Many Italian sauces date back hundreds of years, but Puttanesca is relatively new and dates to the middle of the 20th century. Puttanesca is a flavourful pasta and quick Italian dinner cooked with store cupboard staples, and it's for this reason that it's on regular rotation in my household on evenings where the fridge crisper is looking sad and sorry.
What is Spaghetti alla Puttanesca?
Spaghetti alla Puttanesca is a dish which is easily made with store cupboard ingredients, consisting of a tomato based sauce flavoured by anchovies, chili, capers and garlic served with spaghetti.
Spaghetti alla Puttanesca ingredients
- Pasta - traditionally spaghetti is used for this easy weeknight meal, but use whatever pasta makes you happy. Bronze cut pasta always gives a better texture, but it's significantly more expensive.
- Anchovies - use jarred or canned anchovies in oil. They will melt into the background of the sauce and not taste fishy.
- Olives - I like to use a mixture of black, green and kalamata. I slice them because I prefer it that way, but traditionally they're left whole.
- Chilli - you can use red pepper flakes, which is traditional, or fresh chilli which brings a fresher taste to the dish. If using fresh, be aware that the heat level varies significantly so I suggest adding gradually and tasting.
- Capers - use baby or normal, whatever you have on hand. If they're too large, just run a knife through them to cut them in half.
- Tomato - use quality diced/crushed tomatoes
- Basil - not traditional but commonly used, and I like the taste that it brings
- Other flavourings - salt, pepper, oregano, sugar; these bring flavour to the sauce and work well with the other ingredients
How to make Spaghetti alla Puttanesca
The dish comes together very quickly; start the pasta at the same time as the sauce.
Cook pasta and preheat pan - start by boiling your water in a large pot and preheating a large skillet over medium heat. When the water has started boiling, add the pasta to the pot.
Add the oil and garlic to the skillet, and heat until the garlic starts to turn translucent. Be careful not to burn the garlic because it will make the sauce bitter.
Add the chilli, anchovies, olives and capers and cook until the anchovies have melted into the oil.
Add the diced tomato and then the oregano and sugar. Return to heat and simmer.
When the pasta is firm to the bite (a bit before it reaches "al dente"), add the pasta to the sauce (1) along with some (about 1/2 cup) pasta water to loosen it up, reserving the remaining pasta water. Stir everything to combine (2) and add the basil (3).
Cook for a further minute or so, until the sauce has thickened and clings to the pasta, and the pasta is al dente. Add a little more reserved pasta water if you need to loosen the sauce.
Tips for perfect spaghetti alla puttanesca
- Don't skimp on the anchovies - they're the backbone of the dish and melt into the sauce, providing a rich flavour without tasting fishy.
- Use a mixture of olives for a more complex flavour. A combo of black, green and kalamata works brilliantly, but feel free to use whatever you have on hand. Olives stored in oil are generally of higher quality.
- When it comes to pasta, bronze-cut varieties are your best mate. They've got a rougher texture that helps the sauce cling better, but don't fret if you can't find them - any pasta will work.
- Keep an eye on that garlic! You want it translucent and fragrant, not burnt and bitter. A gentle sizzle is what you're after.
- Don't be shy with the pasta water. That starchy liquid is liquid gold for emulsifying your sauce and helping it cling to every strand of spaghetti.
- Taste as you go, especially when adding sugar to balance the tomatoes' acidity. You're aiming for 'balanced', not 'sweet'.
- If you're using fresh chilli, add it gradually and taste-test. Chilli heat can vary wildly, so it's better to err on the side of caution and add more if needed.
- Finish cooking the pasta in the sauce. It thickens the sauce and helps the pasta absorb all those beautiful flavours.
- Don't overdo it with the salt. With anchovies, olives, and capers in the mix, you might find you don't need to add any extra at all.
Is puttanesca spicy?
It should have a little spice - adjust the amount of chilli flakes you add to suit your tastes. If you're not a fan of spicy food, leave the chilli flakes out altogether.
Make ahead, reheating and freezing puttanesca
Puttanesca sauce is a brilliant make-ahead option for busy weeknights. You can whip up a batch on the weekend and store it in the fridge for 3-4 days - when you're ready to eat, simply reheat the sauce in a pan over medium heat, stirring occasionally, or in the microwave
You can even freeze portions of puttanesca for up to 3 months. Just pop it in freezer-safe containers, leaving a bit of room for expansion. To use, thaw overnight in the fridge and reheat as above. Keep in mind that the olives might lose a bit of their texture after freezing, but the flavour will still be spot on.
