Pasta Cacio e Pepe
Cacio e pepe is a deliciously peppery meatless pasta recipe from Rome and includes only 2 main ingredients apart from the pasta! Easy to make and perfect for weeknights! Have it on the table in about 30 minutes!
Servings: 4
Calories: 565kcal
Ingredients
- 400 g lombrichelli or tonnarelli (14oz) also made with spaghetti alla chitarra, bucatini or thick spaghetti
- 200 g Pecorino Romano cheese (7oz) freshly grated
- Freshly ground black pepper corns about 4 teaspoons Don’t grind too fine.
- Salt for boiling the pasta
Instructions
- Dry fry the roughly ground pepper corns in a small frying pan until they start to release their aroma.
- Put a pot of water onto boil for the pasta. Use a bit less water than you would normally. 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. Take a ladleful of the pasta cooking water and add to the pepper corns. Then keep aside another cupful of the cooking water, drain the pasta and add it to the pan with the peppercorns. I drain the pasta 'wet' meaning it should still have some water with it. Mix the pasta with the pepper.
- Add the grated pecorino continue mixing very well until the cheese starts to become creamy.
- If too dry add a little more of the cooking water. If too liquid add more cheese.
- Serve on heated plates, topped with more grated pecorino and another generous sprinkling of pepper.
Notes
An alternative way to make the sauce is to put the cheese and most of the pepper in a large, heavy bowl or pan and beat in some of the pasta water very gradually to make first a paste, and then a sauce the consistency of bechamel.
Add the pasta and toss well while adding more water if necessary, until you have a sauce that coats each strand of pasta. Don’t worry if it takes a while to come together – keep mixing and it should happen.
It is also recommended to use less water than usual when cooking the pasta (about half), because this will result in cooking water that is rich in starch and will make it easier to obtain a creamy result.
Add the pasta and toss well while adding more water if necessary, until you have a sauce that coats each strand of pasta. Don’t worry if it takes a while to come together – keep mixing and it should happen.
It is also recommended to use less water than usual when cooking the pasta (about half), because this will result in cooking water that is rich in starch and will make it easier to obtain a creamy result.
Nutrition
Calories: 565kcal | Carbohydrates: 76g | Protein: 29g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 52mg | Sodium: 606mg | Potassium: 266mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 208IU | Calcium: 553mg | Iron: 2mg