Easy20 minsQuick
This traditional Cacio e Pepe recipe only takes about 20 minutes to make, with 4 easy ingredients. It’s the perfect impromptu recipe for pasta night!
Friends! Gather round. It’s time that we have a heart-to-heart today about the magical pasta recipe that’s nearest and dearest to mine.
Classic cacio e pepe. ✨✨✨
As any of you who follow along on Instagram well know, Barclay and I have a bit of a thing for this classic Roman pasta. We make it (ahem, at least) once a week. Usually with an enormous salad, a bottle of rioja, and a side of Netflix — a combo that we wholeheartedly recommend. Usually on whichever day of the week feels the craziest, since it’s easy to whip up in just 20 minutes, and calls for 4 simple ingredients that we always have on hand. And usually — well, let’s make that always — it totally hits the spot.
Anyway, after posting a little step-by-step video for how to make cacio e pepe recently on Instagram stories, I got a flood of comments from you all asking for my exact recipe. Ha, which I admittedly totally did not have. It has always been one of those improvised add-a-little-of-this-then-maybe-a-little-more-of-that kind of meals for me. But, this week, I pulled out my measuring cups and legit measured everything and snapped some photos to share with you. So at the risk of adding one more cacio e pepe recipe to the thousands already online, I humbly present to you my tips for how to make some stellar cacio e pepe.
Fair warning.
It’s just about the easiest and most delicious thing ever.
What Is Cacio e Pepe?
Ok, so first things first — what exactly is cacio e pepe?
Literally translated, it means “cheese and pepper” pasta. Traditionally, that has included Pecorino (or Parmesan) for the cheese, and loads of freshly-cracked black peppercorns for the pepper. But instead of just sprinkling those on top, the cheese and pepper magically come together with the starchy pasta water and some butter (while the pasta is cooking) to form the most luxurious cheese sauce. It’s 4-ingredient magic.
Also, this Italian dish originated specifically in Rome. And sure enough, when Barclay and I were there last month, we saw it listed on the menu literally everywhere. We were more than happy to do lots of taste-testing “research”. (When in Rome, right?!) But we were pleasantly surprised to find that — I think because the dish truly is so simple — our version tasted totally on par with all of the cacio e pepe we tried in Italy. Win-win!
Cacio e Pepe Ingredients:
So what are the four magical ingredients in Cacio e Pepe? You’ll need:
- Pasta: Noodles are traditional for this dish, but really any shape of pasta will work. We usually use bucatini, spaghetti or linguine.
- Pecorino or Parmesan: A good, aged Pecorino cheese is also traditional in cacio e pepe. But we often make ours with Parmesan (or a blend of the two), when we don’t have Pecorino on hand. Major note about cheese though — you must-must-must use freshly-grated cheese for this dish. The pre-grated stuff in the refrigerated section (or in that famous green jar) won’t melt well into this sauce, and will instead make it all clumpy and weird. Trust me. Freshly grated for the wine.
- Freshly-cracked black pepper: I really love a nice coarse grind for cacio e pepe, but we did note that in Rome, almost everyone used a really fine grind. Up to you! And again, freshly-ground pepper will taste worlds better here.
- Butter: I like to use butter in the sauce for extra flavor, but you could also sub in olive oil if you prefer.
Also, you’ll need lots of water to cook the pasta, generously-seasoned with sea salt (which will help add to the flavor of the sauce).
How To Make Cacio e Pepe:
Of course, you could make a delicious meal simply by tossing some pasta with butter and Parmesan. But the secret to cacio e pepe is all in this classic method. Simply…
- Cook your pasta as usual. In a large stockpot full of generously-salted water (<– read this for how much salt to use!), cook your pasta until it just barely al dente. You really want to avoid overcooking the past here.
- Then meanwhile, make your sauce. Multitasking! At about the same time that you add the pasta to the boiling water, add your butter to a large sauté pan (large enough to hold the pasta) and melt over medium-heat. Then add in your black pepper and let it cook for another minute or so. Then very carefully, scoop out about 1/2 cup of the starchy hot pasta water (while the pasta is still cooking) and add it to the butter mixture, which will immediately bubble up. Give it a good whisk to combine. Then remove pan from heat, wait for 1 minute, then add in the grated cheese, and whisk until completely combined.
- Combine the pasta and the sauce. Then, once the pasta and sauce are ready to go, use some tongs or a strainer to transfer the pasta directly into the sauté pan with the sauce, leaving the pasta water still boiling in the stockpot. Quickly, give the pasta a good toss in the sauce for about 30 seconds or so, until it is evenly coated. And the heat of the pasta will help to melt the cheese and form that silky, luxurious sauce. That said — if the sauce starts to look a little dry, don’t hesitate to add in a splash or two of that reserved starchy pasta water.
- Then…serve! I recommend topping yours with a little extra cheese and pepper. Because…cacio e pepe. 😉
See? So easy!!
Cacio e Pepe Variations:
That said, as much as we love the classic 4-ingredient recipe, cacio e pepe is easy to customize with add-ins. Some of our faves include:
- garlic
- crushed red pepper flakes
- greens (wilted spinach, kale, collards, etc.)
- veggies (zucchini, mushrooms, asparagus, and roasted red peppers are a few of our faves)
- proteins (I love occasionally adding some bacon or shrimp to this)
- a sprinkle of nuts (pine nuts, walnuts, etc.)
That said, more often than not, we usually stick to the classic recipe and just serve veggies and salads and proteins (if any) on the side. But feel free to customize this dish and make it your own!
Bottom line, if you’re new to cacio e pepe, I just highly recommend giving it a try. You may just end up with a weekly cacio e pepe tradition yourself. 😉
Yield: 2-3 servings
Cacio e Pepe
This traditional Cacio e Pepe recipe only takes about 20 minutes to make, with 4 easy ingredients. For extra flavor, feel free to sauté 2 cloves minced garlic in the butter along with the black pepper.
Ingredients:
- 8 ounces pasta (I recommend bucatini, spaghetti, or linguine)
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1 teaspoon freshly-cracked black pepper
- 1 1/3 cups freshly-grated* Pecorino or Parmesan cheese (or a mix)
Directions:
- Cook pasta in boiling, generously-salted water according to package instructions, until it is just barely al dente. (Again, just want to emphasize that it’s important that your pasta water is well-salted, since this will help to flavor the sauce as well as the pasta itself.)
- Meanwhile, at about the same time that you add the pasta to the boiling water, melt the butter in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the pepper, and cook for 1 minute. Then ladle out about 1/2 cup of the boiling starchy pasta water, and slowly add it to the melted butter mixture. (Be careful, it will bubble up vigorously when added.) Whisk until combined.
- Remove pan from heat. Wait one minute. Gradually add in the cheese, and whisk until combined.
- Once the pasta is ready to go, use tongs or a strainer to transfer it from the stockpot directly to the sauté pan with the melted butter, leaving the hot pasta water in the stockpot. Toss the pasta until it is evenly coated with the sauce, adding in a splash of the hot pasta water when needed to help melt the cheese, if the sauce starts to seem dry. Taste, and season with extra salt, if needed, and toss to combine.
- Serve warm, garnished with extra cheese and pepper.
*Freshly-grated cheese in this recipe is a must. If you use the pre-grated cheese, it will not melt well into this cheesy sauce. So grab a block of cheese and a grater, and you should have plenty of time to make it happen while the pasta water comes to a boil. 🙂
Difficulty: EasyCategory: Quick
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If you make this recipe, be sure to snap a photo and hashtag it #gimmesomeoven. I’d love to see what you cook!
