Butter & White Wine Poached Seafood on Pasta with Pancetta, Parsley & Crispy Leeks

Butter & White Wine Poached Seafood on Pasta with Pancetta, Parsley & Crispy Leeks
by Sarah Kwan
The Wine Dive recommends Simply Naked Sauvignon Blanc to be paired with this dish.

For each serving:

Fried Leeks:
1/4 leek, cleaned and julienned in 3" lengths
1 Tablespoon corn starch
1 Tablespoon all-purpose flour
oil for frying

Mix the corn starch and flour in a bowl. Toss in the leeks until evenly coated. Fill a pot 2" deep with oil, and heat the oil to 350F.

Fry the leeks in small batches until golden.Drain the leeks on a paper towel.

Butter & White Wine Poached Seafood:
2 Tablespoons butter
2 cloves garlic, halved
1/4 onion, sliced
1/4 cup white wine (I used an off-dry pinot gris; pinot grigio would also be lovely)
4 mussels
4 large scallops
4 large shrimp

In a pot, melt the butter, then add the garlic and onion, sweating over medium heat until translucent. Add the white wine and bring to a simmer, then add the mussels and cook, covered, for 2 minutes. Add the scallops and shrimp to the pot and cook for another 3 minutes, covered, flipping halfway. Remove the seafood from the cooking liquid and set aside. Strain the cooking liquid, discarding garlic and onion, and reserve liquid for sauce.

Pasta with Pancetta & Parsley:
1 cup dry pasta (fusilli or gemelli)
2 strips pancetta, sliced into lardons
2 Tablespoons flat-leaf parsley, coarsely chopped
1 Tablespoon butter
2 teaspoon flour
1/4 cup cream

Cook the pasta in salted water until al dente. Strain and rinse to remove extra starch.
Fry the pancetta until crispy and drain on a paper towel.

In a pan, combine the butter and flour with a fork, stirring over medium heat to make a light roux.
Add reserved cooking liquid from the seafood, stirring, until it is well combined and thickened. Stir in the cream until the mixture has a smooth consistency.

Toss the pasta in the sauce, add the crispy pancetta and parsley, and mound on a plate. Arrange the seafood over the pasta, and top with the fried leeks.