Cacio e Pepe Pasta

5 from 1 vote

A classic Roman dish, Bucatani Cacio e Pepe is a cheesy pasta covered in creamy sauce that you'll want to make again and again!

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 20

Total Time 25

Servings

Calories 407kcal

Fill a pot with only enough water to cook the pasta. Bring it to a boil and salt generously.
Add 8 oz bucatini noodles into the pot and cook until they are very al dente (about 1 minute before the package instructions say they will be done).
While the pasta is cooking, add a large saucepan to the stove over medium high heat. Then, add 1 tsp freshly cracked black pepper into the pan. Toast for a few minutes until the pepper is fragrant.
Add a ladle of starchy pasta water (about ¼ cup) into the saucepan. Then use tongs to add the cooked pasta into the saucepan, reserving the remaining pasta water.
In a small bowl, add about ¼ cup of pasta water to 8 oz grated cheese and use a fork to mix together, forming a cheesy paste.
Add the cheese paste to the pasta in the saucepan and use the tongs to mix the ingredients together until a cheesy sauce is formed. You may need to add spoonfuls of pasta water to get the sauce to thin out.
Once the cheese sauce is formed, add any more black pepper to taste and serve. Enjoy!

Recipe Copyright The Foreign Fork. For educational or personal use only.

Bucatini: Traditional cacio e pepe is made with tonnarelli but that can be very difficult to find in the United States. Instead, bucatini is a popular replacement. It’s similar to spaghetti but is a lot thicker and has a hole in the center. If you can’t find any Bucatini at your local grocery store, thick spaghetti noodles will work just fine.
Black Peppercorns: Fresh ground Black Pepper is an important part of this recipe. It adds a vital flavor to the sauce. Your typical ground pepper flakes will work in a pinch, but the fresher and larger flakes you can get, the better.
Pecorino Romano: Finely grated Pecorino Romano cheese is the base of the sauce. Do not settle for anything pre-grated. It’s worth the effort to grate the block down by hand to get the texture and flavor just right. While you may be tempted to replace this with something else–don’t! The flavor of this cheese just cannot be replaced. This is one of those recipes where quality matters. Don't skimp on good quality cheese, good pasta and fresh cracked pepper. Never use pre-grated or pre-shredded cheese. It will not melt well and your sauce will not get the desired texture.
This is one of those recipes where quality matters. Don't skimp on good quality cheese, good pasta and fresh cracked pepper.
Never use pre-grated or pre-shredded cheese. It will not melt well and your sauce will not get the desired texture.