Cacio e Pepe, meaning “cheese and pepper” in Italian, is a minimalist pasta dish with roots in ancient Rome. Traditionally favored by shepherds for its easily transportable ingredients, this dish has stood the test of time. Recently it has become quite trendy. Its success relies heavily on the quality of two key components: freshly ground black pepper and Pecorino Romano cheese. The right black pepper, fragrant and spicy, is essential. This dish showcases how simple ingredients, when chosen with care, can create a deeply satisfying meal.
In Rome, try Cacio e Pepe at Da Enzo 29 Via Dei Vascellari 29, Rome. It’s busy; expect to wait, and to eat outside.
Ingredients
- •Salt, as needed
- •454 grams (1 pound) bucatini, thick spaghetti, or spaghetti
- •60 ml (1/4 cup) good quality olive oil
- •30 ml (2 tablespoons) or so freshly ground black pepper
- •28 grams (2 tablespoons) unsalted butter
- •170 grams (about 6 ounces) Pecorino Romano, finely grated, plus more for serving
Preparation
- Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil, filling pot slightly less than normal.*
Add pasta and cook, stirring frequently, until al dente, about 10 minutes (see package directions). Drain pasta, reserving about 1 liter (4 cups) pasta cooking liquid in another saucepan, and keep warm.
In the same pot used to cook the pasta, heat the oil, pepper, and butter over high heat, stirring, until fragrant. Add about a cup of pasta cooking liquid, bring to a boil, stirring until reduced by half.
Add pasta and about 237 ml (1 cup) of pasta cooking liquid and cook over high heat, stirring vigorously to help draw starch from pasta, until sauce is thickened, about 4-5 minutes.
Lower heat to a simmer, and add about another cup of the pasta cooking liquid. Add Pecorino Romano in large handfuls, stirring and tossing vigorously with tongs, until very creamy sauce forms. (Add more cooking liquid if the sauce is too thick, more cheese if too thin). Add the coarsely ground black pepper of your choice.
Transfer to warm serving bowls; serve immediately with more Pecorino Romano on the side; pass the pepper mill.
*This increases the amount of starch leached from the pasta.