serves
4
prep
20 minutes
cook
10 minutes
difficulty
Easy
serves
4
people
preparation
20
minutes
cooking
10
minutes
difficulty
Easy
level
Stream free On Demand
Adapted Classics
Watch The Full Episode Here
G
Watch The Full Episode Here
G
Ingredients
- 500 g penne pasta
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp salted butter
- 4 eschallots, diced
- 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1 tsp chilli flakes
- 1 tbsp fennel seeds
- 140 g tomato paste
- ½ cup (125 ml) vodka
- ¼ cup (60 ml) pasta water
- ¾ cup thickened cream
- 1½ cups finely grated Pecorino Romano cheese
- ¼ cup basil leaves
- salt and black pepper
Instructions
- Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil. Cook the pasta according to package directions.
- While the pasta is cooking, heat the oil in a large heavy-based saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the butter, eschallots, garlic, chilli flakes and fennel seeds and cook, stirring, for 3-4 minutes, or until the eschallots are softened.
- Add the tomato paste to the pan and stir evenly to coat the eschallots and garlic. Cook, stirring, for 5 minutes, or until the paste is deep red and beginning to brown. Deglaze the pan for 1-2 minutes by adding the vodka and use a wooden spoon to scrape the browned bits off the base of the pan. Reduce the heat to low.
- Reserve ¼ cup pasta water in a large heatproof measuring jug and add the cream (this brings up the temperature of the cream so it won't split when you add it to the sauce).
- Slowly add the cream mixture to the pan, stirring constantly, until a smooth sauce forms. Remove from heat.
- Once the penne pasta is al dente, add it to the red vodka sauce using a strainer spoon or spider strainer.
- Gradually add the cheese (reserve some to garnish!), stirring constantly to melt through. The sauce should coat each piece of pasta. If the sauce becomes too thick, add small amounts of pasta water to thin sauce, if needed.
- Stir the basil leaves through the sauce (reserve a few to garnish!). Divide pasta among bowls. Top with remaining cheese, drizzle with extra virgin olive oil, tear basil leaves over and season with black pepper, to taste.
Photography by Kitti Gould.
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Cook's Notes
Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.
Stream free On Demand
Adapted Classics
