Bill Granger’s Bucatini All’Amatriciana

When it’s cold outside, I like a traditional cooked tomato sauce. Amatriciana is my favourite – satisfyingly savoury with a touch of heat. Bucatini is the only pasta for this sauce.

Serves 4

Ingredients
1 tbsp olive oil
200g pancetta, rind removed, roughly chopped
1 large onion, sliced
a large handful of finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
½ tsp dried red chilli flakes
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
800g tin chopped tomatoes
1 tsp caster sugar
400g bucatini, cooked until al dente

Method
Heat the olive oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat, add the pancetta and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the onion, season well and cook for 5 minutes. Add the parsley and chilli, stir for 5 seconds, then add the vinegar and cook for 30 seconds until it has evaporated.

Add the tomatoes and sugar, bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to simmer for about 25 minutes, or until the oil separates from the tomato sauce. Toss with the drained pasta and serve immediately.

Extracted from Bill’s Basics by Bill Granger (Quadrille, approx €19.50). Photography © Mikkel Vang.