Red Wine Seafood Spaghetti

Hello, boys and girls!

Welcome to cooking with Varun! What is the Bollywood song of choice for the rebel Turkish army faction that tried to overthrow the government in 2016? Go on, have a proper think. Still no? Fine. It's the 1994 classic, "Dil ka panchi bole, 'coup, coup, coup, coup'.." from the movie Andaz, starring Anil Kapoor and Karis(h)ma Kapoor! What? That joke was pure gold!

I jest now, but I wasn't nearly as cavalier when it was happening around me. I was in Istanbul, Turkey. It was a Friday night and my roommate, Ms. Invites-Her-Colleagues-Over-And-Makes-Me-Cook, and I were celebrating the end of the work week by lounging in my living room drinking cherry vodka and listening to '90s pop (which obviously included the Backstreet Boys because I wanted it that way) when the news broke. All social media was down (which in retrospect is something that should have made us suspicious) so we were oblivious to the going-ons until we got a text message saying the military was trying to overthrow the government and that we should stay indoors; roads and bridges had been blocked by army tanks and soldiers, and we were on no account to venture outside. Unsettled, but buzzing on account of the vodka, we watched a movie to distract ourselves, and then went to bed hoping for the best (which was not getting killed). Later that night, at about 3:00 am, I was awoken by a loud bang, like an explosion. The windows started to shake, the whole building started to vibrate, causing the cupboards to rattle, sending a shiver through my body, and Ms. Invites-Her-Colleagues-Over-And-Makes-Me-Cook screamed and came running into my room. I leapt out of bed and we stood in the landing between our bedrooms for a few moments, and then I tentatively tiptoed to the window, my heart pounding, a visible tremble in my hand, and peeked outside. It was still dark, nothing was on fire, people weren't screaming, and it all seemed.. almost normal. As I breathed a sigh of relief and retracted my hand, we heard a roar from overhead, followed by a zoomy sort of whoosh, and realized that both, the roar and the bang, had been caused by a low flying aircraft (possibly) causing a sonic boom. We waited for a few minutes, but save for more aircraft, it seemed quite quiet, and when the sounds started to fade, went back to bed.

We read the following morning, that the coup had been quelled fairly quickly, with the most damage being done in Ankara. All personnel who had participated in the coup had been rounded up, and people were now walking up and down the Bosphorus bridge taking pictures of and with the tanks, because who cares about the damage when you have a tank selfie, right?

Unfortunately, for me, the coup was the straw that broke the camel's back, and as lovely as Turkey and its people are, I returned to India soon after. This dish, is one of the last few dishes I cooked before my departure.

For my Red Wine Seafood Spaghetti, you will need the following:

Spaghetti	300 gms
Red wine	3 cups
Assorted seafood	150 gms
Garlic	3-4 cloves
Parsley	tiny handful
Salt	to taste
Butter	knob
Olive oil

Prep:

1. Mince the garlic.
2. Chop the parsley.

Method:

Pasta:

1. Turn on the gas.
2. Bung a saucepan/pot on.
3. Fill it about 2/3 with water.
4. Pour in the red wine.
5. Splash in some olive oil.
6. Sprinkle in some salt.
7. Bring to a boil.
8. Drop the heat and bring to a simmer.
9. Pop in your spaghetti.
10. Cook until the spaghetti is al dente (cooked but has a slight bite).
11. Turn the gas off.
12. Drain the spaghetti. (Retain some of the starchy pasta water.)

Seafood:

1. Turn on the gas.
2. Bung a pan on.
3. Drop in the butter.
4. Count to 20.
5. Toss in the garlic.
6. Pop in the seafood.
7. Cook for a few minutes until it goes pink. (If you overcook it, it will become very rubbery!)
8. Turn the gas off.

Putting it together:

1. Pick up your spaghetti strainer.
2. Walk it over to your seafood pan.
3. Empty the pasta over the seafood.
4. Splash in some of the retained pasta water.
5. Mix.
6. Garnish with the chopped parsley.
7. Serve.
8. Stuff face.
9. Bask in the glory of your successfully executed dish.

 

Tip: As an expat, always inform your local consulate of your presence and contact details to keep abreast of volatile situations!

And remember, overeating is a myth. A full tummy is a happy tummy!