Cacio e Pepe (Cheese and Pepper Pasta)

By Garofalo
A traditional Italian recipe, well known and loved across the world, Cacio e Pepe combines just three simple ingredients and demonstrates perfectly why the Italians refer to pasta water as ‘liquid gold’. A thicker pasta…
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Time and servings

Total time
Servings
Prep time
Cooking time

Ingredients

4 total
  • 400 g of pasta garofalo spaghettone xxl
  • 200 g of pecorino romano, grated
  • 2 tsp of salt
  • 2 tsp of coarse black pepper

Method

6 steps
  1. Step 1

    Place a large pan of salted water over a high heat to boil.

  2. Step 2

    Add the Garofalo Spaghettone XXL to the boiling water and allow to cook for 14 mins, which is 2 mins less than the time indicated on the packet.

  3. Step 3

    A good few mins into the pasta cooking time (about 8-10 for Spaghettone), take 2-3 ladles of the starchy pasta water and add it to your grated pecorino romano in a bowl, stir well to melt the cheese and make into a creamy sauce.

  4. Step 4

    Add as much coarsely black pepper to the cheese sauce as you like and mix well together.

  5. Step 5

    At the right time, drain the pasta and return to the saucepan.

  6. Step 6

    Add the cheese and black pepper sauce to the pasta and sauté over a low heat for 1-2 mins until the pasta is cooked through and coated in the creamy cheese sauce.