Today I'll fix lunch in 10 minutes, I'll prepare spaghetti all'assassina like grandma used to do

Spaghetti all'assassina is a famous specialty of Bari cuisine, and its unique feature immediately sets it apart from a standard tomato pasta dish: the spaghetti is cooked directly in the pan with the sauce, deliberately allowing it to stick and toast in places. This process creates the characteristic charred and crunchy edges. A simple dish with a homely flavor, it's perfect when you want something hearty without spending hours at the stove.

To achieve a good result, however, you need to forget, at least for this recipe, some of the habits used in traditional pasta making. Spaghetti shouldn't simply be boiled and then seasoned: they gradually absorb the tomato sauce and are continually flavored in the pan. Tomato, garlic, and chili pepper are the key ingredients in the sauce, while a sufficiently large pan allows the spaghetti to soak in the sauce and develop its typical "assassina" texture. A quick, hearty recipe, ideal for a last-minute lunch.

Ingredients for Spaghetti All'Assassina

• 320 g of spaghetti
• 400 g of tomato puree
• 2 cloves of garlic
• Salt to taste

Step-by-step recipe for Spaghetti all'Assassina

• First, prepare the tomato sauce, which will be used to gradually cook the spaghetti. Dilute some of the passata with hot water and season lightly with salt, keeping the mixture warm during cooking.
• Take a very large pan, preferably large enough to hold the spaghetti flat. Pour a generous drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, add the garlic cloves and chili pepper, and cook, taking care not to burn the garlic.
• Add some of the tomato puree directly to the pan and reduce for a few minutes. This first step creates a particularly concentrated and flavorful base.
• Place the uncooked spaghetti in the pan. Leave them in contact with the sauce and the hot bottom, waiting until they begin to soften before gently moving them.
• Gradually add the hot liquid to the tomato sauce, similar to a risotto. Don't pour in all the liquid at once; wait for the liquid in the pan to be absorbed before adding more.
• Continue cooking the spaghetti, adding more diluted tomato sauce as needed. Stir carefully to avoid breaking the spaghetti, spreading the sauce evenly throughout the pasta.
• Toward the end of the cooking time, stop adding liquid and increase the amount of contact the spaghetti has with the bottom of the pan. This is the key moment of the recipe: the pasta should toast and have a few dark, crispy spots, but not become completely charred.
• Check the consistency by tasting a piece of spaghetti. The pasta should be cooked but still firm, well coated in tomato sauce, and with softer parts alternating with the characteristic crunchy areas.
• Remove the garlic cloves if desired, adjust the chili pepper to taste, and serve immediately. Spaghetti all'assassina is best immediately removed from the pan, while the crust is still visible.

With just a handful of ingredients and a single pan, you can serve a bold first course, perfect for those days when you need to quickly organize a lunch. The real secret to making spaghetti all'assassina, like those of the old-fashioned cuisine, isn't adding complicated ingredients, but rather respecting the unique cooking method directly in the tomato sauce and having the patience to let the pasta brown on the bottom. Garlic, chili pepper, tomato, and spaghetti do the rest, creating a simple, spicy dish packed with those crunchy bits that make the assassina instantly recognizable.