Spaghetti aglio, olio and peperoncino, with friarielli and a few pieces of pancetta 🤩❤️

Spaghetti with turnip greens and bacon is a very tasty variant of the classic Apulian recipe "orecchiette with turnip greens and sausage". Turnip greens, also known as friarielli, are an excellent vegetable to use in the kitchen especially for the preparation of first courses.

Ingredients 

2 bunches turnip greens (or broccoli)

350 g spaghetti

200 g smoked bacon

Half anonion

2 tbs pextra virgin olive oil

salt

chili pepper

Preparation 

Start by cleaning the turnip greens. Remove the damaged or yellowed leaves, cut off the toughest stems with a knife and finally rinse the vegetables under running water. Cook the turnip greens in plenty of salted water for about ten minutes, or until the vegetables are soft. When the turnip greens are ready, drain them in a colander and let them cool. At this point, with the help of a pair of kitchen scissors, chop them and set them aside. In the meantime, fry half an onion in a pan with 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil. Then add the smoked bacon and sauté. When the bacon is crispy, add the turnip greens cut into small pieces, stir, add salt and a pinch of chilli. Cover with a lid and cook for about ten minutes. Now cook the spaghetti. You can also use the water in which you previously cooked the vegetables. Drain the pasta al dente and stir it in the pan together with the sauce, adding a few ladles of hot water if necessary. In this way, the spaghetti will finish cooking by releasing an amount of starch that will help create a creamy dish. Finally, if you like, you can sprinkle the dish with grated cheese or toasted breadcrumbs.