This is great the next day, if you happen to have leftovers. The sauce tends to soak into the pasta over night so you'll want to add a little water when you reheat it. I like to add a little olive oil, salt and pepper too.
¼poundpancetta diced small (see recipe note #1 for easy homemade pancetta recipe)
1tablespoonolive oil
1onionsliced into thin slivers
4clovesgarlicthinly sliced
28-ouncecanwhole tomatoeswith juice (recipe note #2)
½teaspoonred chili flakesor more
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1pounddry bucatini pastaor spaghetti
2ouncesPecorino Romanoor Parmesan, grated
¼cupItalian parsleyfinely chopped
Instructions
Cook and stir pancetta in a large skillet over medium heat until brown. Remove from heat and transfer pancetta to a paper towel. Pour off most or all of the fat from the skillet, but no need to wash it.
Return skillet to stove over medium heat; add olive oil, onion and garlic. Cook and stir until onion is translucent. Add tomatoes, red chili flakes and pancetta; cook and stir, crushing tomatoes with the spoon. Simmer, stirring occasionally for 15 minutes or until sauce has thickened.
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Cook bucatini according to package directions and drain, reserving 1 cup of cooking liquid.
Add cooked pasta to sauce; cook and stir until thoroughly combined and heated through, adding reserved cooking liquid as needed to loosen the sauce. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer to serving platter and sprinkle grated pecorino and parsley over the top. Serve.
Video
Notes
Want to make your own easy homemade pancetta? Try this pancetta recipe.
Though I love the consistency of whole tomatoes, crushing them in the pan can be messy. Instead, use kitchen shears to cut them into smaller pieces right in the can! (See recipe video for a visual of this.)
If you plan to have leftovers, save extra pasta cooking liquid and pour some into the bottom of your storage container before adding the leftover pasta. When you reheat it, you'll be happy to have the extra liquid.