Pasta Puttanesca Recipe
This easy 20 minute pasta meal is rich in flavor with little effort. Pasta alla puttanesca is an Italian pasta dish invented in Naples in the mid twentieth century, and is made typically with tomatoes, olive oil, olives, chili peppers, capers, and garlic and served with spaghetti. It is a savory meal with lots of Italian flavors you are sure to love!
Servings: 6 servings
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 onion finely chopped
- 1 shallot finely chopped
- 1 large garlic clove finely chopped
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes optional
- 1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
- 5 finely chopped anchovy fillets or 1 tablespoon anchovy paste (omit if desired)
- ½ cup pitted black olives
- 2 tablespoons capers drained
- salt to taste
- 1 pound dried spaghetti or long pasta of choice
- ½ small bunch fresh parsley finely chopped, for garnish
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large skillet over a medium heat. Add the onion and shallot, then lightly fry them for 8-10 minutes, or until soft. Add the garlic and chili flakes and cook for another minute.
- Stir in the tomatoes, anchovies, olives and capers, then bring to a gentle simmer and cook uncovered for 10 minutes. Season with salt to taste.
- Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to the boil. Salt generously with salt. Cook the spaghetti following the package instructions until al dente, then drain and reserve ⅓ cup of pasta water. Add the pasta water to the sauce and stir to combine.
- Toss the pasta with the sauce. Garnish with the fresh parsley and serve hot. Mangia! (Eat!)
Notes
- Here's the one rule every Italian knows: there's no Parmigiano cheese or basil in pasta alla puttanesca. Italians don’t use cheese in seafood pasta dishes, and since there are anchovies in the dish, this is a big no-no!
- Be careful not to burn the garlic; burnt garlic is bitter and can ruin the whole dish!
- Long pasta shapes like spaghetti, bucatini, capellini, and spaghettini are best paired with this rich, tomato-based sauce. Or, if you only have short pasta shapes on hand, feel free to change it to your preference.
- Cook the pasta perfectly al dente; boiling the pasta for too long will make it mushy.
- Toss the pasta with the sauce instead of just spooning it on top of the noodles. This will allow the pasta to soak up the sauce and give it a stronger flavor.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 380kcal | Carbohydrates: 60g | Protein: 12g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 3mg | Sodium: 383mg | Potassium: 265mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 500IU | Vitamin C: 8mg | Calcium: 44mg | Iron: 2mg
