Bucatini Cacio e Pepe

Bucatini cacio e pepe is a classic Italian pasta dish that is simple yet incredibly delicious. It's a perfect example of how a few high-quality ingredients and a little bit of a technique, can come together to create something truly gourmet.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian, Mediterranean

Keyword Bucatini cacio e pepe, cacio e pepe

Prep Time 3

Cook Time 12

Boiling water 8

Total Time 23

Servings servings

Calories 776kcal

Author Sonila

Equipment

1 Pasta Pot
1 Deep skillet
1 Pasta tongs

Ingredients

1 lb bucatini 453 grams
1 tbsp peppercorn
3.5 cups grated Pecorino cheese about 150 grams
2 tbsp grated parmesan
4 quarts water
1 tbsp sea salt

Instructions

Add 4 quarts of water to pasta pot, set it to boil. Add about 1 tbsp of sea salt.
Once water boils, add bucatini to pot and stir occasionally to make sure all the noodles are submerged in water. If packaging says to cook for 10 minutes, plan to cook the pasta for about 6-7 minutes.
Use a mortar and pestle to ground peppercorns. Add ground peppercorn to a hot skillet and move constantly so they toast but don't burn.
Grate the cheese and set aside. Add the 2 tbsp of parmesan over grated Pecorino cheese.
Once pasta is cooked for 6-7 minutes, get 2 cups of pasta water and pour it over the toasted black pepper. Mix to create a sauce and let cook in medium heat. Grab the pasta with tongs and transfer it little by little from pot to skillet. Mix well to incorporate the pepper flavors. Lower the heat a little bit once you're done transfering the pasta. Pasta now will finish cooking in the skillet. Flip the skillet occasionally to contents rotate.
In the meantime, add ladle of pasta water over grated cheese. Mix until you get a creamy sauce. Add some more pasta water until you get the consistency you want.
Pour the cheese mix over pasta in the skillet once the sauce on the sides of the pasta looks creamy. Mix well to incorporate the cheese into a creamy sauce with pasta. If more pasta water is needed, add about half a ladle at a time until you achieve the desired results.
Serve warm right away!! And enjoy:)).

Notes

Always use a large skillet even when making 1 serving of this pasta, it helps to mix the pasta into the sauce if you just flip the contents of the skillet a bit instead of mixing with utensils.
Normally you'd cook 1 lb of pasta in 6 quarts of water but we are cooking them in 4 quarts to get concentrated starch in the water.
You don't have to add the 2 tbsps of parmesan I added, my kids just love the taste so I added some.

Nutrition