• A decadent meal with simple flavours that pack a punch, linguine with mandarin, chilli and lobster sauce is a perfect dinner dish. Seafood and pasta is always a heavenly combination, so just wait until you add in some divine spices.

    Recipe by Illanique van Aswegen

    Linguine with mandarin, chilli and lobster sauce

    Serves: 2
    Cooking Time: 45 mins

    Ingredients

    • 30g (2 tbsp) butter
    • 15ml (1 tbsp) olive or avocado oil
    • 125ml (½ cup) spring onions, thinly sliced
    • 10ml (2 tsp) crushed garlic
    • 5ml (1 tsp) crushed ginger
    • 5ml (1 tsp) green chillies, finely chopped
    • 240g lobster tails (4 small tails are perfect), cooked, shelled and sliced into rounds
    • 30ml (2 tbsp) wholegrain mustard
    • 2 mandarins, segmented
    • 125ml (½ cup) fresh mandarin juice
    • 45ml (3 tbsp) fresh cream
    • salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
    • 150g linguine pasta, cooked
    • 30ml (2 tbsp) fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped, to serve
    • 30ml (2 tbsp) fresh dill, to serve
    • 60ml (¼ cup) basil leaves, to serve

    Instructions

    1

    Heat the butter and oil in a pan. Add the spring onions, garlic, ginger and chillies, and fry over gentle heat, about 1 minute. Increase the heat, add the lobster tail slices and sauté for another minute.

    2

    Stir in the mustard, mandarin segments, mandarin juice and cream. Let it bubble away, about 5 minutes. Season.

    3

    Place the warm linguine in serving bowls. Ladle the sauce over the pasta and scatter with parsley, dill and basil. Serve immediately.

    Notes

    Cook’s tip: If you cannot find lobster or crayfish meat, replace with prawns.