Penne all’Arrabbiata
Tags: #italian #pasta #vegan #dairy-free #spicy
Serving: 4 servings
Total time: 30 minutes
A Roman classic of penne in a fiery garlic–chili tomato sauce, finished with parsley and extra-virgin olive oil.
Ingredients
- 320 g penne rigate (dry)
- 3,000 ml water
- 30 g fine sea salt (for pasta water)
- 40 ml extra-virgin olive oil
- 12 g garlic, thinly sliced
- 2 g dried red chili flakes (peperoncino)
- 800 g whole peeled tomatoes, canned
- 4 g fine sea salt (for sauce)
- 10 g flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
- 10 ml extra-virgin olive oil (to finish)
Steps
- Pour 3,000 ml water into a large pot.
- Bring the water to a rolling boil over high heat.
- Add 30 g salt to the boiling water.
- Open the tomato can.
- Crush the tomatoes by hand in a bowl.
- Heat 40 ml olive oil in a wide sauté pan over medium heat.
- Add the sliced garlic to the pan.
- Cook the garlic until pale golden, 60–90 seconds.
- Add the chili flakes to the pan.
- Stir the chili in the oil for 10 seconds.
- Add the crushed tomatoes to the pan.
- Add 4 g salt to the sauce.
- Simmer the sauce over medium heat until thickened, 10–15 minutes.
- Add the penne to the boiling water.
- Stir the penne to prevent sticking.
- Cook the penne until very al dente, 1–2 minutes shy of package time.
- Reserve 120 ml pasta cooking water.
- Drain the penne.
- Add the drained penne to the sauce.
- Add 60 ml reserved pasta water to the pan.
- Toss the penne in the sauce over medium-high heat for 1–2 minutes.
- Add the chopped parsley.
- Drizzle 10 ml olive oil over the penne.
- Taste the pasta and adjust salt or chili to preference.
- Plate the pasta.
- Serve immediately.
Notes
- Use high-quality whole peeled tomatoes (e.g., San Marzano). If the tomatoes are watery, extend the simmer to concentrate flavor.
- Keep the garlic pale golden to avoid bitterness; lower the heat if it colors too fast.
- Adjust heat by varying chili from 1 g (mild) to 3 g (hot). Blooming the chili in oil briefly boosts aroma.