The Story
Tabasco! It’s probably our family’s most regularly consumed condiment, and one that Little Al has recently become obsessed with. Al’s favourite is Chipotle, but we’ve gone with the classic Red Pepper for this week’s pasta. Its earthy, spicy, familiar smell somehow reminds me of my mum taking me on our regular rounds of the imported food stores when I was a kid. So, all things considered, it’s past time that we stuck it in some pasta dough.
The Pasta
It’s a simple dish, that tastes all the better for it, so I’ll keep the steps simple too (see below for a more detailed recipe)! Pre-heat the oven, and then mix up and knead your dough. Seal it in cling wrap and, while it rests, toss the tomatoes in oil before roasting. 20-30 minutes should do it, and you’ll be ready to move on to the pasta.
Roll the dough out and cut it into sheets of 25-30 cm (to fit on the chitarra with plenty of space at each end). Coat well with semolina, and then use a pin to roll on the chitarra until it falls through. If the sheets are too sticky, give them a few minutes lying out on a wooden board to lose a bit of that moisture.
Add the stracciatella to a large mixing bowl, and resist the temptation to taste it, unless you have enough left over to inevitably lose control and gorge yourself.
Tong the pasta out of the boiling water and directly into the bowl, mixing thoroughly to combine with the cheese. Scoop in a little extra pasta water if it needs it to properly emulsify.
Serve with the roasted tomatoes on top, and a crack of black pepper.
Buon appetito,
– Al, Al, and El.
Ingredients
- 400 g plain flour
- 4 eggs
- 60 – 120 ml Tabasco Red Pepper (we prefer 120 ml, but 60 ml will still give you a little flavour without any heat; see note)
- 400 g stracciatella
- 240 g miniature cherry tomatoes
- salt to taste
- cracked black pepper to serve
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 220 degrees Celsius.
- Form a flour well, add the eggs and Tabasco into the centre, and then use a fork or your hand to bring it together into a loose ball. Gradually add 1-2 tbsp of water if dough is too dry.
- On a lightly floured surface, knead the dough by hand for 10 minutes. If it sticks to your hands or the kneading surface, add flour at a rate of no more than 1 tbsp at a time, and combine thoroughly.
- Seal in cling wrap and rest for 30 minutes, out of direct sunlight and heat.
- While you wait, toss the tomatoes in the olive, salt to taste, and then roast them in the oven for 20-30 minutes, or until blistering and beginning to brown. Remove and set aside.
- Using a pasta machine, roll the dough through on the thickest setting 2-3 times, folding over itself in between passes.
- Step up incrementally to a thickness that matches the width of the chitarra strings. This will give you that classic square-edged pasta.
- Cut the pasta into appropriate lengths, lay on top of the chitarra, and roll firmly with a pin until all pasta has dropped through. Use dragging motions to help it cut.
- If not eating immediately, transfer to a lightly floured, baking paper lined tray, and refrigerate uncovered for 3-4 days.
- Drop the pasta into a large pot of salted boiling water, and cook for 4-5 minutes, or until done (chewy, but no white showing when the pasta is cut across).
- Add the stracciatella to a large mixing bowl, and then use tongs to drop the pasta straight in from the pot. Stir throughly to combine, adding a little more pasta water if required to assist emulsification.
- Serve with the roasted tomatoes on top, and a crack of black pepper.
