafood Pasta”

  1. Excellent recipe. My wife is GF/DF due to allergies. I substituted DF butter, oat milk and GF flour/noodles and it was still delicious. Extra flour was needed due to the oat milk being thinner. I also grilled the seafood with the mentioned seasoning due to space at the beach rental. 






    • Hi Michael, I’m so glad to hear this recipe worked out well for you with the tweaks you made to make it GF and DF! I’m sure other readers with these dietary needs will find your comment helpful too. 🙂

  2. Can I use a bag of frozen cooked seafood medley? Please dp email me with your reply.

  3. Is it necessary to use flour as a thickener with the milk? Would you be able to get the same results eliminating the flour and using half and half or heavy cream?

    • Hi Linda, I had better results with making the cream from scratch and using the flour to thicken the milk. You can however get similar results with using heavy cream. I don’t recommend using half and half as the cream sauce may be too thin. Hope this helps, and happy cooking!

  4. Just made this absolutely loved it used only the linguine pot and a big pan just chucked the seafood into a bowl and added it later. I used one sliced kielbasa I fried up first and set aside  pound of mussel meat and half a pound of shrimp. Certainly stops that runny liquid dish not a huge amount of wine could have added another teaspoon of the red peppers to add heat about 20 minutes I let it sit for a little before serving .. very yummy






  5. I made this tonight with shrimp and crabmeat. I did change the spices around a little, using half the cayenne and the herbes de Provence because of my shell fish change. It was absolutely delicious. And I want to commend you for your explicit instructions on the food prep. Again THIS WAS ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS!!






    • Fantastic, Toni!! Crabmeat sounds like a delicious seafood choice for this pasta, and I’ll have to try that too soon! So glad you enjoyed this, and found the instructions to be very clear. Thank you for coming back to let me know how it worked out for you! 🙂

  6. I made this recipe without the cayenne (I ran out) and only used shrimp and it came out fantastic! I eyeballed about 1/4 cup of heavy cream after I added the cheese and used a whole pound of linguini. 
    It has so much flavor and it’s definitely added to my stack of recipes *to keep*






  7. Very good; however, it is far too spicy for my liking. Next time I will cut the cayenne and half the red pepper flakes. 






  8. The recipe is great but tooo confusing and hard to follow. It’s not a simple step by step method and there’s no amalgamation between the steps. At the end, I was just left all confused, with different mixes and had to make it using my cooking experience. And once done, you are left with tooo many pots and pans to clean up after because of several different combinations as the recipe states. It’s a simple recipe which has been made too complex. 






    • Hi Urmi,

      Thanks for your feedback. I’m sorry that the recipe instructions didn’t work out for you and that you found it too difficult.






  9. Lavina

    I made your dish today, exactly as instructed, except I used spaghetti – it was AWESOME!  Thank you so much for publishing. 10 stars! Definitely in my short list of top recipes of all time.

    Larry






    • Hi Larry,

      I’m so happy to hear that you enjoyed this dish! It’s one of my all-time favorites too! Thanks for rating it and leaving a comment! 🙂

      Lavina

  10. What wine should you pair with your favourite pasta? As you might guess it depends on the sauce rather than the pasta shape.






  11. I’m going to use large peeled shrimp, bay scallops and smoked salmon in this recipe. Would bacon put it over the top or no? 

    • Hi Karen! That sounds like a delicious combination of seafood. 🙂 Regarding the bacon, maybe you can limit it to two other types of seafood tops and then add the bacon? It might be a bit of a protein overload with three types of seafood and bacon.

      I actually add bacon and shrimp to the same white wine cream sauce in my Creamy Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Shrimp & Bacon, and it tastes absolutely heavenly. If you’re interested, you can check it out here: https://thatspicychick.com/creamy-sweet-potato-gnocchi-with-shrimp-bacon/

      Let me know how this recipe works out for you!

  12. Delicious, though I think I’ll leave the cayenne out next time 🙂






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