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Nick Anderer & Natalie Johnson Leon’s Bucatini all’Amatriciana
Yield: serves 2
Ingredients:
- 8 oz bucatini, roughly half a box
- 3 oz guanciale or slab bacon, cut in ¼ inch thick batons/lardons
- ½ medium-sized red onion, cut in ¼ inch thick slices
- ¼ teaspoon red chili flake
- ¼ teaspoon cracked black pepper
- 6-7 oz tomato puree
- ½ cup grated pecorino romano (divided)
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- ¼ cup kosher salt + small pinch to taste
For serving:
Pecorino romano cheese
Instructions:
- Bring 4 qts of water to a simmer in a large pot.
- In a large (10-inch) sauté pan, over medium-low heat, add the olive oil and render thebacon/guanciale batons slowly, stirring frequently, for roughly 4 minutes, or until the batons become brown but not fully crispy. If there is an excessive amountof rendered drippings in the pan (more than 2 tablespoons) remove a little bit, being sure to leave at least 1Tablespoon of the drippings behind.
- Add the onions to the pan, season with a small pinch of salt, and cook for another 1-2 minutes, or until they turn opaque.
- Add the chili flake and black pepper to the pan, stir and cook together for 10 seconds and then add the tomato puree. Bring to a gentle simmer, but do not reduce. Set aside, and wait for pasta to cook.
- Drop the bucatini in the boiling water and cook for 1-2 minutes shy of the box instructions.
- Drain the pasta, reserving a small amount of the pasta water (1/2 cup) to add to the sauce as needed.
- Add the drained bucatini to the sauce and bring to a simmer, incorporating a small splash of the pasta water to help the sauce flow around the noodles.
- Simmer the pasta and sauce together for 1 minute, adding more water as needed to keep the sauce from sticking to the bottom of the pan.
- Remove from heat, and toss in half of the pecorino.
- Divide into two pasta bowls, or serve on one large platter to share. Sprinkle the remaining pecorino on top. Enjoy!
