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Pasta Aglio Olio e Peperoncino (Italian Garlic Oil and Chilies Stanley Tucci)

pastaaglioeoilopeperoncinoThis recipe in Italy is called Aglio Olio e Peperoncino because chili pepper is the other key ingredient in this recipe. In fact, it's one of the traditional Italian dishes that has to be spicy. You can't remove the chili pepper, otherwise you'll make another dish.

¾ lb spaghetti or other long pasta (350 g)
2 cloves garlic
2 chili peppers (fresh or dried)
6 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 handful fresh parsley, chopped and fresh (optional)

In a large pot, bring plenty of water to a boil. When it boils, add the coarse salt. Then add the pasta and cook the spaghetti, stirring occasionally. Follow the cooking time indicated on the package (usually 8-12 minutes).

While the pasta is cooking, clean the garlic cloves. Cut them in half and remove the inner part. Finally cut the cloves into slices.

Then take the red chilies and cut them into thin slices. If you don't want too spicy a flavour, cut them lengthwise and remove the seeds. Then slice them finely.

Heat 6 Tbsp. of extra-virgin olive oil in a frying pan. Add sliced garlic and sauté for about 2 minutes. Be careful that it doesn't burn. Burnt garlic gives the dish a bitter taste that is very strong. Add the chili pepper and sauté for about 3 minutes.

Cook the pasta al dente. When ready, drain the pasta. Transfer to the frying pan with the garlic and red hot chili.

Stir and sauté the spaghetti in the pan for 1 minute so that they can absorb the flavours of the aglio olio sauce. Serve pasta aglio e olio really hot with a sprinkling of finely chopped fresh parsley.

Variations:

There are many variations of this simple and classic recipe. Every region in southern Italy has its own version of spaghetti aglio e olio recipe. So let's look at some local Italian variations of this great pasta dish.

  • Cherry Tomatoes: In Puglia, they often add fresh cherry tomatoes to make the dish tastier.
  • Breadcrumbs and Anchovies: In Calabria, they add breadcrumbs and anchovy fillets: the anchovies melt together with the garlic and chili pepper dressing. The bread crumbs are chopped and toasted in a pan. Then spaghetti is seasoned with all these ingredients.
  • Pasta alla Carrettiera: The Sicilian variant is called "pasta alla Carettiera" and involves the addition of toasted bread crumbs, dried tomatoes and capers.
  • Cheese: Some add grated pecorino Romano or Parmigiano before serving.
  • Chili Pepper: There are hundreds of varieties of red hot chili peppers all over the world. The dosage and taste is really subjective. In Italy the most used in recipes is the very spicy Calabrian red hot pepper. The amount given in the recipe is to give the dish a flavor that is not too spicy. If you like a very spicy taste, you can always add more chili to taste.