Bacon Amatriciana
the classic Italian sauce gets an American twist
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Amatriciana is one of my all-time favorite dishes. It’s so simple and so delicious—a classic for a reason. It’s one of the four classic Roman pastas, the others being alla Gricia, Cacio e Pepe, and Carbonara, with the latter probably being the most well know. But in our household, Amatriciana is the standout and gets made at least once every other week. It’s the go-to pasta sauce around here.
It’s simple, takes no more than 30 minutes from start to finish, and we always have the ingredients on hand. This is mainly because Ry makes a point of grabbing guanciale (pork jowl) whenever possible at the Reading Terminal Market. But I realize that guanciale isn’t always easily accessible for everyone. What is accessible, though, is bacon. Here in the US, you can always find bacon. So this version is a bacon Amatriciana. The flavor is slightly different from the classic version since the bacon is smoky and extra salty, I recommend giving the sauce a generous amount of black pepper for seasoning as well. It’s an American twist on a classic Italian dish.
A few notes about the ingredients: Get the best ones you can. I’ve said it before, and I’ll keep repeating it—there are only a few ingredients here, so quality matters. I have some recommendations below. I tend to make this when we’re short on time or need a delicious dinner in a pinch. I usually have bacon stashed in the freezer, canned tomatoes and pasta in the pantry, and some hard cheese like Parmigiano, Pecorino, or Locatelli in the fridge. I think of this as a pantry pasta. The optional ingredient here is onion. It’s nice to add for a bit of sweetness if you have on on hand, but it’s absolutely delicious without it too.
Ok, now onto the recipe…
Ingredients
1/2 lb bacon diced
1 onion optional, finely diced
28 oz whole peeled tomatoes or puree
1 pinch red chili flakes optional
black pepper freshly ground
salt
1 lb pasta bucatini, spaghetti, rigatoni
grated cheese Pecorino, Locatelli, or Parmigiano
Instructions
Start by adding your bacon to a cold pan. Cook over medium heat until the bacon renders its fat and starts to crisp and brown slightly, about 5-7 minutes. If you’re using onion, add it in now. Cook the onions, with the bacon, until they are translucent and softened.
Next, add in your red pepper flakes and/or black pepper, allowing them to toast in the oil for about a minute.
Carefully add your pureed tomatoes to the pan, this will splatter when the tomatoes meet the hot bacon fat. Stir to combine, making sure to scrape any bits off the bottom of the pan. Let the sauce simmer uncovered over low heat for about 20 minutes. The sauce will reduce, and the bacon fat will emulsify with the tomatoes as it cooks.
After 20 minutes, check the seasoning. You may not need to add salt depending on how salty your bacon was. I recommend adding some additional black pepper at this stage as well.
Cook your pasta until it’s al dente, then toss it with the sauce and cook for another 2-3 minutes.
To serve, top with plenty of grated cheese and more freshly ground pepper.
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