Seafood can range in taste from mild to extremely pungent. While seafood can be served plain or seasoned simply with salt, pepper or lemon juice, some diners like to enjoy it with a sauce. Seafood sauce can be made in a variety of flavors and served alongside seafood as a condiment for dipping or mixed together with the seafood and served atop pasta or rice.
Tomato-Based
A tomato-based seafood sauce is a staple recipe because it can go with just about any type of seafood, especially shrimp and shellfish. Add two 28-oz. cans of crushed or diced tomatoes into a food processor. Process until the tomatoes are smooth. Drizzle 2 tbsp. olive oil into a saucepan over medium high heat, then add two diced garlic cloves. Cook the garlic for about 30 seconds so it can release its flavor. Watch it carefully because burnt garlic is extremely bitter. Stir in the processed tomatoes, 16 oz. clam juice, 1/8 tsp. sugar (to balance out the acidity of the tomatoes) and any preferred herbs (such as thyme or basil). The clam juice will give the sauce a rich seafood undertone that differentiates it from basic tomato sauce. Heat the sauce over high until it begins to boil, then reduce it to low and cook for another 45 minutes so the sauce can thicken. Stir in cooked shrimp or mussels and serve atop pasta or simply use the sauce plain for dipping.
Cream-Based
A cream-based seafood sauce gives seafood a richer, more decadent taste. It can be paired with fish, shrimp, crab or shellfish. Cream sauces tend to work best if you plan on stirring the seafood into the sauce or using it as a topping. It may be too thin for a dipping sauce. Begin the sauce by making a roux, or a mixture of melted butter and flour that serves as a thickening agent. Add 1 tbsp. butter to a pan and heat it over medium high until it melts, then whisk in 1 tbsp. flour. Cook the mixture for about three minutes so the flour can heat through. If the flour doesn't cook all the way, the sauce will have an overwhelming flour taste. Stir in 3/4 cup hot water and 1 tbsp. seafood base. Seafood base is a concentrated seafood flavor powder available near the stock or bouillon at your grocery store. Heat the sauce over high until it boils, then reduce the heat to medium and cook for about two minutes. Pour in 1/4 cup heavy cream and cook until it lightly bubbles without completely boiling. Stir in cooked seafood or simply drizzle it on top of plated seafood.
Cajun Style
Cajun style seafood sauce is known as remoulade and is often served cold with crab meat or white fish. Remoulade can be used on sandwiches or as a salad dressing. Mix 1 1/2 cups mayonnaise in a large bowl with 2 tbsp. lemon juice, 2 tbsp. diced green onions, 2 tbsp. chopped parsley and 2 tsp. Creole mustard. Add cooked crab meat or seafood, then cover the bowl with plastic wrap and keep in the refrigerator for at least one hour. If you eat it immediately, it won't have as much flavor. You can use the remoulade as a sandwich spread or spooned on salad or cooked vegetables.
Tags: high until, seafood sauce, atop pasta, bowl with, clam juice
