La Storia
Cacio e pepe, or pasta with “cheese and pepper” is a traditional Italian dish that turned trendy in recent years thanks to a few chefs and social media. The creamy, salty plate of pasta is historically a casual nosh. As I see it, it’s the perfect half-scratch, crowd-pleasing dinner for a busy month like September. Spaghetti noodles coated in melted Pecorino Romano with earthy black pepper flecked about is an easy sell. Even to the pickiest of eaters.
Recommended listening: “Scenes from an Italian Restaurant” by Billy Joel (Chef’s Pick), “Mambo Italiano” by Rosemary Clooney, “On an Evening in Roma” by Dean Martin, “Cool” from West Side Story.
La Tecnica Tradizionale
The original Roman technique calls for slowly combining finely grated Pecorino Romano and warm pasta water together with just-cooked pasta. This is typically done one serving at a time and is risky business. Forcing hard, dry cheese and water together often leads to stringy cheese, one big clump, or both.
The trick to creating a luxuriously smooth sauce by hand is mixing it off the heat. You want to add small amounts of warm pasta water and grated cheese to a serving of spaghetti while tossing and stirring vigorously and constantly until it comes together.
Truly, this is tedious and inefficient. Especially when entertaining or feeding a wake of school-age vultures. Saucing up a pound or two of spaghetti in one fell swoop is ideal. And can be done in one of two modern ways: by adding sodium citrate or using a blender.
My Modern Method
To get technical, (tri)sodium citrate is the salt of citric acid. It is an ingredient in club soda, used as a prescription medication to prevent kidney stones, and in food is often used as an emulsifier (an additive that prevents liquid and fat ingredients from separating).
Michelin-star chefs use it to create avant-garde masterpieces. It’s one of the ingredients that allows American “cheese” to melt smooth and stretch like taffy. A processed ingredient? Yes. But no more than many other culinary salts. And since it’s approved for pharmaceutical use, it is far more researched than other food additives.
I personally find sodium citrate magical, since it allows you to concoct a variety of hot dishes with pure cheese that don’t clump or separate. When cooking for clients, I often use it to keep cheese sauces smooth without adding starch.
The brand of food-grade sodium citrate I prefer for quality and safety is sold by Modernist Pantry (not a paid link, of course). A quick internet search will give you a variety of other sources. Be sure whichever you choose is labeled as food-grade.
The Blender Cheat
This is the simplest way to cook up cacio e pepe without specialty ingredients or fuss, albeit a couple of extra dishes to clean (just don’t tell the Italians). Blending warm pasta water with the grated Pecorino will quickly create an insanely smooth sauce. The emulsion isn’t as permanent and this isn’t my favorite method, but the sauce is creamy enough and it’s quick.
Chef’s Tips
Buying pasta. Traditional semolina wheat pasta has its charms, but it lacks the nutrients of pasta made from legumes or whole grains. Pasta made from corn, brown rice, quinoa, chickpeas, or lentils brings more fiber to the table.
Grate the cheese yourself. Prepackaged cheese can have fillers and starches, which will lead to clumping when you heat it. Buy a wedge of two-year-old Pecorino or Parmesan and grate it yourself with the tiniest holes on a box grater. Or look for a fresh container in the cheese section, the shelf-stable “Parmesan” in a shaker container won’t work here.
Weigh the cheese (or check the label). Volume isn’t a great way to consistently measure grated cheese because everyone packs the cup differently. Consult the label on the wedge or container you buy for the weight, or use a digital kitchen scale.
Use less water to cook the pasta. The starchier the water, the creamier the sauce. So when boiling your spaghetti (or whatever pasta you choose), use just enough water to cover the noodles in the pot. A wide pot that allows the pasta to fit without bending works best. The water left after you remove the noodles should be cloudy.
Go slow, low heat. Whether you procure a packet of sodium citrate or stick with tradition, add the cheese and water slowly to the pasta. A slow mix is the best way to create a creamy anything.
Edible Epilogue
While this is certainly a starchy dish, choosing a better pasta lessens the food coma and guilt. Adding a serving of greens like sautéed spinach makes for a colorful plate with added antioxidants, vitamins A, K, and iron.
If you can snag end-of-season, vine-ripened tomatoes, sprinkle in small-diced pieces. Or just garnish with more grated cheese like the Italians do. Some of them live for a century, it can’t be that unhealthy.
Eat + be well,
Christina
Flawless Cacio e Pepe
The traditional method, blender cheat, and how to use sodium citrate for an incredibly smooth sauce that comes together quickly and easily. And reheats beautifully.
Ingredients
6 ounces or about 1½ cups of finely grated Pecorino Romano or Parmesan
14 ounces to 1 pound of spaghetti or preferred pasta
About ¾ cup of warm pasta water
½ teaspoon of sodium citrate, optional
2 tablespoons of butter
2 to 4 tablespoons of coarse black pepper, freshly ground recommended
Method
Cook the pasta. Bring water to a boil in a wide pot, using a bit less water than you typically do for pasta. Add a few pinches of kosher or sea salt, and add the spaghetti. Cook the pasta just until it’s tender, tasting a few noodles, and taking care not to overcook it.
Grate the cheese and toast the pepper. While the pasta cooks, grate and measure out the cheese using the small holes on a box grater or a microplane. In a second pot or pan, toast ground black pepper (freshly ground is best) in the butter over low heat until fragrant. Turn off the heat but leave it on the stove.
Remove the pasta and reserve the water. Use tongs or a slotted/mesh spoon to remove the pasta from the water or strain it over a large bowl to save the water. I like to keep the water in the pot so it stays warm.
Traditional finish. Toss about a third cup of warm pasta water with about a quarter of the cooked spaghetti in a mixing bowl. Then pinch in the grated cheese a little at a time while constantly shaking the bowl and tossing the spaghetti with tongs. Add more water and cheese as necessary to create a thick, creamy sauce. Spoon in some of the toasted black pepper in butter. Repeat for additional servings.
OR
Modern finish. Measure three-quarters cup of the pasta water into the pan with the ground pepper and add the sodium citrate. Bring to a simmer, whisking to dissolve the salt. Slowly add the grated cheese a little at a time, whisking or stirring as you go. Once the sauce is smooth, add the cooked pasta and toss to coat it. If the sauce is too thick, simply add more pasta water to thin it out. If it’s too thin, a short simmer will evaporate the excess water.
OR
Blender cheat. Place the grated cheese in a blender with the full measure of warm pasta water. Blend until smooth, adding more water if necessary to create a thick but creamy sauce. Add the cheese sauce and pasta to the pan with the butter and pepper, and toss over medium-low heat until the pasta is coated and warm.
Up next… I’ll share a few of my personal grocery shopping tips for beating food brands at their own game. And a recipe for fresh, vine-ripened tomatoes before they vanish until next year!