Long noodles. Short list of rules.

Spaghetti is my favorite food: the plate I'd pick for a first date, a bad day and a 2 a.m. fridge raid. This is why, how, and the recipes I keep coming back to.

Cook it tonight → Which spaghetti are you?
A twirled nest of spaghetti carbonara with black pepper and Pecorino on a terracotta plate

Why spaghetti wins

Four ingredients can make dinner. Twenty can make a feast. Spaghetti handles both without blinking, and it's the only food where slurping counts as good technique.

  • Ten minutes from boiling water to bowl.
  • Endless sauces: oil, eggs, tomatoes, clams, butter.
  • Pantry-proof: there's always a box in the cupboard.
  • Built for sharing: one pot feeds the table.

Seven plates worth knowing

Tap a dish for its full guide. New to the ingredients? Start with the ingredient glossary.

Carbonara

Rome

Guanciale, egg yolk, Pecorino, black pepper. No cream, ever.

Cacio e pepe

Rome

Cheese, pepper and pasta water whisked into a glossy sauce.

Aglio, olio e peperoncino

Naples

Garlic, olive oil, chili. The midnight classic.

Alle vongole

Campania

Clams, white wine, parsley. Tastes like the coast.

Amatriciana

Amatrice, Lazio

Guanciale, tomato, Pecorino and a hint of chili.

Puttanesca

Naples

Tomatoes, olives, capers and anchovies. Bold and salty, straight from the pantry.

Al pomodoro

Everywhere

Ripe tomatoes, basil, good oil. Simple and hard to beat.

The recipes

Jump to: The house carbonara · Cacio e pepe · Aglio, olio e peperoncino · Spaghetti alle vongole · Spaghetti al pomodoro · Spaghetti all'Amatriciana · Spaghetti alla puttanesca

The house carbonara

⏱ 20 minMediumServes 2

Ingredients

  • 200 g spaghetti
  • 100 g guanciale or pancetta, diced
  • 2 eggs + 1 yolk
  • 50 g Pecorino Romano, grated
  • Lots of black pepper
  1. Boil the spaghetti in well-salted water.
  2. Crisp the guanciale in a pan over medium heat, then take the pan off the heat.
  3. Whisk the eggs, yolk, Pecorino and plenty of pepper.
  4. Drain the pasta, saving about ½ cup of the water. Toss the pasta with the guanciale.
  5. Off the heat, stir in the egg mix, adding splashes of pasta water until creamy. Serve right away.

Tip: no scrambled eggs. Whisk 2–3 tablespoons of hot pasta water into the egg mix first to warm it slowly. Then toss everything in a warm bowl (or the pan, off the heat) and keep it moving. You want silk, not breakfast.

Full guide: origin, pairings, shopping list and swaps →

Cacio e pepe

⏱ 15 minHardServes 2

Ingredients

  • 200 g spaghetti
  • 80 g Pecorino Romano, finely grated
  • 2 tsp black peppercorns, freshly cracked
  • Salt (go easy, the cheese is salty)
  1. Boil the spaghetti in less water than usual, so the water gets extra starchy. Salt it lightly.
  2. Toast the cracked pepper in a dry pan for a minute, then add a ladle of pasta water.
  3. In a bowl, mash the Pecorino with a few spoons of warm (not boiling) pasta water into a smooth paste.
  4. Move the pasta, a minute before al dente, into the pepper pan and toss for a minute with a splash more water.
  5. Take the pan off the heat, add the cheese paste and toss hard until glossy. Loosen with water if needed and serve at once.

Tip: if the cheese clumps, the water was too hot. Let the pan cool for 30 seconds before the cheese goes in.

Full guide: origin, pairings, shopping list and swaps →

Aglio, olio e peperoncino

⏱ 15 minEasyServes 2

Ingredients

  • 200 g spaghetti
  • 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
  • 5 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 dried chili or ½ tsp chili flakes
  • Handful of flat-leaf parsley, chopped
  1. Boil the spaghetti in well-salted water.
  2. Warm the oil, garlic and chili in a cold pan over low heat until the garlic turns pale gold. Don't let it brown.
  3. Add a ladle of pasta water to the pan to stop the cooking.
  4. Move the pasta, just shy of al dente, into the pan and toss over medium heat until the sauce turns silky.
  5. Toss in the parsley and a drizzle of fresh oil, then serve.

