Spaghetti alla puttanesca is the perfect last-minute dish, as it needs less than 30 minutes to prepare and a handful of pantry ingredients you probably already have!
Extra virgin olive oil, red pepper flakes, canned tomatoes create the base of this traditional Southern Italian dish.
Their combination offers a savory and slightly tangy taste, with the umami notes of the anchovioes, and the saltiness of the olives and capers enhancing the sauce's distinctive flavor.
This quick red sauce only requires the time to cook pasta al dente to be ready, making it the perfect mid-week dinner.
Add some canned tuna or prepare tomato tuna pasta directly. And if you love quick pasta sauce recipes that use tomato sauce and a few other ingredients, try this 20-minute bucatini pomodoro, this easy rigatoni arrabbiata, this yummy spinach mushroom pasta, or mushroom pappardelle!
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💎 Why This Recipe Works
- It's an easy and quick dish to prepare, making it an ideal option for busy days when you want a delicious meal without spending too much time in the kitchen.
- Italian food at its finest, with minimum ingredients and effort, yet maximum flavor.
- Puttanesca sauce is a budget-friendly option that doesn't compromise on flavor.
🛒 Ingredients
- Canned Tomatoes: Canned chopped or peeled tomatoes both work. Simply crush the whole peeled ones using a fork. You can prepare this Italian pasta using cherry tomatoes as well, for a sweet note.
- Olives: Kalamata olives are my go-to option, as they are strong, briny, and slightly tangy. Other black olives work too, however, ensure they are good quality ones. Italian olives like Gaeta or olive Taggiasche are great options if you find them.
- Anchovy Fillets: Opt for ones that are jarred in olive oil; they are salty, rich, and with a deep umami flavor. Anchovy paste can be used instead, but as its flavor is concentrated, you will need to control the amount used.
- Capers: Choose capers in brine if possible, as they are perfectly salty and acidic. If going for capers preserved in salt, then remember to rinse them before adding them to the sauce.
🔔 Be sure to check out the recipe card for all the ingredients and instructions you'll need to make this dish. Don't miss out on any of the details!
♻️ Substitutions and Variations
- Pasta: Although I used spaghetti, other types of long pasta work too, such as bucatini or linguine. You can use short pasta types too, and penne puttanesca is actually very popular.
- Herbs: Fresh parsley is the best pairing for this pasta sauce, as complements the fish. However, fresh basil adds a sweet note to the dish, which pairs well with the red pepper flakes. Dried oregano, on the other side, offers a great earthy note and works wonders with tomato sauce.
- San Marzano Tomatoes: They are considered the best tomatoes for sauce and if you have them, use them, but they are not mandatory for the good outcome of this recipe.
- Chili Flakes: Feel free to adjust the quantity as per your preference, by either increasing, reducing, or eliminating them completely.
👩🏻🍳 How to Make (step-by-step)
Sugo alla Puttanesca Ingredients' Prep
- Thinly chop the fresh parsley, anchovies, capers and olives, and keep them separate. The olives can be roughly chopped for texture, if desired.
- Peel the garlic clove and, using a fork, break down the peeled plum tomatoes. [Picture 1]
- Add the garlic clove, anchovies, capers, and red pepper flakes to warm olive oil. [Picture 2]
- Allow the ingredients to gently fry and flavor the oil. This will take 3-4 minutes. [Picture 3]
- Once the garlic clove turns lightly golden, add the tomato sauce and allow it to simmer gently. [Picture 4]
- After 10 minutes, the tomato sauce will be cooked, so add the olives and parsley, and remove the garlic clove. [Picture 5]
- Reserve a cup of starchy pasta water aside, and add the pasta to the puttanesca sauce. Add some of the water if needed. [Picture 6]
- Your pasta puttanesca is now ready. Enjoy it with your favorite side salad or a nice warm slice of garlic bread. [Picture 7]
🙋♀️ People Also Ask [FAQs]
Puttanesca means ''in the style of the prostitute''. The name originated from when the adult entertainers needed to create a quick meal to have in between appointments, and this recipe was invented.
Anchovies can be substituted with some extra capers and olives, for added saltiness. Miso paste is a great vegan and vegetarian alternative, as it can add that umami and savory taste the sauce needs; if possible, opt for darker varieties, like brown or red miso, and add a little at a time. Sundried tomatoes can be added thinly sliced to the sauce for their rich umami and tangy flavor, and offer a great vegan pasta alternative. All substitutes won't offer the same taste as anchovies or anchovy paste, but will prepare a great recipe.
Cooked pasta is best consumed fresh, straight away. Puttanesca sauce, on the other hand, can be stored in the refrigerator for up to three days, and in the freezer for up to three months. As tomato sauce can stain plastic containers, opt for glass airtight ones, if available. To use, thaw overnight in the fridge, and heat in a saucepan or microwave until piping hot, adding some water if needed. Once hot, add to your pasta dish as usual.
💡 Expert Tips and Tricks
- Start with Quality Ingredients: As this is a very simple recipe, the quality of the ingredients matters, and will impact the overall flavor of the dish.
- Balance of Flavors: Puttanesca sauce has a balance of sweet, tangy, and salty notes, so taste as you go to ensure there is no overwhelming ingredient.
- Anchovy Technique: Adding the anchovies to the olive oil is one of the most important steps in this recipe. This process helps break down the anchovies, incorporating their rich umami flavor throughout the dish.
- Whole Garlic: Using the whole garlic to simply flavor the oil is the best way to avoid burning it while frying the other ingredients.
- Finish with Freshness: If preferred, keep the chopped parsley aside and add it on top of the spaghetti alla puttanesca just before serving. The bright green will offer a great contrast!
- Parmesan: Being this a fish sauce for pasta, you won't need grated Parmesan cheese.
🍴 More Delicious Pasta Recipes To Try
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🍽️ Recipe
The Best Spaghetti Puttanesca with Pantry Staples
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon Olive Oil
- 1-2 tablespoon Capers
- 5-6 Anchovy Fillets
- 12-15 Pitted Black Olives
- 1 Garlic Clove Peeled
- ½ teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes
- 1 can Peeled Plum Tomatoes [canned whole tomatoes]
- 2 tablespoon Fresh Parsley Finely Chopped
- 160 g Spaghetti
Instructions
Preparation of the ingredients for Puttanesca sauce
- Thinly chop the fresh parsley, anchovies, capers and olives, and keep them separate. The olives can be roughly chopped for texture, if desired.
- Peel the garlic clove and, using a fork, break down the peeled plum tomatoes.
Cooking the sauce
- Warm up the olive oil in a frying pan on medium heat.
- As soon as it is warm, add the garlic clove, finely chopped anchovies, capers, and crushed red pepper flakes, and reduce the heat to medium-low.
- Allow the ingredients to gently fry and flavor the oil. This will take 3-4 minutes.
- As soon as the garlic clove turns lightly golden, add the tomato sauce to the pan, and allow it to reach a light simmer, stirring occasionally.
- In the meantime, cook the pasta according to package directions in a large pot of boiling salted water.
- After the sauce has been simmering for about 10 minutes, add the olives and chopped parsley.
- Mix the sauce well and adjust the seasoning if required. As anchovies, olives, and capers are quite salty, do not add salt and pepper before this step.
- Remove the whole garlic clove from the sauce.
- Once the pasta is ready (al dente), remove a cup of cooking water and set it aside, before draining the rest.
- Add the pasta to the puttanesca sauce, and mix well. If necessary, add some of the pasta cooking water to adjust the consistency.
- Your pasta puttanesca is now ready to be served with your favorite side salad or a nice warm slice of garlic bread. Enjoy!
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