Cacio e Pepe
Three ingredients, one pan of starchy water, and the most argued-about sauce in Rome.
Cacio e pepe is a Roman pasta made from four things: pasta, pecorino, black pepper and the starchy water the pasta cooked in. There is no cream and no butter in it. The whole dish is a sauce technique — the cheese has to be loosened with pasta water off the heat so it emulsifies rather than seizing into strings.
Ingredients
- 320g tonnarelli or spaghetti
- 150g Pecorino Romano, finely grated
- 2 tsp black peppercorns, cracked
- Salt
Method
- 1
Boil the pasta in lightly salted water — less water than usual, so it stays starchy.
- 2
Toast the cracked pepper in a dry wide pan for 30 seconds.
- 3
Ladle in a little pasta water and swirl to make a peppery broth.
- 4
Off the heat, mix the pecorino with a few spoons of cooled pasta water into a paste.
- 5
Toss the drained pasta with the paste and pepper broth until glossy.
Pecorino is pricier than parmesan but you use it undiluted — one 200g wedge covers four dinners.
The same weeknight pasta decision
- Pasta alla Norma — The aubergine one, when you want something heavier.
- Pasta e Ceci — Pasta and chickpeas — cheaper again, and just as fast.
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