Outback Toowoomba pasta is fettuccine in a heavy cream and parmesan sauce with garlic powder and onion powder, loaded with butter-seared prawns and mushrooms seasoned with soy sauce, Korean chili flakes and cayenne. Thirty-two minutes, serves 2.
Cooking the prawns only halfway before the sauce goes in is the step that stops them turning rubbery. Shrimp go from perfect to overcooked in about 60 seconds, and they will keep cooking in the simmering cream. Half-cook them in the butter with the mushrooms, pour in the sauce, and they finish gently in the liquid.
Undercooking the fettuccine by 1 to 2 minutes before draining is deliberate. The pasta finishes cooking inside the cream sauce for the last 2 minutes, which means it absorbs the sauce into the noodle rather than just sitting under it. Cook it fully first and it turns soft and bloated by the time the dish hits the plate.
Outback Toowoomba Pasta
Course: DinnerCuisine: AmericanDifficulty: Easy2
servings20
minutes12
minutes1.288
kcalFettuccine simmered in a heavy cream and parmesan sauce with garlic and onion powder, tossed with butter-seared prawns seasoned in soy sauce and chili flakes, sliced mushrooms, and finished with baby spinach and green onion.
Ingredients
- For the pasta:
160g fettuccine
30g butter
3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
100g button mushrooms, thinly sliced
200g raw prawns, peeled and deveined
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 tablespoon Korean chili flakes
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Ground black pepper, to taste
Fine sea salt, to taste
15g baby spinach
2 tablespoons parmesan cheese, grated, for garnish
- For the sauce:
400ml heavy cream
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
2 tablespoons parmesan cheese, grated
10g green onion, chopped
Directions
- Boil the pasta:Cook the fettuccine 1 to 2 minutes short of the package time so it still has a firm bite. Drain and set aside.
- Season the prawns:Toss the prawns with soy sauce, Korean chili flakes and cayenne pepper. Set aside. Mix all the sauce ingredients together in a jug.
- Sear and build:Melt the butter in a skillet over medium-high heat. Sauté the garlic until fragrant, add the mushrooms and cook until browned. Add the seasoned prawns and cook until half done. Pour in the sauce and bring to a boil, stirring often.
- Finish the pasta:Reduce heat to medium. Add the drained fettuccine and simmer for 2 minutes until the pasta is coated and the sauce thickens. Season with salt and pepper. Toss in the baby spinach.
- Serve:Plate and top with grated parmesan.
FAQs
What is the difference between Toowoomba pasta and Toowoomba steak?
Same sauce family, different dish. The steak version tops a seared sirloin or ribeye with the cream sauce. The pasta version tosses fettuccine directly into the sauce so the noodles absorb it. This version also seasons the prawns with soy sauce and Korean chili flakes, which the steak version does not.
Can you use regular spaghetti instead of fettuccine?
Yes, and the restaurant the author visited in Seoul used regular spaghetti. Linguine also works. A wider noodle holds more sauce per bite, which is why fettuccine is the default, but the flavour is the same regardless of shape.
Why is the calorie count so high?
400ml of heavy cream across 2 servings. That is the entire base of the sauce, and cream runs roughly 340 calories per 100ml. There is no lighter substitute that gives you the same result. If you want to cut it, use half cream and half milk, but the sauce will be thinner and less rich.
Can you skip the Korean chili flakes?
Yes, and it becomes a standard Toowoomba rather than the Korean twist. Regular red pepper flakes or paprika work as substitutes. The Korean chili flakes add a fruity, moderate heat that is different from cayenne, which is sharper and hotter per teaspoon.
How do you store leftovers?
The author notes that reheated leftovers will not taste the same as fresh. The cream sauce thickens overnight and the pasta absorbs whatever liquid remains. If you do reheat, add a splash of cream or milk on the stove over low heat. Do not microwave without extra liquid or it dries out completely.
