Cacio E Pepe Recipe Hack
Rome’s favourite pasta - Simplicity at its best and now it’s even simpler to make!
Opening Ramble:
As I’ve said before, Cacio E Pepe has a special place in my heart and stomach. It was the first dish I had in Rome on my first ever solo travelling trip. I had heard that it was Rome’s signature pasta from a few Italian friends at the time. You cannot leave Rome without trying a Cacio E Pepe. It was a dark stormy evening, and I had walked about 20 mins in said storm to get to the restaurant. It was everything I was dreading as a solo traveller for the first time. Cold, wet, lonely and dining alone. But, these conditions were also perfect for cheesy peppery carby goodness to sweep me off my feet. It was like a comforting hug. The umami punch of the cheeses was soon followed by the warmth of the freshly toasted peppercorn sauce. I was convinced they were adding ingredients on the sly, that they didn’t want to include on the menu. How could something so simple be so delicious and layered with flavour. This was before I started really getting into cooking but I think it was definitely one of the dishes that sparked my curiosity.
For years, I tried to cook it and while I always had a delicious meal, because who doesn’t like cheesy pasta with some peppery heat, I always faced the same problem. That damn sauce…It’s so prone to splitting if you don’t get the emulsion just right. You end up with a split sauce where the cheese seizes up and you lose the creamy texture which brings everything in the dish together.
Andrew Rea known for his channel Binging with Babish, via the Epicurious YouTube, claims he has found a way to get a perfect emulsion almost every time.1 So let’s find out!
The Dish
I’m going to break down the dish via the 3Ds I think are most important when it comes to home cooking.
Difficulty Rating - 5/10
How much skill it takes to cook the dish from an amateur’s POV?
Pay attention to the instructions and be attentive with the sauce and you’ll be fine. There’s not much further you need honestly
Deliciousness Rating - 8.5/10
How satisfied and happy you’re going to be with the dish?
See the above, I bang with this dish heavy and so should you
Day After Rating - 6.5/10
How well do the leftovers taste the next day?
If you get the sauce right it’s almost as good as fresh but your cheese is probably going to split, it’s a sensitive sauce at the best of times.
The Cooking Method
Babish’s video is more of a general recipe rather than a didactic recipe. So I combined his method with a Cacio E Pepe recipe from Food52.2 Just to provide a rough guide for the ratios of the cheese to the pepper. I’ve also tweaked it slightly to reduce the amount of butter and add in olive oil. This prevents the butter from burning, and I think adds a sweeter taste. It compliments the heat of the pepper better in my humble opinion. I also prefer an equal ratio of parmesan and pecorino, decide on your own ratio of the 1.5 cups of cheese.
Ingredients
12 ounces spaghetti
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 teaspoons coarsely cracked black pepper
3/4 cup finely grated Parmigiano- Reggiano (use a Micro plane or the smallest holes of a box grater)
3/4 cup finely grated Pecorino Romano (use a Micro plane or the smallest holes of a box grater)
Optional - Finish with a sprinkle of chopped parsley
Step 1 - Cook your pasta
Prepare your pot of salty water. Chefs often say you want it salty like the ocean. I think that’s just code for as much as you want. I use fine sea salt because you get more salty bang for your buck compared to Kosher.
Once it starts to boil, add your pasta. DO NOT ADD OIL. Adding oil does nothing to the taste and makes your pasta more likely to repel any sauce you add. It’s also a waste of oil since most of it is going to end up in the sink. Cook until al dente.3
Step 2 - Prepare the peppery base
When your pasta is close to al dente, melt the butter with the olive oil. Then crack the peppercorns into the pan. You want it closer to a fine dust rather than large chunks, but I personally enjoy a bit of crunch which adds a bit of extra texture. Toast the peppercorns until it smells super peppery in your kitchen. After that, turn the heat off to prevent the pan’s contents burning.
Step 3 - Combine Pasta and Pepper
Once fully cooked, use tongs to combine the pasta with the sauce. Toss it around to make sure no noodle is uncovered by the sauce.
Step 4 - Make the cheese sauce
Take the grated cheese and put it into your blender. Then on the slowest speed, stream in the pasta water.4
Step 5 - Combine and Turn
Stream your creamy sauce into the peppery pasta pot. Once your blender has been emptied, work quickly with tongs to combine the sauces. Turn the spaghetti around and around in the pan and you’ll combine it smoothly. Serve immediately.
Bonus Step 6 - Get freaky if you want
I’ve added Sriracha before to add some sweet heat to the cacio pepe. In this version, I added a lil chilli flake sprinkle because I wanted some extra spice. Given we’re already breaking Nonna’s heart by using a blender, do what you want. MSG, Chilli Oil and Miso are all also interesting tweaks you could make.
Conclusion
This is a substance over style dish. This particular recipe is also about accessibility and ease over authenticity.5 This is why I love this dish, it’s always #uglydelicious. With Babish’s blender hack as well, it’s simple in execution as well as ingredient list. But you still have to pay attention, as I learnt in a badly botched attempt recently. Luckily even bad Cacio E Pepe is uber delicious.
Let me know how get on in the comments!
In case you’re not familiar with Babish, he takes food created in movies/tv shows and recreates them exactly. Then he actually makes them delicious, if required. It’s got some cool stuff, check it out on Youtube - Babish Culinary Universe
The Food52 recipe was the one I used to mangle every time. It takes a level of skill and care that honestly 99% of the time I’m not bothered to do. So follow the Food52 one if you really want an authentic-ish one.
I didn’t know what al dente meant for ages so I used to overcook my pasta a lot. Basically you want it to still have some bite, so cook it and pull it just after the white centre disappears
Just in case you don’t know what a blender with cheese looks like it’s below. Honestly it’s better to view the Youtube clip to get an idea of the sauce viscosity required. I tried to capture it turning into a beautiful sauce but it was long ngl.
Increasingly the tide is turning against the idea of authenticity in blogging which is fun as long as there’s still space for classics
One of the best dishes you make!