spaghetti al pomodoro
spaghetti in tomato sauce
The last time and I think the only time I’ve ordered ‘plain’ Spaghetti al Pomodoro eating out anywhere was summer 1990. I was spending a year studying in Italy and travelling to Genova from Turin by train. My train had a buffet car, I was starving, and I chose and ate a delicious plate of freshly cooked pasta. It really was incredible - at the time in the UK catering on trains was a matter of chilled, prepackaged cheese and ham sandwiches, or a microwaved rubber burger if you were on a busier route. In contrast, this was real civilisation, and it didn’t matter that it wasn’t that interesting a pasta - to me at the time it tasted amazing!
The point of that is to say that if you can track down good enough quality ingredients and think about how you’re cooking a simple dish, there’s no reason why it shouldn’t turn into a masterpiece! And on the subject of ingredients, I’ve recently switched to the Mutti brand of tomatoes for all of my pasta and pizza dishes. At the time of writing, they’re really one of the best tasting tomato products available in the UK. And I have no official connection or endorsement from this company.
WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO DO
(scroll down for the full method)
prepare the ingredients
fry the garlic
add the polpa
simmer and reduce sauce
boil the pasta
combine sauce and pasta
spaghetti in tomato sauce
INGREDIENTS
FOR FOUR PEOPLE
400g good quality polpa
fresh basil
extra virgin olive oil
garlic
PASTA
400g dry spaghetti
MANTECATURA (?)
none
METHOD
The point of that is to say that if you can track down good enough quality ingredients and think about how you’re cooking a simple dish, there’s no reason why it shouldn’t turn into a masterpiece! And on the subject of ingredients, I’ve recently switched to the Mutti brand of tomatoes for all of my pasta and pizza dishes. At the time of writing, they’re really one of the best tasting tomato products available in the UK. And I have no official connection or endorsement from this company.
Anyway, to start, peel a clove of garlic and crush it (I normally put mine through a garlic press, as I prefer a nice garlic base to the taste.) Empty the polpa into the pan you’re going to use for the sauce, together with a couple of tablespoonfuls of olive oil. Throw in the crushed garlic, a big handful of fresh basil leaves, bring to the boil, and then simmer gently for between an hour and two hours. You’ll probably need to add extra small splashes of water from time to time, to stop things getting too dry.
An alternative to using tinned polpa for this recipe is to make a combination fresh tomato and sundried tomato sauce, like the one I did for the Fagioli di Sant’Anna recipe. It makes for, agruably, a more intense tomato flavour but of course also delivers a few more calories!
NUTRITION per serving
KCAL: 411
Fat (g): 6.6
Sat Fat (g): 1.0
Carb (g): 78.2
Sug (g): 6.1
Fibre(g): 3.1
Prot (g): 13.3
Salt (g): 0.31
