Tonnarelli Cacio e Pepe

5 from 1 vote

Try this authentic cacio e pepe pasta made with only 3 ingredients! Use the authentic or my simplified method of preparing the sauce to have it perfectly creamy every single time!

Prep Time5

Cook Time10

Course: Pasta

Cuisine: Italian

Servings:

Calories: 687kcal

Author: Svi

Ingredients

1 lb tonnarelli , or other long durum wheat pasta, see ingredient notes above
3 cups Pecorino Romano cheese , freshly grated (250 grams)
1-2 teaspoon of whole dried black peppercorns , see notes above

Instructions

Bring a pot with water to a boil.
While you're waiting for it to come to a boil, grate the Pecorino cheese and set it aside in a bowl.
Crush the black peppercorns in a mortar or place them in a zip-lock bag and crush using a meat pounder. Aim for medium coarse, uneven grind.
When the water boils, add little salt and shortly after, tonnarelli pasta.
The water should be salted very lightly as the cheese sauce will add the extra saltiness to the final dish.
While pasta is cooking prepare the sauce.
In a large skillet place crushed peppercorns and turn on the heat.
Let them toast for a couple of minutes until they start to release the aroma. It's important to stir continuously and not let the peppercorns burn.
As soon as it starts releasing aroma, add a ladleful of pasta cooking water. The starch from the tonnarelli will react by creating a bubbly foam that will be part of this dish’s signature cream. Do not make the mistake of using plain hot water: only use water from the pot in which you are cooking the tonnarelli.
Add half a ladle of pasta cooking water to the bowl with previously grated pecorino cheese. Stir very quickly. Add a little more cooking water again and keep stirring. In a few seconds, a thick cream should form. It should not be runny! Be careful not to use too much water.
When the pasta is almost cooked (about 2-3 minutes short of time stated on the package), drain it (reserve cooking liquid!) and add to the pan with peppercorns. Toss or stir with tongs. The important thing is that it moves in the pan a lot.
Add a ladleful of pasta cooking water and keep stirring. Add a little more of pasta cooking water if needed. Soon cream will form.
Turn off the heat and wait for 1-2 minutes.
Add the Pecorino cream you just made. Keep stirring until cream forms. If the pasta looks too dry, add a little more cooking water, if a little too liquid, add more Pecorino cheese.
Serve immediately. Spoon on pasta all the cream from the pan to the last drop.

Notes

The pasta must be well al dente when you drain it because it will need to cook for another couple of minutes in the pan while you mix it with the cream.

Nutrition