Bucatini al Fuoco, from Basilicata
The ingenuity of Basilicata's kitchen is embodied in this simple pasta: three ingredients, easy to come by and inexpensive, are combined to make a formidably tasty sauce. The method of pounding garlic and chili peppers into a paste, then cooking the paste in olive oil, is common to Basilicata and Calabria and elevates the ordinary aglio, olio e peperoncino of central and southern Italy to new heights of piquancy.
Recipe information
Yield
Makes 4 servings
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Heat 1/3 cup of the olive oil in a small skillet over a medium flame. Add the peeled garlic and chili; cook 2 minutes, or until the garlic is golden and the chili peppers are swollen (or the chili flakes are aromatic). Cool the garlic and chili 5 minutes, then crush in a mortar with a pestle into a coarse paste.
Step 2
Add the remaining 1/3 cup of olive oil to the skillet over medium heat and cook the minced garlic until aromatic, about 30 seconds. Stir in the prepared garlic-chili paste and cook 30 seconds.
Step 3
Meanwhile, bring 5 quarts of water to a boil. Add the bucatini and salt and cook until al dente, about 8 minutes. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water. Transfer the bucatini to a serving platter, fold in the chili-garlic sauce and the reserved cooking water, and serve hot.
