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Pasta all'Amatriciana

Welcome back! 
Today, we have the final of our four Roman pastas: Pasta all'Amatriciana! This pasta is actually named after its origin near Rome, in Amatrice, though it is widely found in Rome now with some slight variations. With the addition of tomato, this dish certainly stands out from the other three Roman pastas in terms of color and flavor. This sauce is also the one that sees the most variation from recipe to recipe, many give it a twist that start to turn the sauce into something of a classic pomodoro sauce. However, the addition of ingredients like garlic and white wine do still serve to enhance the dish, even if it is a little less traditional.

Pasta all'Amatriciana

Makes about 4 servings

Ingredients:

  • 12 ounces pasta (we used bucatini, which is most commonly used in Rome)
  • 3-4 ounces guanciale
  • 1 1/2 ounces grams Pecorino Romano
  • 28 ounces (about 2 containers) canned/crushed tomatoes
  • 3 tablespoons white wine
  • 1 clove garlic
  • 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • 1/2 teaspoon crushed black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • Don't forget to save some pasta water, probably around 1/2 cup
    Our proportions are a little different...

Directions:

  1. In a pan, cook the guanciale in the olive oil for about 5 minutes, until crispy. Once done, take the pan off the heat and remove the guanciale, but save the oil/fat.
  2. Cook the pasta in a pot of water with a teaspoon of salt, per the instructions on the pasta packaging.
  3. In the pan from Step 1, add in the white wine, garlic, red pepper, and black pepper, and mix. Cook this for just a few minutes to evaporate the alcohol.
  4. Add the tomatoes in to let them cook in the sauce for a couple minutes.
  5. About 2 minutes before the pasta is al dente, transfer the pasta to the pan with the sauce and mix it together. Add in as much pasta water as necessary, though the juices from the tomatoes should help with the body of the sauce.
  6. Once almost done, add in the Pecorino Romano and mix into the pasta.
The pasta of choice here, bucatini, is very interesting; it is just like spaghetti but with a hole through the center, which allows the sauce to really become immersed in the pasta. Also, the use of Italian tomatoes in this dish adds to the authenticity of the flavor, some recipes even call for what's called passata, which is more like a tomato puree and is more traditionally used in Italy, though harder to find. Anyways, with Italian ingredients or not, this is a delicious pasta dish that will be sure to satisfy anyone!

-Chefpo
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