When I first saw this assassin’s pasta dish, I was skeptical about how it is going to work and taste. But when I tried it, it tasted so good I don’t think I will ever cook pasta in any different way.
This spicy pasta dish is traditionally from Bari in Puglia. The local stories say that a distracted chef forgot his pasta cooking until the sauce burned.
The assassin’s pasta is very simple to cook with very basic ingredients: pasta and tomato sauce.
The secret of this assassin’s pasta is the method of cooking: we cook the pasta directly in the tomato sauce like we cook the risotto.
Each chef has his own version of this assassin’s pasta today I tried my own version with gluten free fusilli pasta instead of normal spaghetti. And I adjust the spiciness to our liking with some extra other quick of the famous Italian spice mix “ Piccantissimo”
The assassin’s pasta is slightly burnt, crispy caramelized spaghetti with an intense spicy tomato flavor. It’s difficult to put into words how amazing this assassin’s spaghetti recipe is. You’ll have to try it to understand!
Assassin’s Pasta
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cup tomato sauce see notes
- 3 cups water
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tbsp. of the Piccantissimo spice mix see notes
- 4 garlic cloves thinly sliced
- 1 tbsp. tomato paste
- 1 pack 500 g uncooked pasta (see notes)
- Extra parmesan cheese and fresh basil leaves for garnish optional
Instructions
- STEP 01: Start by preparing and measuring all your ingredients. Slice your garlic and set aside.
- STEP 02: Prepare the tomato broth. Mix the tomato sauce with the water and bring to boil and simmer. The broth need to stay hot while adding to the pasta to cook it in the right temperature.
- STEP 03: Start cooking. In a cast iron skillet or any other skillet, you have. Heat the olive oil on medium-high heat and add your garlic slices. After few seconds add your spice mix and cook through until the garlic start to brown. Add the tomato paste and spread it out and cook until it begins to melt with the oil in the pan.
- STEP 04: With a big ladle pour above the hot tomato paste mix in the pan around ½ cup of the hot tomato broth. Swirl to combine all the flavors.
- STEP 05: Carefully spread the fusilli on top of this sauce in the pan. Ladle 1 cup of the tomato broth on top of the pasta and with a big wooden spoon press the pasta down to distribute the broth as much as you can to coat all the pasta.
- STEP 06: Now we start applying the risotto cooking technique. Allow the pasta to cook for 3 minutes until the broth is absorbed and then add 1 ½ cup more of the tomato broth and again with a big wooden spoon press the pasta down to distribute the broth as much as you can to coat all the pasta. And we cook for more 3 min and keep repeating the same process until the pasta soften. In all this phase the pasta should not be mixed or flipped.
- STEP 07: When we do three rounds of the cooking at the 9th minutes the pasta should begin to burn and crisp on the edges. Check with a small fork if you see the burn crisp edges, now you can mix and flip the pasta. And continue adding sauce and repeating the same process again, until the pasta is cooked through and soft.
- STEP 08: Divide the pasta into your serving bowls and serve with an extra sprinkle of parmesan cheese and some fresh basil leaves.
Video
Notes
- Tomato sauce: the traditional recipe calls for normal tomato puree, but in this version I used a basil flavored tomato sauce. You can use any tomato sauce you prefer, but keep in mind that this is a very essential ingredient in this recipe so use always a high quality Italian tomato sauce. (I used this brand)
- Piccantissimo spice mix: the original recipe calls for only chili flakes but we are not so into very spicy food so I used instead this spice mix, you can find it in all Italian sections in grocery shops and you can make it at home! It is basically a mix of Chili pepper, basil, salt, garlic, parsley. (I used this brand )
- Pasta: this recipe traditionally is made with spaghetti but in my version I used whole wheat fusilli. But you can use any kind of pasta you want. The cooking time may vary depending on the size of the pasta but all shapes will work. (I used this brand)
- Storing and leftover: Leftovers keep well in a sealed container in the fridge for 2-3 days and can be reheated with a little olive oil and water in a skillet or in the microwave.
- Variations: this pasta can be served as a carb base with many options. I tried it with grilled chicken breast or some Italian meatballs or alone with some cheese and fresh basil on top.