Amatriciana
12” skillet or 6-8 quart pot
Box grater
1.
In a skillet or pot, heat olive oil or lard over medium heat. Add pancetta and cook, stirring occasionally, until just golden. Add the onion and crushed red chili flakes, cooking until the onions are translucent, about 12 minutes. Keep the heat low to prevent browning and allow the onions to develop flavor as their sugars caramelize.
2.
Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Clear a space at the bottom of the pan and add the tomato paste, spreading it out to caramelize slightly. Cook for 2 minutes.
3.
Pour in the wine and reduce by half, then add balsamic vinegar and tomatoes. You can dice the tomatoes in advance, crush them by hand, or rough-dice them directly in the pot with a fork and butter knife.
4.
Add rosemary, salt, and pepper to taste. Reduce to a simmer and cook uncovered for 1 hour, tasting as it evolves. Adjust the seasoning with salt and balsamic vinegar as needed.
5.
If using Pecorino Romano, stir half of it into the sauce. Spoon over cooked pasta and garnish with the remaining cheese.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon lard or olive oil
- Diced pancetta, bought at your charcuterie or make your own, 8 ounces (230 grams)
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 1 teaspoon crushed red chili flakes
- 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- ½ cup dry red wine
- 2 tablespoons balsamic
- vinegar
- 1 can whole peeled tomatoes 28 ounces (795 grams)
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped rosemary
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Pecorino Romano 3 ounces (85 grams), divided (optional)
- One pound of dried pasta, cooked, will do the trick with this recipe.
Cook's Notes
I love a good sauce. At restaurants, I’m the one asking for extra on the side. For some, food is just an accessory to the condiment—you order fries for the ketchup, wedge salad for the blue cheese dressing, ribs for the barbecue sauce. I’m definitely in that camp.
I could easily eat a bowl of good red pasta sauce all on its own, spoon optional.
This recipe is my spin on the Italian amatriciana sauce. Traditional sugo all’amatriciana is made with guanciale, cured pork jowl, but if you’ve seen my kitchen, you know I’m usually curing pancetta. I often have 10 pounds of it hanging in the fridge or over the sink, strung up with a C-clamp. Pancetta is the belly—still rich with fat and full of flavor.
Typically, this Italian sauce doesn’t include herbs. If it did, basil would likely be the choice, but I use rosemary because that’s what my mother did, and childhood flavors are hard to resist. I also add balsamic vinegar for depth and red chili flakes for warmth. You can stick with tradition and sprinkle in Pecorino Romano, or leave it out.
You can use a large 12” skillet, but I prefer a stockpot with high walls to keep the sauce from splattering all over my stove.
Serve it over your pasta of choice—bucatini is classic, but spaghetti, ravioli, or malfatti all work beautifully. I like hand-cut egg noodles. Or, just eat it with a spoon—no judgment.