10min Spaghetti Cacio e Pepe.
This is a super quick and delicious recipe from my ‘10min Pasta’ series. The idea of this series is to share pasta recipes that can be whipped up in the time it takes to cook some dried pasta!
Cacio e pepe is one of the simplest pasta dishes going. With just a few ingredients, you really want to make sure they’re good quality to get the best out of the recipe. I like to use a firm, mature pecorino cheese for this as it give a lovely tangy flavour. Freshly ground black pepper is a must too!
Recipe serves 2.
Ingredients.
150-200g spaghetti, or another long pasta of choice
A few tbsp salt, for the pasta water
A knob of butter
60g grated pecorino, the mature, firm variety
1 tsp black peppercorn, freshly ground
Equipment.
Medium/large saucepan
Medium frying/sauté pan
Medium, heat-proof bowl
Small jug/ladle
Sieve/colander
Fine grater/zester
Wooden spoon/tongs
Method.
Firstly, put your pasta on to cook in a large saucepan of generously-salted, boiling water. Bring it back to the boil and set a timer as per the packet instructions
In the meantime, grate the pecorino cheese into the heat-proof bowl
Gently toast the ground black peppercorn in the sauté/frying pan for 1-2min on a medium heat, then add a knob of butter
Add a ladleful of the pasta cooking water to the pecorino cheese and stir it until it becomes a creamy sauce consistency
Once the pasta is cooked, drain it and add it to the pan with the pepper & butter
Take the pan off the heat and add in the pecorino sauce, mixing thoroughly to combine everything
Serve with extra cheese and pepper on top
