spaghetti aglio e olio.

From Naples, a typical and popular Neapolitan dish.

Consisting of only a few readily available and fairly cheap ingredients. This simple pasta dish serves more to your understanding of making a proper, well-made pasta dish than the sum of it’s parts. While illustrating the method of emulsifying fat with pasta water, if you can maintain your focus on the few ingredients in front of you, you will inevitably understand how these common ingredients play with each other, namely olive oil, garlic, parsley, chili and lemon.

How fat can carry aroma/taste (flavor).

Ingredients:

  • 80g dried spaghetti/spaghettoni.

  • 2 garlic cloves, finely diced.

  • 1/2 pepperoncino calabrese, finely diced.

    Or any fresh red chili pepper, 1/2 tbsp of dried chili flakes work as well.

  • 4 sprigs parsley, stems and leaves, separated.

  • 3-4 tbsp olive oil.

  • 1 tsp lemon juice.

  • kosher salt.

Equipment:

  • sauté pan.

  • wide saucepot.

Yield:

  • 1 serving.

Execution:

  1. prep.

  • Fill a pot about a quarter ways with water, season with salt until its salty like the sea and bring to a boil over high heat. By only filling the pot only a quarter way with water you will create a richer, more starch concentrated pasta water which will help emulsify your sauce.

  • To prepare the garlic, first chop fine, then mash against your cutting board with the side of your knife until it turns to a paste, chop the parsley fine, without bruising the herb by placing the leaves on top of each other, then roll like a cigar. Using your knife, slice the leaves into ribbons, this is called a chiffonade. Keep 2, 3” stems of the parsley and set aside.

2. cook.

  • Add the pasta to the boiling water.

  • Add the olive oil to a sauté pan, add the garlic, pepperoncino and parsley stems, place over low heat.

  • Once the aromatics start bubbling slightly, add 2 tbsp of pasta water and bring to a simmer over low heat, this will become incredibly aromatic in a few minutes. Remove the parsley stems before adding the pasta.

  • When the pasta is just a minute shy of al dente, remove from the pot and add to the sauté pan, bring the heat to medium and begin tossing the pasta in the sauce for about 3 minutes. (You are essentially cooking the pasta in the sauce.)

  • Once the sauce has properly emulsified, meaning the sauce surrounding the pasta should be smooth and creamy, the oil and pasta water should become one, cut the heat, add a few drops of lemon juice and the chopped parsley.

  • Off heat, add a small drizzle of olive oil while stirring/tossing the pasta to cream the sauce further, this is called “mantecare”, in Italian meaning; mixing a sauce to create creaminess.

  • Serve.