Roddy - 100 essential pasta and pasta sauce recipes

To pasta makers and pasta eaters

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First published by Fig Tree in 2021

Copyright Rachel Roddy, 2021

The moral right of the copyright holders has been asserted

Photography copyright Jonathan Lovekin except Rachel Roddy
Designed by Saffron Stocker

ISBN: 978-0-241-98664-6

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Every day millions of us are united in doing the same thing. We take a packet of pasta from the shelf, we tip the shapes into boiling water, we make something to eat.

Pasta, a small word for a universe of shapes. The word comes from the Latin pasta, which comes from the Greek (paste) = a mix of flour and water. From this paste, hands, and then machines, formed shapes long, short, twisted, pierced, dragged, filled, fresh, dried. Anything from 350 to 600 depending on who you talk to, with 1,300 dialect names, and new shapes being invented every year. The story of these shapes is the story of Italy. For Italians, pasta is more than just a food, it is a symbol, a flag, a way of life and culture. It is a universe with many galaxies, the gravitational pull of passion and opinion, the occasional black hole, and a constellation of stars (recipes).

Only a genius or an idiot would try to concentrate all this into a book. I am neither, at least not in this context, so I havent tried. Neither am I Italian, a scholar, or a chef. However, I have, as a food writer and home-cook living in Italy and surrounded by good teachers, spent the last 16 years in Rome learning about, cooking and eating pasta. And while I am acutely aware of my limits, I also know my worth. I have done what I always do and written stories about 50 shapes. Some stories are practical, others historical, geographical, some more earnest than others, and they always end with recipes. The idea is the 50 stories, arranged alphabetically according to the first letter of the shape, are like pieces of a jigsaw in that they fit together to form not the picture, but a picture of pasta. Individual pieces also stand alone, useful unto themselves. At the very least, you are holding a book of marvellous recipes.

Pasta may be more than just a food, but it is a food, shapes cooked in water in order to make something to eat, and that is what this book is about.

Rome, November 2020

Arranging this book alphabetically meant we had to allocate sauces to shapes. This was a satisfying way to honour classic pairings (lots more about pairing in C Casarecce) but also a minefield, as most sauces are polygamists pairing beautifully with lots of shapes, which we have noted as alternatives you will discover as you work through the book. However, if you are anything like me you may well have grabbed a packet from the shelf and are now wondering what to cook. With that in mind, before we start at A Alfabeto, here are some suggestions, a quick reference for much-loved packets, ideas for specific occasions, vegetarian dishes marked with a v.

Fusilli

Lamb rag

Onion rag (v)

Broccoli with anchovy crumbs

Peperonata (v)

Sardines with fennel and anchovy crumbs

Linguine

Onion and anchovy

Courgettes, egg and Parmesan (v)

Clams/vongole

Pesto alla genovese (v)

Leeks, cream and saffron (v)

Maccheroni

Macaroni cheese (v)

Midsummer pasta with roasted vegetables, mozzarella and basil (v)

With peas, bacon and ricotta

Baked macaroni with meatballs and aubergine

Four cheeses (v)

Orecchiette

Broccoli with anchovy crumbs

Braised lentils (v)

Chickpea and chestnut soup (v)

Bursting tomatoes and anchovy crumbs

Trapanese pesto of almonds, tomato and basil (v)

Pappardelle

Duck rag

Onion rag (v)

Radicchio, fennel, cream and Parmesan (v)

Funghi porcini (v)

Leeks and mussels

Penne

Arrabbiata tomato and lots of red chilli (v)

Four cheeses (v)

Sausage, porcini mushrooms and leeks

Norma tomato, aubergine and salted ricotta (v)

Courgettes, pancetta and pecorino

Spaghetti

Simple tomato and basil sauce (v)

Allamatriciana

Puttanesca

Cacio e pepe pecorino and black pepper (v)

Carbonara egg, guanciale and pecorino

Tagliatelle

Rag bolognese

Chicken livers and sage

Bursting tomatoes and anchovy crumbs

Butter and Parmesan (v)

Bean soup (broken) (v)

Very quick

Cacio e pepe pecorino and black pepper (spaghetti alla chitarra) (v)

Aglio, olio e peperoncino garlic, olive oil and chilli (spaghetti) (v)

Burro e parmigiano butter and Parmesan (fettuccine) (v)

Salmone e mascarpone smoked salmon and mascarpone (farfalle)

Scampi e limone prawns and lemon (capelli dangelo)

Burro e alici butter and anchovy (fettucine)

Quick

Alfabeto in brodo (v)

Simple tomato and basil sauce (spaghetti) (v)

Pesto alla genovese (trofie) (v)

Puttanesca

Carbonara egg, guanciale and pecorino (rigatoni)

Four cheeses (penne) (v)

Sardines, fennel, lemon and anchovy crumbs (fusilli)

Satisfying supper

Rag di agnello con tante erbe lamb rag with lots of herbs (fusilli)

Macaroni cheese (v)

Spaghetti with clams

Pasta al forno baked pasta with rich tomato sauce and mozzarella (v)

Minestra di ceci e castagne chickpea and chestnut soup (v)

Fregula with clams

Spring and summer dishes, for a crowd

Pasta di mezzestate midsummer pasta (v)

Pesto alla genovese with potatoes and green beans (trofie) (v)

Vignarola Roman braised spring vegetables (strappati) (v)

Chicken with orzo

Spinach and potato gnocchi with cream, Parmesan and basil (v)