Easy Pasta Puttanesca Recipe
Bold and comforting in the best way, puttanesca sauce takes a few pantry staples including: canned tomatoes, garlic, olives, capers, and anchovies. Spaghetti is a popular choice for pasta puttanesca (and it's what I used in this recipe), but any long, thin pasta would work -- like linguine or vermicelli. Serve with a big salad like Panzanella salad, arugula salad, or Mediterranean bean salad.
Servings: 6 people, up to
Ingredients
- 3/4 pound thin spaghetti
- Kosher salt
For the sauce
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil, I often use Italian Nocellara EVOO for this one
- 4 to 8 anchovy fillets, use to your liking
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes, optional
- 4 to 5 large garlic cloves, minced
- 1 28- ounce can whole peeled San Marzano tomatoes
- ½ cup pitted kalamata olives, sliced
- 3 tablespoons capers
- 2 teaspoons dry oregano
- Kosher salt
- ½ cup chopped parsley
Instructions
- In a large, deep pan, heat a good ¼ cup or so extra virgin olive oil. Warm the oil over medium heat and add the anchovy fillets and red pepper flakes. Cook for about 2 minutes or so, tossing the anchovies around (they will somewhat melt into the oil infusing it with flavor).
- Add the garlic and cook for a brief 30 seconds until fragrant, then add the tomatoes, ½ of the olives and capers, and the dried oregano. Bring the mixture to a simmer, while using your cooking utensil to break up the tomatoes.
- Lower the heat and cover the pan part-way. Allow the sauce to cook for a good 20 to 30 minutes or until thickened to your liking.
- While the sauce is cooking, cook the pasta in boiling salted water to al dente, according to package instructions (mine took about 9 minutes).
- When the pasta is ready, transfer it to the pan with the sauce and toss well. If you need to, add a little of the pasta cooking water. Taste and adjust the salt, if needed.
- Garnish with the remaining olives and capers and fresh parsley. Serve!
Video
Notes
- What pasta to use: I used spaghetti, but any long, thin pasta (like vermicelli, linguine, or bucatini) would work. Some recipes also use penne!
- Tuna or chicken puttanesca: If you like, you can add some cooked shredded chicken or drained canned tuna to the sauce. Allow it to simmer in the sauce for a few minutes.
- Serve it with a big salad like Panzanella salad, arugula salad, or Mediterranean bean salad.
- Leftovers and storage: Mix only enough pasta and puttanesca sauce that can be eaten in one sitting. Store the leftover sauce in an airtight container in the fridge for 4 to 5 days. Reheat on the stove over medium heat. Serve with a new batch of cooked pasta.
- Visit our shop to browse quality Mediterranean ingredients, including extra virgin olive oils (like our Nocellara Italian EVOO).
Nutrition
Calories: 343.5kcal | Carbohydrates: 50g | Protein: 9.8g | Fat: 12.2g | Saturated Fat: 1.7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1.6g | Monounsaturated Fat: 8.1g | Cholesterol: 2.3mg | Sodium: 592.4mg | Potassium: 455.6mg | Fiber: 4.3g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 742.7IU | Vitamin C: 20.2mg | Calcium: 90.4mg | Iron: 3mg
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