Julia Busuttil Nishimura’s five-ingredient spaghetti is the perfect Friday night food

Name: Julia Busuttil Nishimura’s five-ingredient spaghetti is the perfect Friday night food
Cook time: 30 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 150g guanciale, rind removed, cut into 1cm lardons; 400g canned, whole, peeled tomatoes (preferably San Marzano), crushed with your hands; 1 dried red chilli, crumbled; 360g spaghettone; 40g finely grated pecorino romano, plus extra to serve

Julia Busuttil Nishimura

August 18, 2023

Spaghettone all’amatriciana.William Meppem

easyTime:< 30 minsServes:4

Whenever I arrive in Rome, my first stop is always my favourite restaurant, where I sit at the bar and order a plate of pasta all’amatriciana. On my most recent trip, it was served with rigatoni, but it’s also excellent with long pasta such as bucatini, spaghetti or, as I’ve suggested here, spaghettone. Whichever you choose, just be sure to use dried pasta, not fresh egg pasta. With just a handful of ingredients, the key is to source the best produce you can find: the pecorino should be made with sheep’s milk and the guanciale top quality. I don’t worry about salt and pepper: I find the guanciale, chilli and pecorino provide all the seasoning this dish needs.

Ingredients

150g guanciale, rind removed, cut into 1cm lardons
400g canned, whole, peeled tomatoes (preferably San Marzano), crushed with your hands
1 dried red chilli, crumbled
360g spaghettone
40g finely grated pecorino romano, plus extra to serve

Method

Step 1
Place the guanciale in a large frying pan. Set the pan over a low heat and fry gently, stirring occasionally, until most of the fat has rendered out and the guanciale is golden but not crispy.
Step 2
Increase heat to medium and add the crushed tomatoes and chilli. Simmer for 8-10 minutes, or until the sauce has thickened.
Step 3
Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a large saucepan of generously salted water for about 1-2 minutes less than instructed on the packet.
Step 4
Drain the pasta, reserving 250ml (1 cup) of the cooking water. Transfer to the pan with the sauce, along with half of the reserved cooking water. Continue cooking the pasta in the sauce over a medium heat for 2 minutes, until the pasta is well coated and al dente. If the sauce becomes too dry, add more cooking water. Add the pecorino and mix into the pasta and sauce. Serve with additional grated pecorino.

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