Spaghetti Napolitana Recipe AKA Pasta Pomodoro

Spaghetti Napolitana or pasta pomodoro garnish with basil and pecorino cheese.

Spaghetti Napolitana Recipe AKA Pasta Pomodoro

Whether you call it pasta Napolitana or spaghetti pomodoro, this simple tomato sauce for pasta is quick, easy, tasty and cheap... even if you splurge on better ingredients.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Anglo Italian

Diet Vegetarian

Keyword pasta napolitana, pasta pomodoro, spaghetti napolitana

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 12

Total Time 22

Servings Servings

Calories 655kcal

Author Brian Jones

Ingredients

200 g Spaghetti 7oz
1 Small-Medium Shallot 35g
2 Garlic Cloves
3 tablespoon Olive Oil
400 g Tin Cherry Tomatoes 14oz
½ Teaspoon Dried Basil
⅛ teaspoon Dried Chilli Flakes
⅛ teaspoon Freshly Ground Black Pepper
Pinch Salt
Pinch Sugar
25 g Freshly Grated Pecorino or Parmesan Cheese* ¼ Cup
24 Basil Leaves

Instructions

Begin by bringing a 20cm or 8" saucepan of well-salted water to a boil. I use 1½-2 Teaspoons for a pan this size.
Cut the shallot in half, peel it and then dice it as finely as you can.
Bash the garlic cloves with the side of a knife and peel off the papery skin.
Heat a 28cm (11") frying pan over a medium heat. Once the pan is hot, add the olive oil to the frying pan and at the same time add the pasta to the boiling water. Cook the pasta until al dente, which will take 8-10 minutes depending on the type.
Once you have added the pasta to the water, add the garlic cloves and shallots to the frying pan and cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly.
After 2 minutes, add the tinned tomatoes, salt, pepper, sugar, chilli flakes and dried basil to the frying pan and stir, gently crushing the cherry tomatoes.
Simmer the sauce on a gentle bubble until the pasta is ready. You may need to reduce the heat a little.
Whilst the sauce is bubbling away, finely shred the basil leaves.
Once the pasta is cooked, drain it, reserving a little of the cooking liquid. Remove the garlic cloves from the sauce and discard them, then add the pasta to the sauce with enough of the pasta cooking water to create a nice sauce, and stir to combine.
Add most of the shredded basil to the pasta, reserving a little for later, serve and garnish with the remaining basil and the freshly grated cheese.

Notes

*If you are serving this as a vegetarian dish choose pecorino cheese which is readily available as a vegetarian option, true Parmesan cheese usually uses animal rennet and is not vegetarian.

Nutrition