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Recipes

Puttanesca-Style Spaghetti with Crispy Breadcrumbs (Pangrattato)

Published on

By Christelle Tanielian

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Servings: 2 servings Preparation: 20 minutes. Cook time: 15 minutes. Total time: 35 minutes.
A flavorful take on spaghetti alla puttanesca, enhanced with crispy breadcrumbs. This dish features al dente spaghetti tossed in a tomato sauce with anchovies, black olives, capers, and garlic, topped with golden breadcrumbs for added crunch.​
Cuisine style
  • Traditional Italian cuisine
Categories
  • Main course
  • Pasta
  • Mediterranean recipe
Cooking method
  • Oven

Ingredients

1 slice of day-old country or sourdough bread

60 ml (¼ cup) olive oil, divided, plus a drizzle for serving

2 cloves garlic, peeled

3 anchovies in oil, coarsely chopped

5 ml (1 tsp) capers in vinegar, drained

150 g (1/3 lb) Gen V grape tomatoes, halved

175 g (1/3 lb) spaghetti

1 can (120 g / ¼ lb) sardines in oil, drained, central bones removed

Salt and freshly ground pepper

Chopped flat-leaf parsley and fresh basil, for serving

Preparation

  1. In a small food processor, pulse the bread into coarse breadcrumbs. Set aside.
  2. In a large, wide-rimmed skillet over medium heat, heat 30 ml (2 tbsp) of olive oil. Infuse the garlic and breadcrumbs for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the breadcrumbs are golden and crispy. Remove the breadcrumbs from the skillet (keep the garlic in the skillet). Set aside.
  3. Add the remaining olive oil, anchovies, capers, and tomatoes to the skillet. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer over very low heat for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  4. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the spaghetti according to package instructions or until al dente. Reserve 125 ml (½ cup) of the pasta cooking water.
  5. Add the spaghetti and reserved pasta water to the skillet. Toss the skillet to coat the spaghetti well with the sauce. Add the sardines and gently mix. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Remove the garlic.
  6. Serve the spaghetti drizzled with a little olive oil, sprinkled with the breadcrumbs, and garnished with chopped parsley and basil.


Keywords

  • spaghetti puttanesca breadcrumbs
  • Italian pasta recipe
  • homemade puttanesca sauce
  • pasta with anchovies and capers
  • Mediterranean cuisine
  • traditional Italian recipe
  • crispy spaghetti
  • golden breadcrumbs
  • Italian main course
  • flavorful pasta dish

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