My maternal grandmother ("Nonna") Liliana was from Rome. After WWII, she and my grandfather ("Nonno") Diego came to the United States, where they got married and settled in Washington, DC. Although they lived the majority of their lives in the United States, my grandparents never lost sight of their Italian heritage and traditions. They learned to speak English, but Italian was spoken in their home; they read The Washington Post every day, but they also followed current events in Italy; they shopped in American supermarkets, but the food that came out of their kitchen was Italian through and through.
And Nonna was a really good home cook. The no-need-for-cookbooks kind of home cook; she had her recipes memorized. But more than that, she understood cooking: which ingredients taste right together, how to season and taste as you cook to make the necessary adjustments for the right balance of flavor; how to take fresh ingredients and make their inherent flavors and textures shine by selecting them seasonally and preparing them simply. And she made just about everything from scratch: soups, desserts, vegetable side dishes, and of course, pasta sauce. Her sugo all'amatriciana has always been one of my favorites.
And this sauce has an interesting history. Although Amatriciana sauce is associated with being a Roman specialty, it's city of origin is the town of Amatrice, located in northern Lazio. It gained wide popularity during the 19th and 20th centuries when emigrants from an impoverished Amatrice began moving into Rome. The recipe became so popular, that it has remained a classic of Roman cuisine ever since. Over the years, variations of the recipe emerged due to the availability of certain ingredients. Traditionally, garlic is sautéed in olive oil before adding guanciale (salted pork jowl) as the flavor base for the sauce. But a variation using onion and pancetta is also common, much to the chagrin of the people of Amatrice, who are protective of the original preparation. Two ingredients that have not been substituted over the years, though, are pecorino cheese and chili pepper.
My family has always made amatriciana sauce with onion and guanciale--so I guess that means according to the people of Amatrice, we've only been making it half correctly...or half incorrectly? I have never been the biggest fan of guanciale, at least not the guanciale that I've found in American supermarkets. It's too fatty and too salty for my taste, so I have always made my amatriciana sauce with pancetta. I find it to be meatier, sweeter and much more flavorful than guanciale. And I've been known to ladle this delectable sauce over penne {gasp!} instead of the traditional bucatini. But despite these slight variations of ingredients, one thing about this recipe remains a constant: it's Italian through and through.
Sugo all'amatriciana
Adapted from Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan
1 T. unsalted butter
2 T. extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup diced yellow onion1 ¼-inch thick slice of pancetta, diced
½ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1 28-oz. can crushed tomatoes
½ tsp. kosher salt plus more to add to pasta water
1 lb. bucatini, spaghetti or penne
2 T. grated Pecorino Romano
In a sauce pot over medium heat, melt the butter into the olive oil and add the onion. Sauté the onion until it becomes tender and pale gold in color, then add the pancetta. Cook for about 1 minute, stirring frequently. Adjust the heat accordingly to make sure the ingredients do not burn. Add the crushed red pepper flakes, tomatoes and salt and stir well to combine. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook partially covered for about 30 minutes, stirring periodically. Do not allow the sauce to boil too vigorously; it should bubble steadily but gently, so adjust the heat accordingly. Once the sauce is close to being finished, taste it and correct for salt and additional crushed red pepper if necessary.
Cook pasta according to package directions (don't forget to salt the water), drain and return the pasta to the pot. Pour in a few ladles of the sauce and toss thoroughly so that the pasta is coated with the sauce. Add the Pecorino Romano and toss gently again. Serve hot.





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