Cacio e Pepe

Have you heard of this pasta?  It’s all the craze during quarantine.  It’s basically what I make my kids all the time, but with garlic and pepper added.  Something about that pepper, though, really takes this dish to the next level.  The more you eat it, the more you want it.

We actually watched Ree Drummond (The Pioneer Woman) make this on the Food Network last week!  My husband couldn’t stop salivating afterwards and he was determined to make this for lunch the following day. 

My daughter has an aversion to pepper or anything that looks remotely like pepper.  I put poppy seeds (which taste like nothing) in one of her favourite salads and she struggled to get every bite down because of it!  So, he made the kids’ pasta without pepper and then added some to his dish.  He gave me a bite and I really didn’t understand why this pasta was so popular.  Until I made it myself….

I love my husband, but he missed many marks when making this dish.  First, he didn’t reserve enough pasta water.  Second, he didn’t make the sauce with butter (he used olive oil – which is fine, but you know….not as flavourful).  Third, he didn’t add enough Parmesan cheese.  Finally, he added the pepper on top of his pasta, rather than cooking it into the sauce and pasta.  Man, no wonder his pasta sucked….errr, I mean, wasn’t great.  The kids loved it, though!

Today, I decided to make it for lunch as my husband and the kids were outside gardening all morning.  Everyone was happy and both my daughter and my husband went back for seconds!! 

Adding the pasta water to this dish is SO VERY IMPORTANT!!!!  You need the starch from that water to help bring this sauce together.  Otherwise, the flavours won’t cling to the pasta and the dish will taste bland.  Also, it’s really important that you grate lots of cheese beforehand.  Don’t just grate the cheese over the pasta.  You’ll likely not add enough doing it that way.  Of course, if you buy pre-grated, then you don’t have to worry! 🙂

Enjoy!

Cacio e Pepe

Sarah Nolan

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Ingredients

  

• 1 pound spaghetti
• 6 tablespoons butter
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• freshly ground black pepper Add as much as you would like, but consider adding more to this dish than you would normally add to a 'regular' dish.
• 1 1/2 cups parmesan cheese I grated about 2 cups. You can never have too much cheese!

Instructions

 

• Bring a large pot of water to boil. Add a generous amount of salt before adding the pasta to the pot. Cook until the pasta is al dente, or still has a little bite. Reserve 2 cups of the pasta water.
• Do NOT rinse the pasta!
• Melt 3 tablespoons of the butter in your skillet over medium heat. When the butter is melted, add the garlic and 1 1/2 cups of the pasta water and bring to a simmer. It will seem like a lot of water, but don't worry.
• Grind in a generous amount of pepper.
• Add the pasta and remaining 3 tablespoons butter to the skillet. Stir to combine.
• Add the Parmesan a handful at a time, tossing the pasta with each addition and adding more pepper if desired. Remove from the heat and continue to toss the pasta until well coated, thinning with the extra pasta water if needed.

Notes

I didn't need to use a full 2 cups of the pasta water, so I poured the 1/2 cup that I had remaining into the leftovers.  When the pasta gets reheated, it won't be dried out. 

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