Pasta alla Zozzona
Why isn’t this dish more famous outside Rome? Pasta alla Zozzona is a decadent pasta that has a flavor you’ve never experienced before. It’s as though a Carbonara and Amatriciana made love and had a baby. It’s an extraordinary dish which combines pork ingredients with egg, tomato and pecorino cheese.
- Prep time
- 14 min
- Cook time
- 31 min
- Yield
- 4 servings
- Difficulty
- MEDIUM
Ingredients
Quantities are shown as originally provided.
- 10.58 oz Rigatoni Pasta (300g)
- 3 free range/organic eggs
- 1 thick pork Italian sausage
- 5.29 oz Guanciale (150g)
- ½ Onion (chopped finely)
- 28.2 oz Peeled tomatoes (2 x 400g cans)
- Pecorino Romano cheese (as much as you like!)
- 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- Fresh basil (as much as preferred)
- Salt and pepper (as much as required)
Instructions
- 1
Pour the canned tomatoes into a bowl and gently press to break them down using a fork.
- 2
Remove the skin from the guanciale with a knife, but leave the fat.
- 3
Cut the guanciale into thin strips, then into bite-size pieces.
- 4
Make a shallow cut in the Italian sausage, then peel off the skin. Press the sausage meat flat with the side/tip of the knife and break it into smaller pieces.
- 5
Put three tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil in the frying pan. Add diced onion and cook for up to 7 minutes on medium heat (less if it starts to brown too much).
- 6
When the onion turns golden brown, add the guanciale, and once this is crispy add Italian sausage. Stir continuously making sure it is cooked all over.
- 7
Add some more extra virgin olive oil and allow it to cook through.
- 8
When sausage becomes greyish brown, add peeled tomatoes. Stir gently and cook for 15 minutes on medium-low heat.
- 9
Add a touch of salt and press down on the tomatoes to release the juice. Leave to cook for 15 more minutes.
- 10
Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add a generous tablespoon of sea salt.
- 11
Add rigatoni to the boiling water and cook for 13 minutes, (or follow packet instructions to ensure they’re al dente).
- 12
Stir pasta occasionally and once ready, scoop up a mug full of pasta water.
- 13
Separate the egg white and the yolk then whisk egg yolks in a bowl.
- 14
Add 4 generous tablespoons of Pecorino Romano. Mix the egg yolks and cheese with a fork until it thickens then add black pepper.
- 15
Mix a small amount of hot pasta water into the mix. The sauce should become a little runny, and the hot water should cook the egg yolks slightly.
- 16
Sprinkle fresh basil into the sauce, stir gently then add the pasta and Pecorino cheese.
- 17
Stir and toss until it becomes a pinkish color then add more Pecorino, and sprinkle black pepper on top.