Bucatini all’Amatriciana
One of the four Roman pastas, Amatriciana is made from just 6 ingredients but packs a flavor punch with sweet, tangy tomatoes, rich bits of guanciale, sharp and salty Pecorino Romano cheese, a little kick from red pepper flakes, and a splash of wine. All tossed into al dente bucatini, it’s an Italian masterpiece.
Servings: 4 servings
Ingredients
- 1 pound bucatini pasta
- 28 ounce can whole peeled tomatoes preferably San Marzano
- 8 ounces guanciale or pancetta if can’t find guanciale (diced or cut into ¼ inch thick strips)
- 1 cup fresh, finely grated Pecorino Romano cheese plus more to garnish
- ¼ cup dry white wine like pinot grigio
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes peperoncino
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- In a large pan or pot, cook the diced guanciale over medium heat, tossing often, until just crispy.
- Use a slotted spoon to drain the guanciale and set aside in a paper towel lined bowl.
- Pour off the excess liquid fat, leaving 2 tablespoons in the pan.
- Keeping the pan over medium heat, add the wine. Let cook and evaporate for 1 minute.
- Add tomatoes, and use scissors or a potato masher to roughly chop tomatoes into rustic pieces.
- Season with red pepper flakes and a dash of salt. Gently simmer over medium heat for 7-8 minutes, stirring often. Once done, keep sauce over very low heat to keep warm.
- While the sauce is simmering, boil the pasta. When the pasta is 1 minute from al dente, reserve ¼ cup pasta water.
- Drain pasta, and add to the sauce. Add pasta water. Toss.
- Add guanciale and Pecorino Romano. Toss again. Serve with more Pecorino.
Video
Notes
- If you can’t find bucatini, you can also use thick spaghetti or regular spaghetti, or even a short pasta of choice.
- Guanciale (cured pork cheek) is traditionally used in Amatriciana. It is fattier and richer than pancetta, but typically harder to find in a grocery store. If you can’t find guanciale, pancetta is a close second!
- Be mindful of added salt, as the Pecorino and guanciale are both salty!
- Amatriciana is mildly spicy (like this recipe). Adjust amount of red pepper flakes to taste.
- This recipe calls for Pecorino Romano cheese, not regular Romano (they are different!).
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 664kcal | Carbohydrates: 94g | Protein: 27g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 36mg | Sodium: 838mg | Potassium: 663mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 410IU | Vitamin C: 18mg | Calcium: 354mg | Iron: 4mg