Cacio e Pepe
Recipes Italian Main Dish Meal ideas Pasta Vegetarian
Description
Treat yourself to a traditional Italian pasta dish with just a few ingredients. It can be on the table in about 30 minutes.
Ingredients
1 1/2 t. whole black peppercorns (NOT pre-ground or finely ground black pepper)
Kosher salt
1 lb. dry spaghetti
4 oz. freshly grated Pecorino Romano cheese
Directions
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Bring a large pot halfway full of water to a boil over medium-high heat.
Meanwhile, place 1 1/2 t. whole black peppercorns in a large skillet; cook over medium heat, shaking the skillet occasionally, until fragrant and you hear the peppercorns start to crackle or roll around in the skillet on their own, about 3 minutes. Let cool.
Coarsely crush them with a mortar and pestle or under a heavy pan on a cutting board, or coarsely grind in a spice grinder. Return to the skillet.
Add the dry spaghetti and a few pinches of kosher salt to the boiling water; cook according to package directions until just al dente, 8 to 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, finely grate the Pecorino Romano cheese on a Microplane or on the very small round holes of a box grater into a medium heatproof bowl that holds about 2 1/2 cups.
Right before the pasta is ready, transfer 1/2 c. of the cooking water to the skillet. Bring the water to a simmer over medium heat. Using tongs, transfer the pasta to the skillet, letting some water cling to the noodles. Cook, tossing often, until the pasta is well-coated and there is very little cooking water left in the skillet, 2 to 3 minutes. Turn off the heat.
Scoop about 1/2 c. more pasta cooking water into a measuring cup. Drizzle 1 to 2 T. of this water into the bowl of cheese; mash with a fork to evenly moisten it. Continue to drizzle more pasta water in and mash until the cheese becomes a soft paste. You may not need the full 1/2 cup, but make sure the cheese paste isn’t dry, or it will be harder to toss with the spaghetti.
Spoon about one-quarter of the cheese paste on top of the spaghetti; quickly toss together until the cheese melts. Continue gradually adding more dollops of cheese paste and tossing, making sure the cheese is well-blended and melted before adding more. Add drizzles of the pasta water as needed when the pasta seems dry to help blend the cheese, but don't add too much at this stage, just enough to moisten the noodles. Use the back of the tongs to break apart any clumps of the cheese paste, and make sure it doesn’t fall to the bottom of the skillet, where it can overheat and seize.
Once all the cheese paste has been tossed in and the noodles are glossy and coated, add pasta water in 1/4 cup increments, tossing between each, until the noodles are lightly sauced and well-coated but not runny.
Taste and season with salt, as needed.
Serve immediately.
4 servings.
Tips:
Cheese: If short on Pecorino Romano, add in some freshly grated Parmesan cheese. It has a nuttier, slightly sweeter flavor that doesn’t stand up quite as well to the pepper and pasta, but will yield a similar result. Don't use all Parmesan cheese, though, the essence of the dish will be lost.
Pasta: Other long pasta shapes like linguine can work, but avoid something really fine, like angel hair, because it will be very difficult to toss all those incredibly thin noodles and create a creamy sauce correctly.
Make ahead: You can toast and crush the peppercorns several hours ahead.
This pasta is best eaten immediately while hot. The sauce will continue to thicken as it cools, and reheating will not bring back the saucy consistency, but can make the melted cheese hard and clumpy.