Bucatini alla Amatriciana
Bucatini in an aromatic tomato sauce
Bucatini alla Amatriciana originates from the town of Amatrice, in the Northern part of the Lazio province. Though it is not originally a roman dish as such, it has been adopted as a real roman classic, and is to be found in almost any trattoria in Rome. It is one of the most famous Italian pasta dishes, also abroad.
Before the tomato gained foothold in Italy, bucatini alla amatriciana was called All’Amatriciana Bianco or La Matriciana. It consisted of Guanciale, Pecorino and olive oil. Basically, the Pasta alla gricia. First description of tomato in the dish dates from 1790.
Amongst bucatini alla amatriciana aficionados you can be sure to spark a heated discussion if you claim that garlic or onion should be added to the dish! Deviations of the below ingredients is blasphemy, in some chefs eyes.
Unfortunately, this dish is not the only thing giving Amatrice international attention. On 24 August 2016, an earthquake struck Amatrice, devastating most of the town and killing many of its inhabitants.
The town of Amatrice is of cause very proud of their world famous dish, and if you want to make it the right way, not insulting anyone with blasphemic deviations, you can find their official instructions here.
Ingredients
4 persons (starter)
- 400 gr pasta of your liking
- 100 gr. Guanciale or Bacon
- 75 gr Pecorino Romano cheese + some for topping the dish
- 1 can of Tomato sauce (350 gr)
- 1 tbsp Extra virgin olive oil
- 50 ml. Dry White Wine
- Salt, Pepper (Be carefull with the seasoning, the Pecorino is very salty)
- 1-2 small dried pepperoncini chili pepper
Put the meat in a frying pan already heated to meadium heat with a splash of olive oil. If using guanciale, no added fat is needed. Sauté over medium heat for a five to seven minutes or until meat is golden (guanciale will get transparent due to high amount of fat) and deglaze with white wine.
Add the tomato and the crushed chilies to the frying pan and cook for a few minutes. If the sauce seems very wet, heat it up, to make it a bit creamier.
When the pasta is cooked al dente, add it to the sauce, stir well and add the cheese. Turn down the heat to low and stir vigorously until the cheese have melted and serve immediately. Serve with grated pecorino a side to drizzle.
Tips
The right pasta for this dish is bucatini, but you can use spaghetti, penne or whatever you like, even fresh pasta.
A rule of thumb says that the right balance between guanciale and pasta is 4 to 1, ex. 500 grams of pasta to 125 grams of guanciale.
Variations will certainly not harm the dish, garlic or herbs like thyme, oregano or rosemary as the most obvious ingrediencies to add. But it is important the onion and garlic is softened at low heat, and not browned.
Guanciale is not to be found in all supermarket around the globe, especially not the one with Amatrice origin. You can use Pancetta or bacon instead, without compromising the dish.
If you don’t have Pecorino, or dislike it, replace it with Parmesan/Grana Padano, it will work perfectly, even though Pecorino will give the most original sharp taste that makes this dish so wonderful.
Some would remove the crispy pieces of guanciale when crispy after with a slotted spoon, and place on fat soaking paper towel, before deglazing with wine. They would then be drizzled over the dish before serving.