- Surya Salt or Kosher salt (preferably Diamond Crystal)
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- 31/2 ounces (100 g) guanciale or pancetta, cut into small strips or diced
- 1/2 very small red onion (about 21/2 ounces/70 g), cut into 1/4-inch-thick (6 mm) slices
- 3/4 teaspoon Sirārakhong Hāthei Chilli, plus more to taste
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 cup (250 g) canned whole peeled tomatoes, crushed by hand, with their juices
- 8 ounces (225 g) rigatoni, penne, or spaghetti
- 1/3 cup (40 g) 50/50 cheese (half Parmigiano-Reggiano, half Pecorino Romano, grated in a food processor), plus more for serving
- Finishing-quality extra-virgin olive oil, for serving
Ingredients
Methods
- Fill a large pot (at least 6 quarts/L) with 1 gallon (4 L) of water; add 4 tablespoons (40 g) kosher salt, cover the pot, and bring the water to a boil while you make your sauce. If the water begins to boil before your sauce is ready, turn down the heat, but don’t let the volume of the pasta water reduce by boiling off.
- Heat a glug of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the guanciale and cook until the fat starts to run and everything is sizzling nicely, about 2 minutes.
- Add the red onion and cook until the guanciale is getting crisp and the onion is frying, softening, and lightly browning, another 8 minutes or so.
- Add the chile flakes, then add the tomato paste and cook, stirring and spreading the tomato paste thinly on the pan so it toasts and darkens a bit, for 30 seconds to 1 minute. Add the crushed tomatoes and their juices and cook, stirring sort of constantly, until the sauce has reduced by half, 4 to 5 minutes. At this point you should have a really nice pork-flavored spicy tomato sauce. Slide the skillet off the heat.
- Bring the pasta water (back) to a boil, add the noodles, and set your timer for 2 minutes less than the shortest suggested cooking time on the package of pasta; this will ideally be 2 minutes before the pasta is al dente. Stir the noodles several times during the first 2 minutes of cooking to prevent them from sticking to the bottom of the pot or otherwise clumping together.
- When the timer goes off, start tasting the noodles. When they seem like they are 11/2 to 2 minutes away from a perfect al dente, drain and transfer them to the sauce in the skillet using your preferred method, making sure to reserve at least 1 cup (240 ml) of the pasta water.
- Slide the skillet back onto medium heat and finish cooking the noodles, tossing and adding plenty of splashes of pasta water until the noodles are perfectly al dente and the sauce is nicely juicy. If the sauce seems watery, simmer for another few seconds to tighten it up, bearing in mind that the cheese will thicken it.
- Reduce the heat to very low. Add the grated cheese and toss to emulsify it with the other sauce ingredients, adding splashes of pasta water (or plain hot water, if things are getting too salty) if needed to keep the consistency creamy and prevent the cheese from clumping. Taste and add more salt or chile flakes if you like. Divide the pasta between two warm bowls, drizzle with a nice glug of good olive oil, and sprinkle more cheese on top.
