Today we have something for the quick cuisine. We don’t understand why this pasta is not better known. It is common in Sicily and the southernmost parts of mainland Italy (Calabria, Apulia) and for all its simplicity, it is fascinatingly different.
You can prepare the entire dish while the pasta is cooking – provided you use pasta secca, i.e. store-bought, dry pasta. We also recommend pasta secca here, namely spaghetti. But if you can allow yourself a little more time, the dish will thank you.
This pasta is prepared in slightly different versions and we will refer to these below, but show our favourite composition here. Of course, we also provide quantities, but these are just suggestions. Please feel free to create your favourite version.
The main speciality of this pasta is the use of breadcrumbs. However, most versions do not contain cheese at all.
Apart from the spaghetti, we only use garlic, chilli, anchovies, capers and olives.
Capers, olives and chilli can even be omitted for the simplest version and it still tastes great. Parsley is then very often added, but for us it brings much less flavour to the dish than the ingredients used here. There are versions with a little cheese, with ( fried) sage leaves and other variations – all of which are certainly legitimate and delicious, but we like it as described here.
If you’re in a hurry, bring plenty of water to the boil, salt it well, add the spaghetti and only then take care of the rest. We like to take a little more time for what we think is even more flavour.
First, we put a little olive oil in a small pot or pan and slowly toast the breadcrumbs over a medium heat (we: 5 out of 10).
If the heat is too high, they would immediately turn black at the bottom. The whole process only takes 3 – 4 minutes and it should be stirred regularly during this time. When the crumbs are golden brown and fragrant, set them aside immediately.
A pan is also placed on a medium heat, so that more flavour is extracted with more time. Coarsely chopped garlic is slowly sautéed in plenty of olive oil without browning. If you like, you can add spiciness at this point. We use half a dried peperoncino per person, but a little fresh chilli also goes very well with the dish.
After 2 minutes, anchovy fillets from the jar are added, marinated in oil. There’s no getting round this flavour for this dish. If you have difficulties with this flavour, you can use less (we use a lot). In the end, the anchovies are much more of a seasoning than a noticeable ingredient.
Within another 2 minutes or so, the anchovy fillets begin to melt and we mash them a little more with a wooden spoon. The aim is to transfer all these flavours into the oil and later distribute them evenly over the spaghetti. We therefore stir a little from time to time.
Another 2 – 3 minutes later, we add capers and sliced olives (without the stones, of course), but this is optional. These ingredients should only be warmed up.
Do not add any salt, as there is already enough in the anchovies and the pasta cooked in salted water. If you like – and we do – you can now add a little ground black pepper.
You can reduce the heat at any time or even turn it down to zero until the pasta is ready and everything will still be perfect. Preparation is therefore completely stress-free and not all the ingredients need to be ready at the same time. Only the toasted breadcrumbs we would always prepare first.
Good pasta sauces very often contain some of the starchy pasta water, as we have described here, for example.
This is also the case here, as the oil and this water form a delicate combination that allows the flavour of the ingredients to adhere to the pasta. We don’t pour the finished spaghetti through a sieve, but simply lift them wet out of the pot with tongs and place them in our pan; this amount of pasta water is usually just right.
Then the pan is simply tossed well so that the oil, water and pasta mix evenly and the pasta can take on the flavour. It is not served piping hot, so take your time at this point. The pasta must ‘taste’ the sauce, as they say.
Now you can add the toasted breadcrumbs and stir them in gently – or simply pour them over the dish, as we do. You can do this carefully or generously, depending on your taste. We like to use plenty of it and don’t worry, this doesn’t make the dish dry at all.
The best with this pasta comes almost at the end, at the bottom of the plate, when you are actually already satisfied. That’s always a compliment for a dish.
Enjoy.
And may the taste be with you.
Ingredients (per person):
100 – 125 g spaghetti (pasta secca)
15 – 20 g breadcrumbs (or less, to taste)
A little olive oil for the breadcrumbs, more for the rest, at least 2 – 3 tbsp in total
½ – 1 clove of garlic
Optional: fresh chilli or dried pepperoncino
1 – 2 anchovy fillets, to taste (the author tends to use 3)
Approx. 15 capers
Approx. 6 olives (without stone)
