Garganelli pasta with Romagna shallots and guanciale
The tasty traditional recipe from Emilia-Romagna is pretty quick and easy to make and perfect for weeknight meals. The delicious combination of shallots, tomatoes and guanciale/pancetta will ensure it becomes a family favourite!
Prep Time10 minutes mins
Cook Time30 minutes mins
Total Time40 minutes mins
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Emilia-Romagna, Italian, Northern Italy
Keyword: garganelli, guanciale, pancetta, pasta, shallots
Servings: 4
Calories: 805kcal
- 400 g garganelli pasta (14oz) fresh or dried
- 6-8 shallots from Romagna peeled and sliced
- 150 g guanciale or pancetta (5-6oz) thick slices cut into juliennes
- 12 cherry or date tomatoes
- ½ glass white wine
- 60 g Parmesan cheese (2-3 oz)grated
- 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon tomato concentrate
- salt for pasta and to taste
- black pepper to taste
peel the shallots and finely slice them, wash the tomatoes and cut them into halves or quarters. Then cut the guanciale or pancetta into julienne strips.
Heat the olive oil in a frying pan or skillet. Add the shallots and guanciale. Cook over a medium heat until the shallots soften and the fat from the guanciale starts to melt. (about 10 minutes) Add the white wine turn up the heat and let the alcohol evaporate.
Add the tomato paste, salt and pepper and a little water (½ cup). Stir to spread the paste evenly. Add the tomatoes and cook covered over a low heat for about 20 minutes. Add some of the pasta cooking water towards the end if the sauce seems dry.
While the sauce is cooking put a pan 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. If you are using fresh or homemade pasta this won’t take long. Save some of the pasta cooking water. Drain the pasta and add it to the sauce.
Mix everything together well and serve sprinkled with grated Parmesan and some more black pepper.
Traditionally this recipe is also served with tagliolini or tagliatelle pasta. You could also use other pasta tubes like penne.
Either guanciale or pancetta can be used in this recipe.
Calories: 805kcal | Carbohydrates: 84g | Protein: 24g | Fat: 41g | Saturated Fat: 14g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 6g | Cholesterol: 50mg | Sodium: 612mg | Potassium: 525mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 429IU | Vitamin C: 16mg | Calcium: 221mg | Iron: 3mg