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Try asking Carlo Cracco what happens when you play with the amatriciana pasta sauce recipe: the famous Italian chef famous chef got into deep trouble for daring to state in a popular TV programme that he puts an unpeeled garlic clove in this iconic Italian sauce.
The history of amatriciana
The inhabitants of Amatrice, a small town in Latzio, were up in arms defending their local dish which, at the time of this heated debate, actually won official recognition as a typical speciality. The town mayor sent a note to the TV programme pointing out that the only ingredients allowed in an amatriciana sauce are: guanciale (pig jowl), pecorino cheese, white wine, San Marzano tomatoes, pepper and chilli pepper.
However, there is another debate that has always accompanied amatriciana pasta sauce: that of its origins, which are somewhat hazy. Thought to have originated over a thousand years ago, amatriciana is believed to have been invented by shepherds who would take hard cheese and pieces of guanciale with them while out working in the fields, cooking them over open fires out in the pastures. Today, Amatrice is a small Italian town in the Rieti province of Latzio which, until 1927, was part of the region of Abruzzo. Hence the discussion.
How to make the perfect amatriciana
Here, in brief, are the rules for making amatriciana:
– Only spaghetti, and not bucatini, may be used for the dish, as indicated on a road sign marking the town boundaries of Amatrice.
– Tomatoes are allowed, even though the original version does not include them: in fact, Amatriciana was originally a so-called 'white sauce'.
- Purists use the term matriciana rather than amatriciana because the inhabitants of Amatrice used to be called 'Matriciani', without the A; it acquired an A in the course of time as the language evolved.
– One of the fundamental ingredients is guanciale. Made from pig’s cheek, guanciale fat is rich and aromatic and is considered to be more of a delicacy than bacon made from belly fat. Use 50g per head.
– Amatrice also produces pecorino cheese that tends to be less salty but piquant in taste: do not attempt to replace it with any type of cheese.
– Never use tomato sauce: only peeled tomatoes will do. Our advice is to use no more than 250g for 4 servings, even if the recipe given by the official website mentions 500g. The final effect should be pinkish rather than bright red.
– There is also a strict rule regarding the type of fat to use: one spoonful of pork lard. If you really can’t get any, use a drizzle of oil or, better still, nothing at all: when the guanciale melts it will leave enough fat in the bottom of the pan (which must be a cast iron one) to give the necessary flavour to the spaghetti.
– Tradition also allows for a drop of white wine sprinkled on the guanciale and left to evaporate, but it is not strictly necessary. According to chef Romano Antonello Colonna, this is a little trick that confers the right amount of acidity to the dish.
An expert will also recognise the accomplished hand behind a perfect Amatriciana by how crisp the strips of guanciale are: never underdone because the uncooked fat would be unpleasant to the palate, but never burnt either to the point of turning black, since this would give the entire dish an unpleasant bitterness. In a perfect amatriciana, the strips of guanciale burst on the palate like crackling.
This article was updated on 28/07/2023.
