Italians argue over the origin of this dish. The Romans say Rome, but most Italians believe it was in the town of Amatrice, about an hour east of Rome, considered by many Italians to be the birthplace of the best cooks on the peninsula.
It's a simple concept - you don't need that much "stuff" in your pasta, just noodles and sauce. It's all in the tomato sauce. You just simmer those tomatoes until they are perfectly sweet and delicious, and don't add any extra herbs or spices, just the plump juicy italian tomatoes. Now the one problematic thing about making this sauce is that the Italians use guanciale, which is cured pork jowls. There's no chance I'm going to be finding that down here, so I, like most people used pancetta, and it was perfect. Sorry Italy.
Bucatini alla Amatriciana
Ingredients
1 lb bucatini (spaghetti, linguine work too)
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, cut in half-moon slivers
2-3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1/4 lb pancetta, sliced into hunks
**(1/4 pound guanciale, in 1-inch slivers 1/4-inch thick if you found it)
1 28oz can of whole Italian Tomatoes
1/2 tsp Red pepper flakes (to taste if you like a heat)
Freshly grated parmesan and romano cheese
Add the oil, garlic, onion, and pancetta to a pan over medium heat. Cook until the onion becomes slightly translucent.
Add the tomatoes, pepper flakes, and salt if needed. I don't add salt here because the pancetta is salty and I don't think it needs it. You can always go back and add at the end.
Crush the whole tomatoes against the side of the saucepan with a wooden spoon.
Simmer uncovered for about 25-45 minutes. Taste and correct for salt and spiciness.
While simmering the sauce, boil salted water and cook the pasta to the desired firmness. Don't over cook the noodles!! Cook 2 minutes less than what the package says.
Toss the cooked pasta with the sauce, though if you didn't make all the noodles, save half the sauce for another night before mixing in the pasta!
Top with some fresh grated parmigiana or romano and a little basil. I served with some wilted spinach and lightly blanched and sauteed snap peas.
This is one of the quickest tomato sauces to throw together and I love the big hunks of tomato that didn't get fully broken up. Sometimes I use my immersion blender to puree a smoother sauce, but for this dish, leave the chunks. I almost feel like I'm back in Rome.
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