Spaghetti with Clams (Spaghetti con Vongole)
Start to finish: 35 minutes
Servings: 4
At Perduto, a canal-side restaurant in Venice, Italy, chef Gianpiero Turdo taught us how to make a regional pasta classic: bigoli con vongole (bigoli with clams). Bigoli is a long, thick, round extruded noodle, sometimes made with whole-wheat flour, sometimes
with eggs. Spaghetti or bucatini are good substitutes. Scrub the clams well to remove
as much grit as possible. When boiling the pasta, be sure to drain it when it is not quite al dente. The noodles will finish cooking in the reduced clam juices, a technique that infuses the spaghetti with the sweet briny notes of the clams.
Don’t use more than 2 quarts of water to cook the pasta and don’t forget to reserve about 2 cups of water before draining the spaghetti. The idea is for the pasta water to be extra-starchy so that when some is added at the end of cooking, it gives the sauce body and clingability.
INGREDIENTS
12 ounces spaghetti or bucatini
Kosher salt and ground black pepper
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more to serve
4 medium garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
1⁄4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 cup dry white wine
3 pounds littleneck or manila clams, scrubbed
1⁄2 cup finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
Lemon wedges, to serve
INSTRUCTIONS
In a large pot, bring 2 quarts water to a boil. Stir in the pasta and 1 tablespoon salt, then cook, stirring occasionally, until just shy of al dente. Reserve about 2 cups of the cooking water, then drain; set aside.
In a large Dutch oven over medium-high, combine the oil and garlic; cook, stirring until the garlic is lightly browned, about 2 minutes. Add the pepper flakes and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Remove and discard the garlic. Stir in the wine, bring to a simmer and cook until reduced to about 1⁄4 cup, 6 to 8 minutes.
Stir in the clams, cover and cook, stirring occasionally; as the clams open, transfer them to a large bowl. When all clams have opened, simmer the juices in the pot until reduced by half.
Add the pasta and any accumulated clam juices (but not the clams themselves) in the bowl to the pot. Cook, constantly stirring and tossing, until the pasta is al dente, 2 to 3 minutes, adding reserved pasta water as needed so the noodles are lightly sauced.
Off heat, stir in the parsley, then taste and season with salt and pepper. Return the clams and any remaining juices to the pot; toss to combine. Serve drizzled with additional oil and with lemon wedges on the side.
Rigatoni with Cherry Tomatoes and Anchovies
Start to finish: 30 minutes
Servings: 4 to 6
At Osteria ai Promessi Sposi in Venice, Italy, chef Claudio Furlanis taught us how to make a dish of his own creation—pasta tossed with cherry tomatoes, sautéed onion
and anchovies. Furlanis briefly roasted the tomatoes to render them soft and juicy and to concentrate their flavor before introducing them to the other ingredients. For our take, we swapped rigatoni or ziti for the very large, short, tube-shaped noodles we had in Venice and added some garlic and pepper flakes for a little pungency. We also like to finish the pasta with grated Parmesan.
Don’t use more than 6 cups of water to boil the pasta. The amount is scant, but
intentionally so in order to create a starchy liquid to use later, when saucing the noodles. Also, be sure to drain the pasta when it’s shy of al dente. It will finish cooking directly in the sauce, where it absorbs lots of flavor.
—Adapted by Diane Unger
INGREDIENTS
2 pints cherry or grape tomatoes
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
Kosher salt and ground black pepper
2 medium garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
5 oil-packed anchovy fillets
1⁄2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 pound rigatoni, ziti or mezze rigati pasta
Finely grated Parmesan cheese, to serve
INSTRUCTIONS
Heat the oven to broil with a rack about 6 inches from the element. Line a broiler-safe rimmed baking sheet with foil. In a large bowl, toss together the tomatoes, 2 tablespoons of the oil and 1⁄2 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Transfer the mixture, including the oil, to the prepared baking sheet and broil until the tomatoes are blistered and most have burst, 8 to 10 minutes; set aside.
In a 12-inch skillet over medium-high, combine the remaining 4 tablespoons oil and the garlic; cook, stirring, until the garlic is lightly browned, about 2 minutes. Remove and discard the garlic, then stir in the onion and 1⁄2 teaspoon salt. Reduce to medium, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is fully softened but not browned, about 10 minutes. Add the anchovies and pepper flakes; cook, stirring, until the anchovies have broken down, about 5 minutes.
Stir in the tomatoes with juices. Bring to a simmer over medium-high and cook, stirring often and pressing on the tomatoes that did not burst during broiling, until the tomatoes have broken down and a spatula drawn through the sauce leaves a trail, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat.
In a large pot, bring 6 cups water to a boil. Add the pasta and 1teaspoon salt, then cook, stirring occasionally, until the noodles are tender on the exterior but still quite firm at the center. Drain the pasta in a colander set in a large bowl; reserve the cooking water. Return the pasta to the pot and stir in the tomato mixture followed by 2 cups of the reserved pasta water. Cover and cook over medium, stirring occasionally, until the pasta is al dente, 5 to 7 minutes, adding more reserved water as needed so the sauce
clings to the noodles. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Serve sprinkled with Parmesan.
Spaghetti with Shrimp, Tomatoes and White Wine (Scampi Alla Busara)
Start to finish: 45 minutes
Servings: 4 to 6
INGREDIENTS
1 pound spaghetti
Kosher salt and ground black pepper
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided, plus more to serve
4 medium garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
1 1⁄2 pounds extra-large shrimp (21/25 per pound), peeled (tails removed and reserved) and deveined
1⁄3 cup dry white wine
2 pounds ripe plum tomatoes, cored and chopped
1 cup lightly packed fresh basil, torn
2 teaspoons white sugar
1⁄2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
INSTRUCTIONS
In a large pot, bring 3 quarts water to a boil. Add the spaghetti and 2 teaspoons salt; cook, stirring occasionally, until just shy of al dente. Reserve about 1 cup of the cooking water, then drain the pasta and return it to the pot; set aside.
In a 12-inch skillet over medium, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil until shimmering. Add the garlic and shrimp tails, then cook, stirring occasionally, until the garlic begins to brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the wine, bring to a simmer and cook, stirring, until it has reduced by about half, 2 to 3 minutes. Using tongs or a slotted spoon, remove and discard the garlic and shrimp tails.
Into the wine reduction, stir the tomatoes, half of the basil, the sugar, pepper flakes and 1⁄2 teaspoon each salt and black pepper. Bring to a simmer over medium-high, then reduce to medium and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes are softened and jammy and the juices have fully evaporated, 12 to 15 minutes.
Add the shrimp and cook, stirring occasionally, until they begin to turn pink, about 2 minutes. Pour the mixture over the spaghetti in the pot, then add the remaining 2 tablespoons oil and 1⁄2 cup of the pasta water. Cook over medium, tossing with tongs, until the sauce clings to the spaghetti and the shrimp are cooked through, 3 to 4 minutes; add more cooking water 1 tablespoon at a time if the mixture looks dry.
Off heat, taste and season with salt and pepper, then stir in the remaining basil. Serve drizzled with additional oil.
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