Amatriciana sauce is a red pasta sauce, usually served with Bucatini or Spaghetti pasta that comes from the small town of Amatrice.
Amatrice is in northern Lazio, not too far from Soriano or Norcia (two of our locations) but on August 24, 2016, the town was completely devastated by an earthquake measuring 6.2 on the moment magnitude scale. Sergio Pirozzi, the mayor of Amatrice stated that “Amatrice is not here anymore, half of the town is destroyed.”
Today, little is left of Amatrice, those who once lived there were forced to move to a safer town, but the popular pasta sauce continues to be a favorite nationwide. It is easy to make, full of flavor, and so unique.
Ingredients
- 500 ml tomato sauce (1-15oz can)
- 125 ml water (½ cup)
- 4 slices pancetta, cut into small pieces (bacon is fine too)
- ½ onion, finely chopped
- 3 fresh basil leaves
- Olive Oil
- Sugar
- Balsamic Vinegar
- Salt and Pepper
- Reggiano Parmesan Cheese
- 1 box of spaghetti
Directions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil
- While the water heats up, cut the pancetta into small pieces and finely chop the onion
- In a medium saucepan, sauté the chopped onion in 1Tbsp olive oil until lightly golden
- Add pancetta, continue to sauté a few minutes
- Add tomato sauce, salt, pepper, and basil
- Add ½ cup water
- Bring to a boil
- Reduce heat and simmer
- While the sauce boils, submerge the pasta in the boiling water
- While the pasta cooks, add a teaspoon of sugar and a teaspoon of balsamic vinegar to the sauce. Let simmer for 2 minutes.
- Adjust the salt, sugar and vinegar to taste.
- IMPORTANT: each time you add something, you must let the sauce summer for a minute or so before deciding if more is needed.
- Once the pasta is cooked al dente, drain the pasta well
- Mix sauce with cooked pasta, top with Parmesan cheese and serve.
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