Elephant Garlic Pasta (Pici all’Aglione).
Pici all’aglione is a classic vegan Italian pasta recipe made with elephant garlic and tomatoes. It's easy to make and seriously delicious. This recipe showcases the timeless flavours of Tuscany and exemplifies the art of Italian cooking at its simple best!
Servings: 4
Calories: 269kcal
Equipment
- 1 deep skillet for sauce
- 1 large pot for pasta
Ingredients
- 14 oz pici pasta (fresh or dried) or thick spaghetti or bucatini
- 14 oz tomato passata or fresh peeled tomatoes
- 1 head elephant garlic or 4 cloves
- 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil.
- salt for pasta and to taste
- freshly ground black pepper. to taste
- ½ fresh red chilli pepper or flakes
- fresh basil leaves optional
- Pecorino Romano optional for non vegans/vegetarians
Instructions
- Peel, chop and crush the aglione. Chop the red chili pepper if using a fresh one. And peel and chop the tomatoes if using fresh too.
- Sauté the aglione and chilli pepper in a little olive oil just until the garlic starts to soften. Then add a little warm water. Cover the pan and let the aglione cook slowly on a low heat until it’s really soft. (About 15 minutes).
- Every few minutes, mash the aglione with a fork and add more water if necessary. You don’t want it to brown. It should get creamy.
- Once the aglione is soft and creamy, add the tomato passata (or peeled tomatoes), some salt and pepper and mix everything together. Cover the pan again and simmer on a low heat for about 20 minutes.
- While the sauce is simmering, put a pot of water on to boil for the pasta. Add salt once it starts to boil and bring to the boil again. Cook the pasta al dente according to the instructions on the packet.
- Finally drain the pasta and add it to the pan with the sauce. Mix everything together gently over a low heat. Then serve immediately with some chopped fresh basil or grated Pecorino Romano if required.
Notes
This recipe can be made with thick spaghetti or bucatini if you don't have pici pasta.
Instead of elephant garlic see alternatives in the text above.
To make this recipe vegan or vegetarian, omit the cheese or use a vegan/vegetarian cheese. Italian pecorino is made with animal rennet.
To make this recipe gluten free, use gluten free pasta.
Nutrition
Calories: 269kcal | Carbohydrates: 42g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Sodium: 40mg | Potassium: 526mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 560IU | Vitamin C: 21mg | Calcium: 38mg | Iron: 3mg