Whether you're reheating or freezing, always taste and adjust the seasoning before serving - a pinch of salt or a drizzle of olive oil can work wonders to refresh the flavours.
Spaghetti alla Puttanesca
| Prep | Cook | Total |
|---|---|---|
| 5 mins | 10 mins | 15 mins |
- 400g spaghetti see note 1
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 4 cloves of garlic, minced
- 7 anchovy fillets see note 2
- 180g (1 heaped cup) mixed-colour olives, preferably in oil drained, see note 3
- 2 chillies, halved and seeds removed, finely sliced or 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes; see note 4
- 2 tbsp capers drained, see note 5
- 2x 400g can diced tomatoes
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1-2 tsp sugar see note 6
- Reserved pasta cooking water see note 7
- 4 tbsp sliced basil see note 8
- Salt and pepper, to taste see note 9
- Cook pasta - bring a large pot filled with water to the boil. Add the pasta when the water is boiling and cook to just before al dente, which for most pasta should be around 6-7 minutes of cooking. We'll finish cooking this in the sauce.
- Cook the garlic - add the extra virgin olive oil to a pan that's large enough to hold the sauce and pasta. Add the garlic and then heat over medium high heat, stirring, until the garlic is sizzling and just starting to turn translucent. Be careful not to burn the garlic because it will make the sauce bitter.
- Add other flavours - add the anchovies, olives, chilli or chilli flakes, capers and stir and cook for a further minute or until the anchovies have melted into the oil.
- Tomato - add the diced tomato, along with the oregano. Stir and add sugar, tasting as you do, to balance the acidity of the tomatoes. The dish should not taste sweet.
- Simmer - you should have a few minutes before the pasta is ready - let the sauce simmer gently to help thicken it and bring out the flavours
- Pasta - the pasta should be just firm to the bite by now. Use tongs, a spider or strainer to lift the pasta into the pan with the sauce, bringing a little pasta water along with it. Reserve the pasta water as we'll use it to thicken the sauce
- Thicken the sauce - continue cooking the pasta in the tomato sauce. Add 1/4 of a cup of the reserved water from cooking the pasta and use tongs to keep stirring the sauce. After a minute or so, the pasta should be cooked to al dente and the sauce thickened. If the sauce is too dry, thin it out with a little more pasta water.
- Finish & serve - adjust seasoning with salt and pepper and a little more sugar if you feel it needs it. Stir through the basil if using.
- Pasta - if your budget allows, use a quality bronze cut pasta, such as De Cecco - bronze cut pasta will better absorb the sauce and give a better texture because it will cling to the pasta better. Don't cook the pasta to al dente, you want to pull it earlier and finish it in the sauce. I don't salt the water as I prefer to salt the sauce. Use which ever type of pasta you prefer, but spaghetti is traditional.
- Anchovies - use from a can or jar, not fresh or pickled anchovies. There's no need to cut them up, they'll melt away in the sauce as you stir it. They're one of the core tastes to this dish, and they don't taste fishy; so if you choose to leave them out, you'll need to increase the amount of olives, capers and garlic to boost the flavour.
- Olives - Use quality olives soaked in oil, which are available at good delis or supermarkets - these are better than most jarred olives. Ideally use a mixture of green, black and kalamata. Jarred olives will work if that's all you have. You can have them whole, as is traditional, or slice them.
- Chilli - traditionally, red pepper flakes are used, but I prefer fresh chili for a fresher taste. If you're not a fan of heat, halve the chilli lengthways and remove the seeds and membrane before slicing. Chilli heat varies significantly, so use chilli that you're familiar with the heat level.
- Capers - use capers from a jar in brine. Don't use salted capers because there are a lot of salty flavours in this dish.
- Sugar - used to offset the acidity of the tomatoes. The dish should not taste sweet, but "balanced". Add 1 tsp to start and then add more as needed.
- Pasta water - The starchy pasta water helps to emulsify the sauce with the pasta which makes the sauce cling to the pasta. Don't add the water all at once, add ½ cup and add more as needed. You don't want to turn this into a soup!
- Basil - not traditionally used, but I like the freshness it brings to the sauce. Be careful not to overpower the other flavours in the dish.
- Seasoning - there are a lot of salty ingredients in this dish, so you might not even need to add salt; if you do add it, use it sparingly and make sure to taste as you go.
- Leftovers should be good for 3-4 days.
- Cheese is not normally served with puttanesca because of how salty the dish is. But add some parmesan if you want!
