Pasta alla pizzaiola 

I propose a delicious recipe and very simple to make: pasta pizzaiola!

A cheap and rustic first course that is made very quickly. Pasta alla pizzaiola is a dish that I really miss when some time has passed since the last time I eat it. It reminds me a lot of my childhood, because it was a classic of Saturday lunch: in winter broth, in summer pasta alla pizzaiola! It is easy but really tasty, also ideal for an improvised spaghetti with friends because it really satisfies everyone! The taste of tuna, the scent of oregano, the spicy pepper with vinegar... I'm already hungry! With this sauce I have always seasoned long pasta (as in this recipe) but it will be delicious with any thread of pasta you choose. 🙂 Traditionally, Italians eat pasta alla pizzaiola either with a long pasta such as spaghetti or bucatini, or with short penne or pennoni. Pennoni are giant penne. I used pennoni di Gragnano from a company called Il vecchio pastificio di Gragnano.

Ingredients

400 g pennoni pasta (14oz) or other pasta of your choice

500 g tomato passata (17oz) or canned peeled tomatoes

12 cherry tomatoes 

250 g fresh mozzarella

1-2 garlic cloves peeled

1-2 anchovy fillets 

1-2 teaspoon oregano dried 

3-4 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon capers (salted or preserved in vinegar)

INSTRUCTIONS

 

If using salted capers rinse under running water. If using cherry tomatoes wash them and cut into halves. Peel the garlic. Put a pot of water on to boil for the pasta. Add salt when it starts to boil and bring to the boil again. In a high-sided skillet or frying pan, sauté the garlic cloves, the anchovy fillets, the capers and the cherry tomatoes together with the olive oil. After a few minutes, once the anchovies have melted, add the tomato passata. Cook over a medium heat for about fifteen minutes. When half cooked, add salt to taste and sprinkle with the oregano, leave to simmer and flavor for 10 more minutes. Remove the garlic.  In the meantime, cut the mozzarella into small pieces and then cook the pasta al dente according to the instructions on the package. Remove some of the sauce from the pan. When it’s cooked, drain the pasta and add to the skillet/frying pan with the sauce. Mix everything together well to distribute the sauce evenly. Plate the pasta after putting a nice spoonful of the saved sauce in the bottom of the bowl/plate.  Put some mozzarella pieces onto the pasta before serving.

To bake your pasta alla pizzaiola

Transfer the pasta mixed with the sauce to a buttered oven dish. Cover the top with mozzarella slices and bake in a preheated oven at 180°C until the top starts to crisp and the mozzarella melts and browns slightly!

Note

Traditionally,  pasta alla pizzaiola is made with long pasta such as spaghetti or bucatini or short pasta like penne or pennoni (giant penne) You can also use vermicelli or fusilli!