This sauce literally has 3 main ingredients and is so, so delicious. It is unbelievable how so few ingredients can come together to make something so satisfying in under 25 minutes, and it’s no wonder why this traditional simple dish has stood the test of time. Spaghetti All’amatriciana gets its name from the town Amatrice in the Lazio region of Italy. The dish is a combination of pancetta, tomato and red onion, seasoned and cooked to perfection. Your family and friends are going to be wondering what your secret is to make a sauce that is so delicious!
It is meant to be served with bucatini, Guanciale and Pecorino-Romano cheese, but most people don’t have any of these ingredients in their pantry every day, so I’ve changed them all! It is just as delicious with spaghetti, pancetta and Parmigiano-Reggiano. Whatever you choose to make this sauce with, I guarantee it will become a weeknight staple at your house.
Ingredients you will need
- Pancetta
- Store-bought spaghetti noodles
- Canned San Marzano tomatoes
- Red onion
- Olive oil
- Salt and pepper
- Red pepper flakes (optional)
- Parmigiano-reggiano (for garnish)
Tools you will need
- Saucepan
- Large pot
- Blender
- Parmesan grater
- Sharpe knife
- Cutting board
The Details
Start by boiling and salting the pasta water and heating the olive oil in a pan. Your everyday extra virgin olive oil is all you need.
Then you can get started on chopping the pancetta. I use pancetta because it is easy to find in the local grocery store and offers a deeper flavor compared to bacon. I go to the deli and ask them to cut me a 1 inch thick slice and it works out to be the perfect amount for this recipe. Or you could ask for 2 half-inch pieces, which would reduce the chopping you have and make your bits of pancetta perfectly and consistently sized. You could also choose to buy the pre-cut pancetta that comes in a package if you find that easier. However, I find this to be a slightly more expensive option and the chopping really only takes a minute.
Cook the pancetta for around 8 minutes until it is starting to look a bit brown.
While the pancetta is cooking, chop up your red onion into really fine pieces. I like them to be extra fine so that the onions break down into the sauce and don’t create a chunky sauce. If you like chunky sauce, feel free to chop them a little larger.
You might think this is too much red onion as they can be particularly strong, but they really do break down and sweeten up as you cook them, so don’t worry! Plus, the combination of pancetta and red onion packs so much flavor you are not going to regret it.
Cook the onions for 5 minutes until they are translucent, but not brown. If they start to brown, turn the heat down.
While the pancetta and onions are cooking add your San Marzano tomatoes into a blender and blend until smooth. Using San Marzano tomatoes makes such a difference in your cooking, and I recommend using them whenever possible. I buy mine in bulk from Costco and it is a much better deal than buying them at your local grocer because they can be expensive. The traditional Italian way is to crush them by hand, but I like the texture of blended tomatoes better for this recipe, so I spin them up in the blender before adding them to the sauce.
Before you add the tomatoes to your sauce, add a pinch of red pepper flakes and cook in the oil for 30 seconds. This is a key ingredient in most of my recipes, but always optional if you really don’t like spice or if you are cooking for young children.
Now you can add the blended tomatoes to the pan. Stir everything together and let it simmer for 8 – 10 minutes to allow the flavours to come together.
Add Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste. Always use freshly ground. No excuses. If you don’t have a pepper mill I would suggest investing in one as it makes a huge difference in elevating your dish.
Your pasta should be ready by now. If it’s ready before the sauce has had time to simmer you can drain it and set aside, making sure that you have reserved some of the pasta water.
This reserved pasta water is a key component to cooking pasta dishes. The last step when cooking pasta should always be to add some of the salty, starchy pasta water, which gives it additional seasoning from the salt and marries the pasta with the sauce to really make them come together as a dish.
Let the pasta and sauce simmer together for a minute or two and you are ready to serve this perfect dish.
Finish with a Pinch of Parm!
FAQ
Pancetta and bacon are not the same, although they both come from the belly of the pork. If you don’t have pancetta, then you can substitute bacon in this dish and it will still be amazing. You can also go the traditional route and substitute guanciale, which is similar to pancetta but made from pork cheeks, and will provide a great flavor to the dish as well. However, I find this is a less common ingredient and harder to find in my area, so pancetta it is!
Officially, no. Only cheese that is directly from Italy is allowed to be called Parmigiano-Reggiano. So you know when you’ve got the real stuff when you see that name. This doesn’t mean you can’t use parmesan cheese from the deli. I recommend not using the stuff that is in a green and red plastic container and sits on a shelf instead of in a refrigerated area. It will not give you the same results, as it doesn’t melt into the sauce and can give it a grainy texture.
Bucatini or rigatoni are great substitutions for this dish.
This dish is just as great the next day, although the sauce may be a little thicker than when you first made it. Give it no more than 3 days in the refrigerator.
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
Pairing
These are my favorite dishes to serve with Spaghetti All’Amitriciana:
Wine Pairings
This dish would be best served with a dry, medium- to full-bodied red wine. If you are looking for a traditional Italian wine pairing, try a Chianti Classico or Babera Superioire. If you are looking for a more local new world wine, look for a Grenache grown in Australia or the United States, or a Merlot or Cabernet Franc grown in Canada.
And because I grew up in the Niagara region of Ontario Canada and now live in British Columbia, Canada, I can’t help but suggest a couple of good Canadian wines.
- Black Sage Vineyard – Cabernet Franc, Sumac Ridge, British Columbia
- Quail’s Gate – Merlot, Okanagan Valley, British Columbia
- Painted Rock – Estate Grown Cabernet Franc, Skaha Bench, British Columbia
- Megalomaniac – Reserve Cabernet Franc, Twenty Mile Bench, Ontario
- Two Sisters – Merlot, Niagara River, Ontario
Spaghetti All’amatriciana
Ingredients
- 8 oz spaghetti
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 4 oz of pancetta cut into ¼ inch pieces
- ½ large red onion or 1 small red onion
- Pinch of red pepper flakes optional
- 28 oz can of San Marzano tomatoes
- Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
- ¼ cup reserved pasta water
- ¼ cup freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano
Instructions
- Fill your pot with water and salt and bring to a boil over high heat. Cook your pasta for about 2 minutes less than what the package says so that it is al dente. If you are using fresh pasta, cook until the noodles are slightly underdone, as they will continue to cook when you add them to the sauce in the last step.
- Heat the oil in a saucepan over medium-high heat.
- Add the pancetta and saute for 6-8 minutes. Meanwhile, add your San Marzanos to the blender and blend until smooth.
- Add the red onions and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. If they start to brown, turn the heat down.
- Add the red pepper flakes and cook for 30 seconds.
- Add the blended tomatoes and simmer for 8-10 minutes.
- Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Add the spaghetti and reserved pasta water. Mix well and simmer in the pan for 1-2 minutes.
- Serve with freshly grated parm on top. Perfection.
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