Spaghetti Scarpariello (Neapolitan Tomato and Cheese Pasta)

La storia di questo piatto

Pasta allo scarpariello is a dish of the Neapolitan alleys, born of thrift and played out in the humble poetry of cacio e pomodoro, the cobbler's pasta, as the name suggests. In Campania it belongs to the table of everyday people, where a handful of simple things becomes a feast.

Ingredienti

• 320 g Spaghettoni
• 500 g Datterini cherry tomatoes
• 50 g Pecorino Romano DOP
• 50 g Parmigiano Reggiano DOP
• 1 sprig Fresh basil
• 1 piece Long fresh red chili pepper
• 55 g Extra virgin olive oil
• 1 clove Garlic
• 30 g Coarse salt for the cooking water
• 2 g Fine salt

Preparazione

1. Set a large pot with 3-4 litres of water over the heat and bring it to a vigorous boil. Keep a wide pan ready for the sauce. You will add the coarse salt when you drop in the pasta, so the water is well seasoned.
2. Wash the datterini and halve them with your hands or a small knife: they need not be perfect, as irregular pieces release their juices better. Trim the chili and slice it into thin rounds, keeping the seeds if you like it hot. Lightly crush the garlic clove and peel it.
3. Grate the Pecorino Romano and Parmigiano Reggiano on a medium-hole grater directly into a bowl: freshly grated cheese melts better and makes a smoother cream. Wash and dry the basil.
4. Pour the oil into the cold or just-warm pan, add the garlic and chili, and turn the heat to medium-low. Let them flavour the oil gently for about 1 minute, until the garlic smells fragrant and the oil takes on a light colour: the oil must never smoke, or the garlic and chili will burn and turn bitter. If the garlic turns golden, remove it at once; otherwise you can leave it in the sauce until the end. Add the datterini.
5. Cook the datterini over medium-high heat for about 8 minutes: the skins will split at the edges and the tomatoes will soften inside, but they should remain largely whole. Stir gently every couple of minutes, without fully breaking them down. After about 2 minutes of cooking, season with a pinch of fine salt and, at this point, set the pasta water to boil as described in the next step, without stopping the sauce. The sauce should stay thick and glossy, never dry or burnt.
6. When the sauce has been cooking for about 2 minutes, add the coarse salt to the boiling water and drop in the spaghettoni. Check the cooking time on the packet (usually 11-13 minutes) and drain them 3 minutes early, that is after about 8-9 minutes: they should remain distinctly al dente, as they will finish cooking in the pan. Stir immediately so they don't stick. The sauce, which will have cooked for about 8 minutes in total, will be ready just as you drain the pasta: if it finishes a moment early, turn off the heat and cover it.
7. Just before draining, reserve a couple of ladles of the hot cooking water. Remove the garlic from the sauce, taste and adjust the salt. Tear half of the basil by hand and add it to the sauce.
8. Drain the spaghettoni while still very al dente and transfer them to the pan with the sauce, over medium-low heat. Toss vigorously for 2-3 minutes, adding a small ladle of hot cooking water at a time if the sauce dries out: the starch in the water binds the dressing to the pasta and brings it to doneness.
9. Turn off the heat and toss for a few more seconds. Add the grated cheese a little at a time, alternating each handful with a turn of the ladle and one or two tablespoons of hot (not boiling, so take it off the heat for a moment) cooking water. Keep stirring with decisive but gentle movements until the cheese melts and the sauce becomes a velvety cream that coats every strand of spaghettone.
10. Finish with the remaining basil, torn by hand, and bring to the table immediately: the pasta must not wait, and should be served hot and creamy.