Pasta, Peppercorns, and Pecorino Romano. Those are the three main ingredients you will need to make this Cacio e Pepe with Arugula. I’ve added in some arugula as I think the peppery green compliments the dish perfectly, but if you don’t have arugula, this dish is great without it. This dish comes together quickly and is a really simple dish once you know a few techniques.
What is Cacio e Pepe
Cacio e Pepe is a pasta dish that originated in Rome. It means Pepper and Cheese. It is a simple but delicious dish when prepared correctly.
Ingredients Matter
When you make a simple dish like this Cacio e Pepe with Arugula, the quality of your ingredients really matters. Make sure you have good peppercorns, I would recommend Tellicherry Peppercorns for this dish. Buy them whole and grind them up with a mortar and pestle if you have one. Pecorino Romano cheese is a hard, salty Italian Cheese – it has a much different taste than Parmigiano Reggiano, but you can substitute if you need to. I would encourage you to try to make this with Pecorino though, the salty nature of the cheese really compliments this dish well. I do love the addition of arugula, with its peppery taste, but it is an optional addition.
Techniques and Tips
- No cream is used in an authentic Cacio e Pepe.
- Your pasta cooking water will be used to create a luxurious creamy sauce with your peppercorns and pecorino.
- Toast your pepper for a minute before you add in a bit of the pasta cooking water
- Using a mortar and pestle to grind your pepper, saves you time
- Finely grated pecorino can be mixed into a paste with a little of the pasta cooking water before adding to the dish near the end to help create a beautiful sauce
- DO not throw away your pasta water – it is one of the key ingredients to this dish
- Buy a nice quality spaghetti for this dish
- Do NOT bother making this dish if you don’t have good quality peppercorns (it really makes a difference, trust me)
- Don’t overcook your pasta (it is best-served al dente)
- Serve this dish immediately (Cacio e Pepe waits for no-one)
If you like this dish why not try: Lemon Basil Bow Tie Pasta Salad with Burrata
Cacio e Pepe
Ingredients
- 2 cups pecorino romano cheese, grated fine
- 2 tbsp teliicherry peppercorns
- 2-3 cups arugula optional
- 454 grams spaghetti
- salt
- lemon to serve optional
Instructions
- In a large pot, boil some water, heavily salt
- Grind your peppercorns
- Put the pasta in the pot
- In a seperate pan, put your peppercorns in over medium heat. Let toast for a minute then ladle in a bit of the pasta cooking water.
- In a seperate bowl, put your grated pecorino (reserve a little for garnish). Ladle in a little bit of pasta cooking water and stir to make a paste.
- Once the pasta is 3/4 finished, transfer with tongs to the peppercorn/pasta water mixture. Add a little more pasta water as needed and toss around and finish cooking the pasta in this until is is al dente. Add pasta water as needed, a little at a time. Once done stir in your cheese mixture and toss until creamy.
- Toss in arugula, put in a serving platter and sprinkle with a little more pecorino.
- A little lemon is nice here if you like to serve.