Tip: start the garlic in cold oil. It cooks evenly and won't turn bitter.

Full guide: origin, pairings, shopping list and swaps →

Spaghetti alle vongole

⏱ 30 minMediumServes 2

Ingredients

  • 200 g spaghetti
  • 500 g fresh clams, purged and rinsed
  • 3 cloves garlic, sliced
  • 4 tbsp olive oil
  • 100 ml dry white wine
  • Pinch of chili flakes
  • Handful of parsley, chopped
  1. Soak the clams in salted cold water for 30 minutes to purge the sand. Throw away any that are open or cracked.
  2. Boil the spaghetti. Meanwhile, sizzle the garlic and chili in oil in a wide pan.
  3. Add the clams and wine, cover, and cook for 3–4 minutes until they open. Throw away any that stay shut.
  4. Move the pasta, a minute before al dente, into the clam pan and toss to finish cooking in the juices.
  5. Toss in the parsley and a drizzle of oil, then serve right away.

Tip: no cheese on vongole. That's the one rule Italians won't bend.

Full guide: origin, pairings, shopping list and swaps →

Spaghetti al pomodoro

⏱ 30 minEasyServes 2

Ingredients

  • 200 g spaghetti
  • 400 g canned San Marzano tomatoes (or ripe fresh ones)
  • 2 cloves garlic, lightly crushed
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • A few basil leaves
  • Salt
  1. Warm the oil and garlic in a pan until fragrant, then take the garlic out.
  2. Crush the tomatoes by hand into the pan, salt them and simmer for 15–20 minutes until thick.
  3. Boil the spaghetti in well-salted water.
  4. Move the pasta, a minute before al dente, into the sauce with a splash of pasta water and toss.
  5. Tear in the basil, finish with fresh olive oil and serve.

Tip: add the basil at the very end. Cooked basil loses its perfume.

Full guide: origin, pairings, shopping list and swaps →

Spaghetti all'Amatriciana

⏱ 30 minEasyServes 2

Ingredients

  • 200 g spaghetti
  • 100 g guanciale, cut into strips
  • 250 g peeled tomatoes, crushed by hand
  • 40 g Pecorino Romano, finely grated
  • 1 small dried chili, or a pinch of flakes
  • 40 ml dry white wine (optional)
  • Salt, for the pasta water
  1. Bring a large pot of water to the boil. Salt it lightly, since the guanciale and Pecorino are salty.
  2. Cook the guanciale in a cold, dry pan over medium heat for 8 minutes, until golden and crisp outside. Add the chili for the last minute.
  3. Pour in the wine, if using, and let it bubble away. Lift out the guanciale and keep some fat in the pan.
  4. Add the tomatoes and simmer for 10 minutes until thick. Return the guanciale, and cook the spaghetti until 2 minutes short of done.
  5. Toss the spaghetti in the sauce with a splash of pasta water. Take it off the heat, add most of the Pecorino, and serve with the rest on top.

Tip: add the Pecorino off the heat so it melts into the sauce instead of clumping.

Full guide: origin, pairings, shopping list and swaps →

Spaghetti alla puttanesca

⏱ 25 minEasyServes 2

Ingredients

  • 200 g spaghetti
  • 400 g canned whole tomatoes, crushed by hand
  • 4 anchovy fillets in oil
  • 2 cloves garlic, sliced
  • 60 g black olives (Gaeta or Kalamata), pitted and halved
  • 1 tbsp capers, rinsed
  • Pinch of chili flakes
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • Handful of parsley, chopped
  1. Bring a pot of water to the boil and salt it lightly, since the anchovies, olives and capers are salty.
  2. Warm the oil, garlic, chili and anchovies in a pan over low heat, stirring until the anchovies melt into the oil.
  3. Add the tomatoes and simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in the olives and capers for the last 3 minutes.
  4. Cook the spaghetti until a minute short of al dente, then move it into the sauce with a splash of pasta water.
  5. Toss over the heat until the sauce clings, then finish with parsley and a drizzle of oil.

Tip: let the anchovies dissolve slowly over low heat. They melt into a savory base, and no one will taste fish.

Full guide: origin, pairings, shopping list and swaps →