Pasta alla Puttanesca
A simple and quick tomato sauce that's elevated by the brininess of capers and olives and the umami of anchovies
Ingredients
- 225 grams pasta
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 3-4 anchovy fillets
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1 (14 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
- 50 grams Kalamata or black olives halved
- ½ tablespoon capers roughly chopped
- Pinch of dried chilli flakes
- Salt and black pepper to taste
- Handful of chopped parsley
Instructions
- In a large pot of boiling water, cook the pasta al dente and reserve some of the pasta water.
- Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the anchovies, and cook until they’ve melted into the oil. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the tomatoes, olives, capers, a pinch of chilli flakes, and some black pepper. Turn the heat down to low, and let the sauce simmer for 15-20 minutes.
- Taste the sauce and season with a little salt (see notes). Add the pasta into the skillet along with some of the pasta water. Continue stirring over low heat to allow the sauce to thicken. Stir in the chopped parsley. Serve warm, with more parsley over the top.
Notes
- I recommend boiling the pasta in unsalted water, since you will be adding both the pasta and a ladle or two of pasta water into the sauce (which will be quite salty already).
- Be very judicious in your use of salt! It’s very easy for this sauce to become too salty. Only season with a little salt after the sauce has simmered for a while. The anchovies, olives, and capers are already quite salty, so the sauce might not even need any more salt!
- Not rinsing the pasta after boiling as well as adding some pasta water to your sauces binds the sauce and helps it cling to the pasta.