Italian Anchovies and Chinese Shrimp Sauce?

Every once in a while, improvisation is needed when making a meal. Sometimes it works successfully, sometimes it turns out disastrous. In this case, improvisation worked out quite well for me.

A basic pasta I like to make is simply extra virgin olive oil, garlic, anchovies, pine nuts, and red pepper flakes. Usually, I always have anchovies on hand, but not tonight. Fortunately quick thinking made me realize Chinese Shrimp Sauce has a similar taste profile to anchovies - robust and briney. I figured why the f not. It actually worked out better than normal anchovies, since the shrimp sauce has a much more intense flavor. You just gotta be careful, since this thing is hella strong so 2 teaspoons is max. You should get the sweetness from the caramelized broccoli, which is enhanced by the shrimp sauce (almost like a full flavored shrimp stock), the nuttiness of the pine nuts, and some heat from the red pepper flake. Fun eats...

Ingredients (all are guesses, since I never measure)
1/2 cup toasted pine nuts
2 tsp chinese shrimp sauce
2 large crowns of broccoli, cut into bite size pieces
1 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
pinch red pepper flake
1 cup grated parmiggiano reggiano
5 cloves garlic thinly sliced
1/2 box Rigatoni
1/4 cup pasta water
Salt and pepper

1) Set large pot of water to high heat. When water comes to a boil, salt the water and drop the pasta in.
2) Set large saute pan to high heat. Add 3/4 cup olive oil and add the broccoli stems first to get it nicely browned. Once browned, add the broccoli florets and pine nuts. Add 1 1/ tsp shrimp sauce, garlic, 1 tbsp water and cover until the broccoli is slightly tender, with still some crunchiness.
3) When pasta is 1 minute from being finished, put pasta in the saute pan and add the rest of the shrimp paste. Cook over high heat for 30 seconds to 1 minute and stir well. Need to cook out the shrimp paste, since it's hella salty.
4) Cut the heat, add the rest of the oil, add parmiggiano, and red pepper flake. Buono Appetito!