It is a very popular “red” sauce among Italians. Why not try to make this recipe at home?
Italian gastronomy is famous for its rich and consistent sauces that accompany many emblematic pasta dishes, like Bolognese, Carbonara, Pesto or even Arbbiata. But have you ever heard of this star sauce of Roman cuisine, appreciated in all the tables of Italy for its intense taste and its creamy texture?
It is a sauce that has emerged to amateur, a city of Latium in Italy, and which has the particularity of containing both a specific ingredient in the region, the Pecorino Romano, a sheep cheese which adds a spicy and salty flavor, and another just as essential, which gives the sauce its distinctive flavor: the guancial (dried pork cheek).
Let’s go for the recipe for “amatriciana” sauce! If its preparation is relatively easy, it requires very specific ingredients for perfect success. For 4 people, you will need 100 grams of finely chopped guancial, found in all Italian grocery stores, or in the absence of pancetta, available in supermarkets, which you will cut into bacon120 grams of grated Pecorino Romano, 400 grams of tomatoes peeled in a box (of Mutti or San Marzano type for example), 150 ml of white wine, the equivalent of a glass, two tablespoons of olive oil, a peperoncino (red pepper) or a pinch of cayenne pepper, salt and pepper.
Traditionally, Amatriciana sauce is served with Bucatini, these long tubular pasta, but it can also be married with spaghetti (400 grams will be enough for 4 people). And if you do not like tomato, there is also a “bianca” (white) version of the amatriciana, validated by the Italians, according to your preferences!
In a frying pan, heat the olive oil and enter the guancial (or pancetta) pieces over high heat for 5 minutes, adding the pepper pinch. Pour the white wine to the bottom of the pan, stir and let it evaporate then reserve everything on a plate.
In the same pan, add the peeled tomatoes with a pinch of salt and a pepper, then simmer for 7 minutes. The guancial (or pancetta) is then added to the pan. We cook the pasta, we drain them and we pour them directly into the pan to make them jump into the sauce. It is at this precise moment that we will add half of the Pecorino. We then serve on the plates and we will eventually sprinkle with the rest of the Pecorino. BUON APPTITITO!