Serves 2 as a main course
Salt
8 ounces dry spaghetti (see Kitchen Notes)
3/4 cup freshly grated Pecorino Romano, divided (see Kitchen Notes)
1-1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper, plus extra (see Kitchen Notes)
1. Start a large pot of lightly salted water to boil. When it comes to a rolling boil, cook spaghetti to al dente according to package directions, stirring frequently to keep it from clumping together. Reserve about a half cup of the pasta water. Drain the pasta quickly, returning it still dripping to the cooking pot.
2. Sprinkle half the Pecorino Romano and all of the ground black pepper over the pasta, along with 2 tablespoons of the reserved pasta water (see Kitchen Notes). Toss with wooden spoons to coat pasta evenly with cheese and pepper.
3. Divide between two pasta bowls. Grind additional black pepper over the plates to give it a nice freckled look. Sprinkle remaining Pecorino Romano over the plates. Serve.
Yes, spaghetti. There are lots of pasta shapes out there, and spaghetti often gets relegated to the kids’ table. It’s perfect for this dish, slender enough to not overpower the cheese and pepper the way a broader pasta might and sturdy enough to stand up to the vigorous tossing at the end. It also has a nice mouth feel here.
Buy good cheese. When a dish has only four ingredients, an inferior one can’t hide. Look for good quality Italian Pecorino Romano, preferably aged. You can also substitute Parmigiano-Reggiano, again Italian and good quality. Don’t come anywhere near this dish with pre-grated cheese. Seriously.
Don’t skimp on the pepper. If you or any of your diners don’t like pepper, don’t make this dish. Pepper drives it, giving it a more fiery kick than we generally expect from plain old black pepper and keeping the dish interesting until you’re fighting over the last few noodles in the pot. So use lots. I normally like to grind my pepper on the coarse side; for this dish, grind it a little finer (but not as fine as the store-ground stuff, which you also shouldn’t be using).
The reserved water is vital. Again, when cooking this, I was skeptical. There was no oil to coat the pasta; once the cheese melted, I expected it to clump together into a ball. Having the pasta still dripping when I returned it to the pot and adding some reserved pasta water as I tossed it kept everything nice and loose. Two tablespoons did it for me – add extra a little at a time, if needed.
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