Easy Cacio e Pepe Recipe | Julie Blanner (2024)

FAQs

What makes cacio e pepe so good? ›

Translated from Italian, cacio e pepe means cheese and black pepper. The allure of a dish made with so few ingredients is indeed rooted in its simplicity, in its intensity of flavors and textures. When made just right, the cheese melts into the reserved pasta water and clings to the pasta, creating a creamy sauce.

Cacio e Pepe Variations

Pecorino Romano is a hard, Italian sheep's milk cheese. It has sharp, rich nutty flavor, making it the perfect cheese for this simple pasta dish. If you don't have it or can't find it Parmigiano-Reggiano is a totally acceptable alternative.

Traditionally, cacio e pepe (pronounced: kaa-chee-ow ee peh-pay) is made with just three ingredients: aged pecorino Romano cheese, freshly ground black pepper, and pasta, usually spaghetti; plus the starchy water from cooking the noodles. You don't have to go to Rome to enjoy cacio e pepe.

But it is extremely hard to execute well because you need to control the heat. The cheese will become stringy if you heat up your pan too much (above 70 °C or 158 °F). I tested all the methods, so you do not need to! Cacio e Pepe is rare in restaurants because it is hard to serve warm without the corn starch trick.

The secret, in addition to the chemical combination of water and Pecorino proteins to obtain a cream without lumps, lies in the flavor: whole peppercorns crushed the same day and plunged into the pan to toast releasing all their pungent aroma; the pasta whisked slowly and in a controlled way to absorb all the taste of ...

Look no further than Chianti Classico for a classic red pairing. While most people associate this wine with flavorful meats like Florentine steak, the sharpness of the cacio e pepe holds its own and makes Chianti an unexpected accompaniment.

Similarly to Pecorino Romano, aged Parmesan cheese grates well and has a sharp, nutty flavor. However, due to different production methods, Parmesan is considerably less salty and tangy. When substituting Parmesan for Romano, use a 1:1 ratio. Just keep in mind that you may need to add additional salt to the recipe.

Parmesan can step in for Pecorino, but keep in mind that it won't have the same salty, tangy flavors as Pecorino, so you may need to adjust seasoning accordingly.

That said, as simple as the cacio e pepe ingredient list may be, this dish is famously finicky when it comes to technique. If the cheese is overheated or the starchy pasta water isn't emulsified properly, the sauce can turn into a sticky, clumpy mess, which I can vouch from experience is always such a tragedy.

Ingredients. WATER, DURUM WHEAT SEMOLINA, PECORINO ROMANO CHEESE (SHIP'S MILK, SALT, ANIMAL RENNET, CHEESE CULTURES), MILK, WHEAT FLOUR, CREAM, BUTTER (MILK, NATURAL FLAVOR), GROUND BLACK PEPPER, SALT. Find out how your wellness data and product content can elevate the customer experience and convert more shoppers!

What pasta shape is best for cacio e pepe? ›

1. Pick a curved pasta shape that'll grab hold of the sauce. Customarily, Cacio e Pepe is made with hand-made tonnarelli pasta, which is about double the thickness of classic spaghetti.

You might not suspect this, but the way the cheese is grated is key to making perfect Cacio e Pepe. Indeed, if the cheese is grated too coarsely, it won't emulsify into a smooth sauce, and you'll end up with blobs of coagulated cheese.

The first problem is easy to fix: Just add more water to the mix. Using the water you've cooked your pasta in is especially effective, as it adds starch, which can help to thicken and emulsify the sauce.

- Add a little more pasta water than you think you need (the pasta will continue to soak it up and the sauce will thicken on your plate).

The translation of Cacio e Pepe literally means cheese and pepper. This pasta dish is incredibly simple, but packs a lot of rich flavor with pecorino Romano cheese and freshly ground pepper. It has a very rich and strong flavor due to the Pecorino Romano sharp cheese as well as the heavy amount of pepper.

Cacio e pepe is made by emulsifying pasta water with grated cheese and black pepper. It clumps so easily. Alfredo has an image problem. Americans think of it as pasta draped in a cream sauce made of heavy cream and cheese, but the original version is thinner and creamy from an emulsion of butter and grated cheese.

In Italian, Cacio e Pepe translates to “cheese and pepper,” and as far as accurate recipe names go, this one nails it. Cheese and pepper are traditionally the only ingredients in this classic Roman dish. Combined with spaghetti, they create a famously creamy, cheesy, and peppery delight.

This peasant food comes from Roman sheep herders who had little time and money to spend on eating. They used their sheep's cheese and a bit of the water that cooked the pasta to create a cream, then added black pepper to give it some extra flavor.