If you’ve never made this pasta,allow me to hold your hand a little. The key to this dish is in thoroughly reducing the sauce to the point of burning – that lightly charred,sticky flavour is the heaven-sent element of a proper assassina. You also need to disregard your urge to interfere. Leave it to bubble,sizzle and splatter – it’s what makes this so good. It may get its name from the cook “killing” the pasta,but in truth,that is what makes the dish come alive.
Ingredients
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 1 brown onion,finely diced
- 3 garlic cloves,finely chopped
- 500g spaghetti (bucatini is also fun;traditionalists look away)
- 2 cups tomato passata
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 litre water
- chilli flakes,to taste
Method
- Place a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the olive oil and once hot,add the onion and cook until soft and translucent,about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another minute before adding the pasta. Leave it to cook undisturbed for a minute or two before adding the tomato passata.
- Now leave it be. It will begin to thicken and turn dark red,blackening at the edges of the pan – don’t be alarmed. While this is happening,bring the litre of water to the boil and add the tomato paste to the water,stirring to combine.
- As the tomato passata reduces,bubbles and hisses,and the pasta cooks,add a ladle of tomato water every so often,continuing to add gradually until the liquid has mostly been absorbed,and the pasta has softened to al dente,about 10-12 minutes. You might not need to add all the water. Test a strand of pasta a few times along the way − the soft parts should be al dente,and the liquid should be sauce-like and coating the pasta,rather than soupy.
- Add dried chilli flakes to taste and transfer into serving bowls. Season with salt,pepper and more chilli flakes,and enjoy piping hot.
Serves 4-6
Chicken and vodka pasta bake
A touch of vodka brings depth to this glorious chicken pasta one-pot wonder. I do recommend,time permitting,that you can let the chicken simmer for 30 minutes. You could even prepare the chicken a few days ahead and finish the dish the day of eating for a scheduled-ahead midweek win. The flavours only improve with time.
Ingredients
Cheesy,meaty Friday night pasta bake
So cheesy,so easy,so completely satisfying. A quick supermarket deli aisle raid,two minutes of prep,throw the ingredients in the dish,then let it do its thing in the oven. Done. The pasta will be soft and yielding in parts,crunchy and golden in others. Take that as a perfect midweek win.
Ingredients
- 500g casarecce pasta
- ½ cup olive oil
- ½ cup pitted kalamata olives,chopped
- ½ cup sun-dried tomatoes,chopped
- 280g jar mini peppers (capsicums),halved
- ½ cup chopped herbs (I used parsley,oregano and basil)
- 3½ cups chicken stock
- 100g provolone,grated
- 200g mozzarella,sliced
- 100g sliced cured meats (I used a mix of salami and prosciutto)
- basil leaves or other herbs,to scatter
Method
- Preheat the oven to 170C fan-forced (190C conventional).
- To a rectangular casserole baking dish,add the pasta,olive oil,olives,sun-dried tomatoes,peppers and herbs. Give them a quick stir to combine. Pour over the stock and stir again. Add the provolone and mozzarella then top with the slices of cured meat. Season with salt and pepper,cover loosely with foil and cook for 30 minutes.
- Remove the foil and cook for another 20 minutes,or until the pasta looks crunchy in some bits,soft in others. The liquid should have evaporated,the meat will be crisp and the cheese brown and bubbling. Scatter with herbs,and season again if you wish,before serving.
Serves 4-6
Assassina meets pasta limone
This takes the cooking technique of spaghetti all’assassina (see recipe above) and introduces it to pasta limone. The lemon and the pasta caramelise and take on some colour,transporting the concept of lemon pasta into an entirely different territory – one that is deeper,more intriguing and far more interesting to eat. Throw some chilli flakes and parmesan at it,and this is a superb meal.