How to Make Pasta Puttanesca

By Serious Eats · 20 min

Ingredients

Instructions

1. Put the spaghetti in a large pan, cover with water, add a small pinch of salt and bring to a rolling boil over high heat, stirring now and then.
2. In a medium skillet, combine 4 tablespoons of the olive oil, the garlic, anchovies and red pepper flakes. Cook over medium heat until the garlic is very lightly golden, about 5 minutes, adjusting the heat to keep it gently sizzling. Add the capers and olives and stir.
3. Add the tomatoes, stir, and bring to a bare simmer. Keep simmering until the pasta is just under al dente, about 1 minute less than the package says.
4. Transfer the pasta to the sauce with tongs. Or drain it, reserving 1 cup of the cooking water, and add it to the sauce.
5. Add a few tablespoons of pasta water to the sauce and raise the heat to a vigorous simmer. Cook, stirring and shaking the pan and adding more pasta water as needed to keep it loose, until the pasta is perfectly al dente, 1 to 2 minutes more. Stir in the remaining olive oil, parsley and cheese.
6. Season with pepper and a little salt. If using, stir in the tuna and break it up with a fork. Serve right away with more cheese.

Summarized from Serious Eats's video. Watch it for the details.

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