Easy Cacio e Pepe
- PREP 5min
- COOK 10min
- TOTAL 15min
How to make restaurant-worthy cacio e pepe at home! A bit of butter adds a little fail-safe for emulsifying the sauce (it’s also really tasty). Make sure you have your tongs ready, as continuously tossing the pasta and sauce ingredients is what gets that peppery sauce super creamy and clinging to the noodles.
You Will Need
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
¾ teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper, plus more for serving
8 ounces dried spaghetti or bucatini (226g)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into cubes (28g)
2 ounces Pecorino Romano cheese, finely grated on a microplane, 1 heaping packed cup (55g), plus more for serving
Directions
1Cook pasta: Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta, and cook to al dente, according to the package instructions, 7 to 10 minutes. I do not drain my pasta, but if you do, reserve 1 cup of it before draining.
2Toast black pepper: Heat the olive oil and black pepper in a wide skillet over medium-low heat. Once the pepper starts to sizzle, turn off the heat and set the pan aside.
3Start sauce: When the pasta is done, add ¼ cup of the hot pasta cooking water to the skillet with the olive oil and pepper. Add the butter cubes. Then use tongs to transfer the pasta to the skillet.
4Toss the pasta: Add the finely grated pecorino cheese, then use tongs to vigorously toss the pasta in the skillet until a creamy, emulsified sauce forms and starts sticking to the noodles. It will look lumpy at first, but keep tossing, adding a little more hot pasta water, a tablespoon at a time, as needed, and it will eventually turn into a thickened, emulsified sauce that coats the noodles.
5To finish: Serve with more Pecorino Romano cheese and fresh ground black pepper on top. A pinch of flaky sea salt and a drizzle of olive oil is lovely, too.
Adam and Joanne's Tips
- Storing: Keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
- Reheating: Use a wide skillet over low heat with a splash of warm water. Toss continuously until warmed through. A tiny bit of butter in the pan can help prevent the sauce from breaking. Please note that there is a good chance your silky sauce will still break when reheating this pasta. It still tastes good, but it will be more oily.
- Cooking pasta to al dente: This means, when taking a bite, you want the pasta to be firm with a slight resistance, rather than being soft and mushy. The pasta continues to cook while being tossed in the sauce. So pulling it out at al dente means you won’t have overcooked mushy noodles.
- Cheese substitute: You can use Parmigiano-Reggiano as a substitute, however, your sauce won’t have the same classic, bold flavor.
- Our method is inspired by our time in Rome, where we ate a lot of pasta, as well as Serious Eats and the NYT.
- The nutrition facts provided are estimates.