Best Pasta Allamatriciana Cooks Illustrated Recipes

PASTA AMATRICIANA

Steps:

• Make sure to have a pot of boiling salted water for pasta going before starting this dish. You will not cook the pasta all the way as you will finish it in the pan with the sauce.
• Drop the pasta into the boiling water to start the cooking process.
• Meanwhile, in a saute pan heat some oil over high heat and add the pancetta. Saute until the pancetta is rendered (most of the fat melts away), and then turn the heat down to medium. Pancetta should look like crispy bacon. Add the onions and stir constantly making sure the onions do not burn. Once the onions are soft and cooked through, add the red sauce. Cook for 1 minute, and then add the cheese and pepper flakes, stirring to incorporate.
• Turn off the heat on the sauce and add the cooked pasta to the pan with the sauce. Turn the heat back on to low and toss the pasta constantly so that the sauce will stick to the pasta (the sauce should be thick and shouldn't create a pool on the plate). Transfer the pasta and sauce to a bowl and sprinkle more cheese on top to serve.

SPAGHETTI ALL'AMATRICIANA

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat.
• Meanwhile, unroll the pancetta. Cut it into 1-inch long chunks, and then slice each chunk thinly across the grain.
• Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over moderately low heat. Add the pancetta and cook until it renders some of its fat, about 5 minutes. Do not allow it to crisp. Add the onion and cook until soft, about 10 minutes. While the onion is cooking, add the pasta to the boiling water.
• Add the red pepper flakes and parsley to the onion mixture and cook briefly to release their fragrance. Add the vinegar and simmer briefly until it evaporates, then add the tomato puree and 1/4 cup of the pasta water. Simmer briefly to blend.
• When the pasta is just shy of al dente, drain it and return it to the warm pot over moderate heat. Add the sauce and cook briefly so the pasta absorbs some of the sauce, then transfer the pasta to a warmed serving bowl and shower with the pecorino. Serve immediately.

PASTA AMATRICIANA

Steps:

• In a large (12-inch) skillet, heat olive oil over medium. Add guanciale and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden, about 5 minutes. To the skillet, add tomatoes, black pepper and red-pepper flakes, and season with salt. Cook, stirring occasionally and smashing tomatoes with the back of a wooden spoon, until tomatoes have broken down and sauce is thickened, about 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile, in a large pot of salted water, cook pasta according to package directions until just shy of al dente. Reserve 1 cup of the pasta cooking water and drain.
• Add pasta, tomato sauce and ½ cup of pasta cooking water back to the large pasta pot and stir vigorously over medium-high heat until pasta is evenly coated in the sauce, about 1 minute. (Add more pasta water if sauce is dry.) Remove from heat, stir in the cheese and season to taste with salt.
• Divide pasta among bowls and garnish with more cheese and black pepper.

PASTA AMATRICIANA

Steps:

• Cook chopped slab bacon in oil until done; remove with slotted spoon. Cook onion until soft, add chopped tomatoes, make sauce and toss with cooked spaghetti and bacon. Garnish: Pecorino.

PASTA ALL'AMATRICIANA

Steps:

• Cut guanciale into 1-inch by 1/8-inch strips.
• Heat olive oil over medium heat in a saucepan. Add guanciale and cook until well browned and fully rendered, 5 to 7 minutes. Turn off the heat and use a slotted spoon to transfer it to a bowl. Leave all fat in the pan.
• Start pasta: Bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil. Cook rigatoni in the boiling water, stirring occasionally, until not quite done, about 10 minutes. You want it undercooked by at least 1 to 1 1/2 minutes.
• At the same time, add wine to the guanciale fat in the saucepan. Place over medium-high heat and cook for about 1 minute. Stir in tomato sauce and pepper; bring to a simmer.
• Transfer the almost fully-cooked pasta into the sauce using a slotted spoon; it's okay if some water gets in the sauce. Add guanciale and stir to combine. Season with salt. Cook and stir until pasta absorbs the sauce and finishes cooking, and the sauce thickens up, about 3 minutes. If the sauce gets too thick, add a splash of the pasta water.
• Turn off the heat and add some of the Pecorino cheese. Stir until melted, then repeat until all cheese has been added.
• Ladle into 2 bowls and serve.