Cacio E Pepe
Serves 4
Ingredients and Equipment
400g tonnarelli (or spaghettoni) – try Pasta Emelia
400g Pecorino Romano, plus more for finishing dish
130g Parmigiano-Reggiano (aged 24 months)
30g black peppercorns
Tspn salt – try Olsson’s Sea Salt
500ml lukewarm water
Toast the peppercorns in a very hot, dry pan until fragrant, then roughly crush with mortar & pestle. Finely grate the two cheeses into a bowl (put 60g aside for garnish at the end). Bring a pot of water (approx. 4ltr) to the boil for the pasta.
Remove 500ml water and allow it to cool to lukewarm. Then add salt to the rest of boiling water for the pasta. Add the pasta to the pot of remaining water (approx. 3.5ltr) (we make fresh tonnarelli daily but you can also buy dry pasta) – it should be covered. Stir occasionally during cooking.
Gradually add the lukewarm water to the cheeses in the bowl but not all at once so you can manage consistency. Blend with a hand blender or by hand until mixture is dense and smooth. Pour the cheese base into a dry pan without heat.
Continue to stir pasta. When pasta is al dente, lightly drain in a colander (but retain a little moisture in the pasta) and pour it directly into the pan still without heat with the cheese base so that some of the cooking water emulsifies with the base. Immediately put your pan on the stove on low heat, add some of the hand ground pepper and stir gently until the mixture of cheese sauce coats the pasta.
To serve, divide in a twirl amongst 4 bowls, sprinkle grated cheese and pepper. Mix to eat.
This recipe was cooked on equipment and appliances by Carriageworks Partner Smeg Australia.
From Flavio Carnevale’s live demonstration at the Carriageworks Farmers Market, Sat 17 Nov 2018.
All ingredients available at the Carriageworks Farmers Market every Saturday.