The following recipe for Rigatoni All’ Amatriciana is the first in a series of twelve classic Italian pasta recipes constituting 12 fundamental pasta sauces. The mastering of all twelve pasta sauces will turn anyone into a full-fledged pasta chef. Before anything else, the novice pasta cook should master the art of cooking pasta. We have provided a guideline for this essential first step with Pasta Cooking Fundamentals inside our ‘Cooking School’ category.
ORIGIN OF THE SAUCE
The “amatriciana” sauce has originated in the town of Amatrice, north-east of Rome. However, Romans claim the sauce as their own – maybe rightly so. Unquestionably, the charm of a “trattoria” in the middle of a beautiful Roman square adds an incomparable flavor to a steaming plate of “bucatini all’amatriciana.”
• Prep. Time: 45 min.
• Serves 4
• Measurements are U.S. standard and metric units
INGREDIENTS
1 can whole peeled tomatoes (1 lb. 12 oz.) (794 g)
• If you can, use the finest imported Italian canned tomatoes. High quality tomatoes enhance any and all sauces.
1 medium-sized onion, peeled, sliced into long thin strips
1/4 cup (60 ml) extra virgin olive oil
• Italian cuisine is relatively simple. Its big secret is high-quality ingredients. Hence, if you can,
use a very fine extra virgin olive oil. Your palate and even health will benefit immensely.
2 slices of pancetta 1/4–inch-thick (1/2 cm),
about 1 ounce (30 g) each; or 2 slices of guanciale of equal size
• Pancetta is herb-cured pork belly. Guanciale is salt-cured pork jowl. Pancetta is easy to find in stores. Differently, guanciale may be difficult to find. As last resort, substitute both with un-smoked bacon.
• The original unmitigated recipe uses guanciale.
1 dried Italian peperoncino (hot red chili pepper), shredded;
or 1/2 teaspoon (5 g) crushed red pepper
• The amount of Italian peperoncino or crushed red pepper goes up or down according to personal taste.
Salt
1 pound (454 g) dried rigatoni pasta, preferably imported Italian
1 ounce (30 g) pecorino Romano cheese, grated (about 1/4 cup)
• Pecorino cheese is made with sheep’s milk. Obviously, pecorino ‘Romano’ is made in the Rome region, hence the name.
DIRECTIONS
Prepare the ingredients. Slice the onion. Cut the pancetta or guanciale into strips 1 inch (2 cm) long and 1/4 inch (1/2 cm) wide. Open the can of tomatoes. Extract the tomatoes from the tin can and transfer them to a bowl. Cut the tomatoes into chunks. Discard any tomato juice left inside the can. Grate the pecorino romano cheese. If Italian peperoncino is used, shred it into pieces.
Place extra virgin olive oil and onion in a high-sided large saucepan over medium heat. Cook and stir from time to time until the onion is tender, translucent, and pale gold (not brown), about 10 minutes cooking time.
Add Italian peperoncino or crushed red pepper. Stir thoroughly. Next, add either pancetta or guanciale. Cook and stir from time to time until the pancetta or guanciale becomes colored a pale gold (but before it begins to crisp).
Add the tomatoes and raise heat to high. Add 1/2 teaspoon (5g) of salt. Cook 10 minutes, stirring from time to time. Turn off heat.
As soon as the water inside the stockpot comes to a boil, add salt, and introduce the pasta. Reheat the sauce over low heat about 2 or 3 minutes before the pasta is entirely cooked.
When the pasta is perfectly cooked, drain it and immediately transfer it to the saucepan together with the sauce over low heat. Gradually, stir in grated pecorino Romano cheese and mix thoroughly. Turn off heat. Fix individual servings topped with a little sauce. Serve at once. Enjoy!
COOKING TIP
Onions contain a great deal of water. They have to cook alone and long enough in order to extract the onion’s own flavor after the water has evaporated. Any other way is sure disaster. In fact, if raw onions were to cook together with other ingredients their water would flood the accompanying ingredients giving the entire mixture a flavorless boiled like quality.
SIDE NOTE
In Rome the Amatriciana sauce is customarily served with “Bucatini” pasta, a long thick spaghetti like pasta. However, Rigatoni pasta and/or Penne pasta work as well.
The cold war never ended: Western Pasta and Eastern Rice still confront each other.
