Recipe Sunday: Bucatini all'Amatriciana

Living in Italy, I come across great new food and recipes all the time. Some of these are classic food prepared in a new or different way. Some dishes happen by accident as I experiment with new ingredients (or lack of familiar ones) or whatever happens to be in the fridge. Some of the best, however, have been recreations of classic, traditional Italian dishes. When it comes to perfect combinations of uncomplicated, delicious flavors, the Italians really know what they are doing. If you were to sit down in almost any restaurant here in Rome, there are at least a few standard, traditional Roman pastas you'd find on any menu. One of these is Bucatini all'Amatriciana. The Amatriciana originates from the town of Amatrice, in the mountains of the Lazio region of Italy. It dates back from the late 18th century and it is as delicious as it is old.

On Christmas Day, we wanted to serve an Italian primi, or first course, to begin the holiday meal. We decided to go as traditional as possible and tried our hand at preparing the Amatriciana. As it turns out, it was incredibly simple to make and it tasted fantastic. I've decided to start sharing some of the great recipes I stumble upon, here on my blog. So without further ado, here is the recipe.

Note: this recipe calls for guanciale, which is cured pork cheek. This isn't a standard supermarket find in the US or the UK. The authentic method is to use guanciale, and you can usually find it if you ask a Butcher or stop into an Italian imports shop. But you can easily substitute pancetta in this recipe and it still tastes great!
Also, the traditional pasta to use in this dish is Bucatini - which is basically a long, fat spaghetti with a hole in the middle. This can also be difficult to find, so feel free to substitute any long pasta.

Bucatini all'Amatriciana

2 tablespoons olive oil
6 oz guanciale or pancetta, diced
1 yellow onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 - 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes (depending on spicy tolerance)
2 1/2 cups tomato passata (pureed tomato)
1/2 tsp salt
Black pepper
Fresh Parmigiano or Pecorino cheese for grating
1 pound (or 16 ounces, one standard size box) or Bucatini or other long pasta

Heat oil in large skillet. Add guanciale and cook, stirring constantly, until meat is golden brown and most of the fat has been rendered off (5-7 minutes). Using a slotted spoon, remove guanciale from the skillet to a plate lined with paper towels. Drain about half of the fat and return pan to heat. Add onion and cook 5 minutes. Add garlic and crushed red pepper and cook 30 seconds. Add tomato and salt, and pepper to taste, and return cooked pancetta to the skillet. Simmer 15-30 minutes while boiling pasta to al dente. Toss cooked pasta with sauce and grate Parmigiano or Pecorino cheese on top. Serves 4.