Bucatini Mock Amatriciana Recipes

BUCATINI ALL'AMATRICIANA

Steps:

• Coat a large saucepan with olive oil. Add the guanciale and saute over low heat. Cook until it is brown and crispy and has rendered a lot of fat. Remove and reserve 1/3 of the guanciale for garnish. Bring the pan to a medium heat and add the onions and crushed red pepper. Season generously with salt, to taste. Cook the onions until they are translucent, starting to turn golden and are very aromatic. Add the tomatoes and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer the sauce for about 1 hour, tasting periodically. Adjust the salt, as needed.
• Bring a large pot of well salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook for 1 minute less than the instructions on the package. Remove 3 or 4 ladlefuls of the sauce from the pot to a bowl, as an insurance policy. You can always add it back in but it's harder to take out once the pasta is in the pan. You're looking for the perfect ratio between pasta and sauce. Drain the pasta from the water and add to the pot of sauce. Stir to coat with the sauce. This is how you always finish pasta; you cook it in the sauce to perform the marriage of the pasta and the sauce. Add more sauce, if necessary. Add in the cheese and drizzle with olive oil to really bring the marriage together. Toss to coat and serve in shallow bowls garnished with cheese and the reserved guanciale. Sprinkle with chives to finish, if using.
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BUCATINI ALL'AMATRICIANA

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt the water.
• Heat a large deep skillet over medium high heat. Add oil and pancetta. Cook pancetta 2 or 3 minutes then add onions and garlic and crushed red pepper flakes. Cook 7 or 8 minutes more, until onions are translucent. Add tomatoes and parsley. Season the sauce with salt and pepper. Simmer sauce over low heat until ready to serve.
• Cook bucatini pasta to al dente or, with a bite to it. Drain pasta well. Do not rinse. Starchy pasta holds more sauce. Toss hot pasta with sauce and serve. Pass grated cheese at the table to top pasta.

CLASSIC AMATRICIANA BUCATINI

Steps:

• Put the tomatoes into a food processor in batches and whizz to a fine pulp. Sieve into a large pan, in batches again, pressing through as much tomato as you can with a wooden spoon. Simmer for 20-30 mins until the sauce has reduced by a third to about 700ml. This homemade passata can now be frozen.
• Put the bacon or pancetta into a cold, large, heavy-based frying pan. Place over a medium heat - the fat will slowly melt and the bacon will cook. Add the whole chillies (don't worry, they come out at the end) and cook for 8-10 mins with the bacon until the bacon is sizzling and golden all over. Stir in the tomato sauce, bring to the boil and simmer for 4-5 mins.
• Meanwhile, cook the pasta, then drain well. While still hot, tip it into the sauce, sprinkle with most of the cheese and stir well. Remove the whole chillies, dish the pasta onto plates and sprinkle with the remaining cheese.

BUCATINI ALL'AMATRICIANA

Steps:

• Heat oil and butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add guanciale and cook, stirring, until barely beginning to brown. Add onion and garlic and cook, stirring, until translucent.
• Crush tomatoes and add to skillet. Cook, crushing tomatoes with the back of a spoon, until sauce has thickened, about 15 minutes; season with red pepper flakes and salt.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add bucatini and cook until al dente, about 5 minutes. Drain and transfer to skillet. Return skillet to heat and fold pasta and sauce together until heated through, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Fold in 1 1/2 cups cheese; season with salt and serve immediately with more cheese, if desired.

BUCATINI ALL'AMATRICIANA

Steps:

• Fill a large pot with lightly salted water and bring to a rolling boil. Stir in bucatini and return to a boil. Cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until bucatini is tender, about 11 minutes. Drain.
• Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add garlic cloves; cook until golden brown, about 1 minute. Remove with a slotted spoon and discard. Add guanciale; cook and stir until crisp and golden, about 4 minutes. Add onion and red pepper flakes; cook and stir until onion is translucent, about 3 minutes. Stir in tomatoes, salt, and black pepper. Simmer tomato sauce until flavors combine, about 10 minutes.
• Stir bucatini and Pecorino Romano cheese into tomato sauce and toss until evenly coated.

BUCATINI ALL'AMATRICIANA

Steps:

• Cut the pancetta or prosciutto into chunks less than one-half inch thick. Place in a saucepan with the olive oil and fry over low heat for 15 minutes, until all the fat has been rendered out and the meat is very crisp. Remove the meat from the pan with a slotted spoon and set aside.
• Add the onion to the pan and saute over medium heat for five minutes.
• Drain the tomatoes, finely chop them and add to the onion in the pan. Season with red-pepper flakes and salt and pepper to taste and simmer 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Meanwhile, bring a large pot of cold water to a boil and add salt to taste. Add the pasta and cook until al dente, about 9 to 12 minutes, depending on the brand. Drain well.
• Transfer the cooked sauce to a large heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add the pasta and the reserved meat and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Remove the skillet from the heat, add the cheese and mix very well. Transfer the pasta to a warm platter and serve immediately.

BUCATINI MOCK AMATRICIANA

Steps:

• Scatter the sliced onions in the big skillet, and pour in a cup of water. Bring the water to a boil, and simmer over moderate heat, softening the onions, until the water has almost totally evaporated.
• Pour in 1/3 cup of the olive oil, and stir to coat the onions. Raise the heat a bit, season with the salt and peperoncino, and cook, stirring frequently, until the onions are lightly colored, 4 to 5 minutes. Pour in the crushed tomatoes, stir well, and bring to a boil. Cook the sauce at a good bubbling pace for 10 minutes or so, until slightly thickened.
• Meanwhile, heat 6 quarts of water, with a tablespoon salt, to the boil in the large pot. When the tomatoes have been perking for a few minutes, drop in the bucatini and cook until quite al dente. Lift the pasta from the pot with tongs, drain briefly, and drop it onto the simmering sauce. Toss together for a minute or two, until the pasta is fully cooked and coated with sauce. If necessary, boil rapidly until any soupiness in the skillet has been cooked down.
• Turn off the heat, drizzle over the remaining olive oil, and toss with half of the grated pecorino. Serve immediately, passing more cheese at the table.