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spaghettoni alla gricia con asparagi

spaghettoni alla gricia with asparagus

I think any varieties of the classic 'cacio e pepe' sauce, like 'alla Tricia', are actually quite deceptively hard to cook. There aren't many ingredients to worry about, but the trick is getting the cheese to melt well and create an emulsion of water and cheese to coat the pasta with. It's quite easy to completely mess up and end up with a claggy mess or a single big blob of cheese in the middle of your plate. Anyway, this is my variation of 'alla gricia', which in turn of course is a spin on the basic Cacio e Pepe recipe ( ‘alla gricia’ is just cacio a pepe with pancetta / guanciale or bacon), for when you’re in the mood for something like a carbonara but are feeling guilty about not eating enough vegetables!

WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO DO
(scroll down for the full method)

  • grate the cheese

  • fry the bacon

  • boil the asparagus

  • boil the pasta

  • make the cheese paste

  • add the paste to the cooked pasta

  • add the asparagus and bacon

  • toss to conbine, plate

spaghettoni alla gricia with asparagus

INGREDIENTS

FOR FOUR PEOPLE

  • approx 200g smoked bacon

  • approx 400g asparagus tips


CACIO e PEPE SAUCE

  • approx 350g of pecorino

  • black pepper to taste

  • cooking water from the pasta


PASTA

400g spaghettoni


MANTECATURA (?)

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METHOD

Start by dry frying the bacon. (My default choice is always smoked, and I have to confess that I will always cut as much of the rinde off as possible. My wife prefers pancetta or guanciale and likes the taste of fat. It’s a Jack Spratt thing.) For the pasta shown on this page I chose Tesco’s ‘Finest’ smoked bacon medallions, to save having to trim the fat off! Once the bacon’s coloured and crispy, cut it into small pieces and set aside.

Boil water for the asparagus and pasta. I used English asparagus tips and cut and discarded the bottom third of each spear. I cooked them a little softer than you would normally cook them as a side vegetable - you don’t want ‘al dente’ veg in this dish. Boil the pasta. Toast the back pepper in the bottom of a pasta wok and once the pasta is al dente, add the pasta to the pepper with a little cooking water.


Next, take a couple of coffee cups' worth of cooking water from the pasta saucepan and let them cook slightly for a minute or so while you continue to cook the pasta. Add some of this cooking water to a bowl containing the grated pecorino. Using a hand whisk, make a creamy sauce, adding small amounts of cooking water as necessary. Don't worry if it seems pasty or dry, but it's very important to keep an eye on the cooking of the pasta at this stage - you don't want to overcook it OR have to wait around for ages for it to cook while your cheese 'paste' gets too cold!


As soon as the pasta is done to your liking though, take the wok off the heat and add the pecorino and water paste to it. You may need to add small amounts of extra cooking water to this, as you mix, toss and combine the pasta. When the sauce is evenly coating the pasta sprinkle on the bacon and asparagus, fold them into the mix, and serve immediately.

NUTRITION per serving

  • KCAL: we're working on it!

  • Fat (g): TBC

  • Sat Fat (g): TBC

  • Carb (g): TBC

  • Sug (g): TBC

  • Fibre(g): TBC

  • Prot (g): TBC

  • Salt (g): TBC

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