Cacio e Pepe
HB-0386 · Hand-built original · Italian
Cacio e Pepe is a mouthwatering pasta dish that uses four ingredients, comes together in twenty minutes, and feeds your entire household. Before you know it, you'll be yelling "Dinner's ready!"
ItalianDinner, Lunch20 minServes 4410 kcalVegetarianEgg-free
Main ingredient: pasta
Pairs well with: garlic bread, caesar salad, caprese salad, bruschetta, grilled vegetables
Servings:4quantities adjust to match
Ingredients
- 14 oz dry spaghetti
- salted butter (4 tbsp), cut into pieces
- 1 1/2 tsp black pepper, coarsely ground, plus extra to serve
- 3½ oz Parmesan, very finely grated, plus extra to serve
- 1 tsp fine salt, for the pasta water
Method
- Bring a large pot of water to the boil, add the salt, and cook the spaghetti until just shy of al dente, following the packet time minus 1 minute. Before draining, reserve at least 1 cup of the pasta cooking water.
- While the pasta cooks, melt half the butter in a large deep frying pan over medium heat. Add the ground black pepper and swirl for about 1 minute, until fragrant and lightly toasted.
- Ladle 10 Tbsp of the hot pasta water into the pan and let it bubble into a peppery broth.
- Put the grated Parmesan in a bowl and stir in a few spoonfuls of warm pasta water, a little at a time, to make a thick, smooth paste.
- Drain the pasta and add it to the pan with the remaining butter. Toss vigorously over low heat for 1 minute.
- Take the pan off the heat, add the cheese paste and toss quickly and continuously, loosening with splashes of pasta water, until every strand is glossy and coated in sauce. Serve at once with extra Parmesan and pepper.
Prep: 5 min · Cook: 15 min · Total: 20 min
Nutrition (per serving, where published)
410 kcalCalories
17 gProtein
43 gCarbs
19 gFat
2 gFibre
930 mgSodium
1 servingServing