Spaghetti all'Assassina (Spicy Singed Tomato Pasta)
Updated October 5, 2023
Bobbi Lin for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Eugene Jho.
- Total Time
- 20 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
2 ½ cups jarred or homemade tomato sauce
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons red-pepper flakes, or more to taste
1 garlic clove, thinly sliced
2 teaspoons tomato paste
1 pound (uncooked) spaghetti
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
94 grams carbs; 581 calories; 10 grams monosaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 2 grams saturated fat; 16 grams fat; 6 grams fiber; 755 milligrams sodium; 17 grams protein; 9 grams sugar
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
In a medium saucepan, heat the tomato sauce with 3 ½ cups water over medium heat. Stir to combine and bring the tomato broth to a simmer.
- Step 2
Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a 12- to 14-inch nonstick or cast-iron skillet over medium.
- Step 3
Add red-pepper flakes and garlic to the skillet and cook, stirring, until garlic is just beginning to brown, about 2 minutes. Add the tomato paste, press it into the pan to spread it out, and cook until it begins to melt and toast.
- Step 4
Using a ladle or big spoon, add about ½ cup of the warm tomato broth to the pan and swirl to combine with the other ingredients.
- Step 5
Carefully place the spaghetti into the pan on top of the sauce. (The spaghetti should fit lengthwise, but you can break the strands to fit in your pan, if need be.) Ladle 1 cup of the tomato broth on top of the pasta. Using a fork, move the spaghetti strands until evenly coated, pressing the spaghetti to distribute the broth until it evenly coats the pasta.
- Step 6
Allow the pasta to cook for 3 minutes. Once the broth is absorbed, add 1 ½ cups tomato broth and repeat the process. As the pasta softens, move the strands out so they begin to create an even layer in the skillet.
- Step 7
Add another 1 ½ cups broth. Rearrange the pasta again so it’s in an even layer and covered in liquid, and cook another 3 minutes.
- Step 8
At the 9-minute mark, the pasta should begin to crackle and sizzle. Gently lift the pasta and peek underneath it. There should be crispy, almost burnt pieces. If so, flip the pasta. If not, increase heat a bit until it crisps, then flip and continue.
- Step 9
Once the pasta is flipped, add the remaining broth. At this point, the pasta should be soft enough to easily move in the pan. Continue cooking until broth is absorbed and pasta is cooked through but still al dente. (If your pasta is still on the firmer side, you can add a splash of water, if needed, and cook until al dente.)
- Step 10
Divide among bowls. Serve immediately.
Private Notes
Comments
A dish like this, which uses an unfamiliar technique, cries out for a video! From the comments, it seems like a lot of people ended up with something that was good, but not necessarily what was intended. A video would show us exactly what to look for at each step.
Go to YouTube, search Spaghetti all’Assassina and you’ll find a video of chef Celso Laforgia making it. It’s helped me to be able to see it being made. This is amazing!
Used 1.25 tsp. red pepper flakes and it was plenty. Marcella Hazan's recipe (referenced) for sauce makes 3 C., so instead of using 2.5 C of sauce and 3.5 of water, I used 3 C sauce, 2.5 C water. I used 4 cloves of garlic which, to my surprise, didn't burn in my 14" cast iron skillet (which worked GREAT for this recipe). My husband had 3 servings, I had two. The only addition I'd make would be a little grating of parm-reg to serve. Umami-laden and rich, will absolutely make again and again.
A true 1-pot meal! I boiled the water in my electric tea kettle and warmed the jar of sauce slightly in the microwave. Then I alternated pouring onto the pasta a bit of warm sauce straight from the jar, followed with a douse of hot water from the kettle, and in this way had only the pasta pan to clean up at the end. It barely counts as cooking, but is fun to make. Add to that, this is a crowd pleaser that is easy enough to teach my teenage son — marvelous!
Spaghetti is so much more flavorful cooked this way! My modifications: a 32 ounce jar of Rao’s pasta sauce, the jar refilled with water for a total of about 8 cups of liquid altogether. I sautéed six thinly sliced cloves of garlic in oil as the liquid heated, along with spicy pepper oil, 4 anchovies and their oil, a sliced zucchini, capers, tomato paste, and frozen mushrooms, peas and spinach. After a 3-minute saute, I added 3 ladles liquid and the spaghetti. I added half the remaining liquid about five minutes later and then continued to add liquid as needed. I didn’t need to flip the spaghetti, and I stirred periodically to keep the pan from burning, while cleaning up the kitchen. The spaghetti took about 20 minutes to become softly chewy and perfect. From beginning to end, including assembling and slicing ingredients, this took about 30 minutes; and I ended with a clean kitchen!
Every time I make this I have to mentally prepare myself because my small kitchen is absolutely wrecked by the splatter. But at least it's worth the effort.