Pasta Amatriciana
Amatriciana hides nothing, so every ingredient has to pull its weight. Guanciale gives the sauce its sweet, porky fat, tomatoes bring freshness and pecorino adds a sharp, salty edge. We lift the guanciale out before the tomatoes go in, so it keeps its crisp edges.
- Prep
- 10 min
- Cook
- 25 min
- Total
- 35 min
- Servings
- 4
- Level
- Easy
- Per serving
- 670 kcal
Ingredients
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What to use instead
Guanciale is cured pork cheek, sweeter and silkier than bacon. Pancetta is the closest swap; bacon works but adds a smokiness the classic doesn’t have.
Makes: 4 servings
Shopping list
The ingredients for the servings you chose — copy them or send them to a messenger. Tick what you already have at home: only the rest goes on the list.
Method
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Step 1: Get the water on
Bring 4 litres of water to the boil in a large pot and add the salt. Meanwhile, cut the rind off the guanciale and slice it into batons 1 cm long and 5 mm thick.
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Step 2: Render the guanciale
Put the guanciale in a cold wide frying pan and set it over medium heat. Cook for 8–10 minutes, stirring, until the fat turns translucent and the pieces are golden at the edges but still a little chewy. Lift them out with a slotted spoon, leaving the fat behind.
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Step 3: Make the sauce
Add the chilli to the fat, then after 20 seconds pour in the wine and let it bubble almost dry, scraping up the browned bits. Crush the tomatoes into the pan with your hands, juice and all, and simmer for 10–12 minutes until thick, with the fat glistening on top.
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Step 4: Cook the pasta
While the sauce simmers, cook the bucatini for 1–2 minutes less than the packet says. Scoop out 200 ml of the starchy water before draining.
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Step 5: Toss together
Add the pasta to the sauce with 50–80 ml of the cooking water and toss over high heat for 1–2 minutes until the sauce clings to every strand. Return the guanciale to the pan.
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Step 6: Finish with pecorino
Take the pan off the heat, add two-thirds of the pecorino and toss hard; loosen with another splash of pasta water if it tightens. Season with black pepper — it rarely needs more salt.
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Step 7: Serve
Pile into warm bowls and finish with the remaining pecorino. Amatriciana doesn’t like to wait, so get everyone to the table.
Tips & variations
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Tip
Starting in a cold pan is deliberate: the fat renders gently and the guanciale won’t scorch before it turns translucent.
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Swap
Guanciale is cured pork cheek, sweeter and silkier than bacon. Pancetta is the closest swap; bacon works but adds a smokiness the classic doesn’t have.
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Variation
Leave out the tomatoes and wine and you have pasta alla gricia: guanciale, pecorino, black pepper and pasta water.
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Storage
Leftovers keep for 2 days in the fridge; reheat in a pan with a few spoonfuls of water.
Nutrition
| 1 serving | Whole dish 4 servings | |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 670 kcal | 2,680 kcal |
| Protein | 19 g | 76 g |
| Fat | 32 g | 128 g |
| Carbohydrates | 77 g | 308 g |
Approximate values calculated from standard ingredient data.
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