Pasta Puttanesca Recipe
An Italian classic, Pasta Puttanesca is a savory olive-filled dish that can be made entirely out of pantry staples. The rustic sauce can be pulled together in under 10 minutes using canned or jarred ingredients you likely have on hand.
My love for olives started as a baby. Of course, since I am first-generation Greek, I likely have olive oil running through my veins since my grandparents had olive orchards.
In fact, my mom tells a funny story about me and olives when I was about one and a half years old. There used to be a Greek market on Lincoln Avenue in Denver and one day my mom was driving home from the market when suddenly the scent of pungent Kalamata olives reached her nose.
As she looked in the rearview mirror, she saw me as an 18-month old with a mouthful of olives and my hand in the jar reaching for more.
Terrified that I would choke on the pits, she was forced to pull over on I-25 to make me spit them out. That obviously didn’t deter me as I still love olives as do my three children. In fact, we always have Greek olives and feta cheese on hand and I constantly stock up so I am never without.
Last week a kind Italian neighbor dropped off some amazing Castevetrano Olives from Itlay. I wanted to hide them for myself, but in this time of sheltering at home, there is no hiding of food. The kids find everything! They also eat everything in sight! Nonetheless, the olives were the inspiration for this meal.
Puttanesca Sauce Ingredients
I used whole wheat angel hair pasta as that’s what I had on hand, but I prefer the dish with an al dente spaghetti. It tastes so much better if it has just a touch of bite to it. Angel hair gets soft really quickly, but use whatever pasta you have available.
- olive oil
- 4 cloves of garlic, minced
- large onion, finely chopped
- canned tomatoes
- Kalamata olives, halved
- Manzanilla olives, halved or sliced
- red pepper flakes
- capers
- grated parmesan cheese
- oregano or dried basil
- white wine
- salt and pepper to taste
- spaghetti, linguini or angel hair pasta
How to Make Puttanesca Sauce
Bring water to boil and add a teaspoon of salt to cook the pasta just until al dente (about 1 minute shy of cooking instructions). Reserve 1/4 cup of pasta water
While pasta is cooking, heat olive oil in a large skillet. Add minced garlic, chopped onion and red pepper flakes. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes over medium heat until the onions are translucent and garlic is fragrant.
Add the tomatoes, capers, olives and cook until the sauce reduces slightly. Add white wine and continue to simmer for 5 minutes. Transfer the cooked pasta to the sauce, stir together. If the pasta seems a bit dry, add the 1/4 cup of pasta water to loosen the sauce.
Top with grated parmesan cheese and enjoy.
You could easily add seafood to increase the protein in this dish – shrimp, calamari, or even canned tuna would be phenomenal!
Pasta Puttanesca
Ingredients
- 1 lb. spaghetti pasta
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 4 cloves of garlic minced
- 1 large onion finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2 15 oz canned diced tomatoes
- 3/4 cup Kalamata olives
- 1/2 cup Manzanilla olives
- 1/4 cup capers
- 1 teaspoon oregano or dried basil
- 1/4 cup white wine
- grated parmesan cheese
- salt and pepper to taste
- fresh basil optional
Instructions
- Bring water to boil and add a teaspoon of salt to cook the pasta just until al dente (about 1 minute shy of cooking instructions). Reserve 1/4 cup of pasta water
- While pasta is cooking, heat olive oil in a large skillet. Add minced garlic, chopped onion and red pepper flakes. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes over medium heat until the onions are translucent and garlic is fragrant.
- Add the tomatoes, capers, olives and dried oregano, salt and pepper and cook until the sauce reduces slightly. Add white wine and continue to simmer for 5 minutes. Transfer the cooked pasta to the sauce, stir together. If the pasta seems a bit dry, add the 1/4 cup of pasta water to loosen the sauce.
- Top with grated parmesan cheese and freshly torn basil and enjoy.
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