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Ingredients
Serves: 4
Time: 30 minutes
- 2 red onions
- 6 slices thick cut smoked streaky bacon or 175g guanciale
- 125g pecorino romano
- 2 garlic cloves
- Large pinch chilli flakes
- 2 tbsps tomato puree
- 1 x 400g tin of chopped tomatoes
- 400g mezzi rigatoni pasta
- 30g butter
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
- Firstly, get the pasta water up to boil. Cook the pasta according to the instructions.
- Peel the red onions and slice into wedges. Toss into a bowl with a glug of olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper then place into a hot pan.
- Chop the bacon into lardons and add to the onion and cook, stirring the lardons occasionally, until they are crispy.
- Blitz the pecorino in a mini food processor until coarse in texture then set aside.
- Add the garlic and chilli flakes and cook for about 30 seconds then add the tomato puree.
- To help thicken the sauce, add a few tablespoons of the pasta water and let it cook.
- Add the chopped tomatoes and a pinch of salt. Once that's combined nicely add a good knob of butter.
- When the pasta is cooked, use a spider or slotted spoon to transfer the cooked pasta into the pot with the sauce. Stir vigorously to coat all the pasta in sauce, allowing everything to cook together for a few minutes. Add in half the pecorino and mix through.
- Serve to the table in the pan, drizzle with some extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle with the remaining pecorino then dig in.
