About the Recipe
Red sauce is a staple of Italian pasta dishes and Amatriciana is probably one of the oldest recipes. While it is a common dish in Rome it actually originates from the town of Amatrice. The few ingredients keep it simple to create yet the guanciale (pig cheek) adds quite a bit to the flavor. You can also substitute the guanciale with thick cut bacon.
Ingredients
Ingredients
5oz guanciale (or pancetta), cut into lardons
1-2tsp chile flakes
1-2tsp freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup Dry white wine
14oz can whole peeled San Marzano tomatoes, crushed roughly by hand
1lb Dried Etto Mezzi Rigatoni
â…” cup finely grated pecorino romano, plus more for serving
Preparation
Step 1
Cook guanciale in a skillet until nicely rendered and crispy. Add your chile flakes and freshly ground black pepper (to taste) into the fat to bloom them for a few seconds. Remove guanciale and reserve for later.
Step 2
Deglaze pan with the white wine and cook for 1-2 minutes to reduce while scraping up any brown bits from the pan.
Step 3
Add the tomatoes and cook until tomatoes break up, and reduce into a more concentrated sauce, about 4-6 minutes. Add salt to taste, keeping in mind that the guanciale, pasta water, and pecorino romano will be salty as well.
Step 4
Meanwhile, cook Mezzi Rigatoni in salted water for about 2-3 minutes. Toss the pasta along with the reserved guanciale into your skillet with the sauce and add some of the starchy pasta water (about ½ to ¾ cups) in as well, tossing to coat it all together. Off of the heat, add grated pecorino romano and stir even more to fully coat the pasta with a glossy sauce. Top with cheese.
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