Cacio e Pepe  

My all-time favorite pasta dish, the one I always make a point to order when I eat out, is cacio e pepe. Why do I love it so much? The cheese base that forms the sauce of the pasta is pure heaven. It has a rich, savory flavor from Pecorino Romano and freshly ground black pepper. My method here isn’t traditional but does solve a few problems with this dish. The cheese sauce is notorious for burning quickly, and it can also fall apart. The solution to these problems lies in the fact that the sauce is an emulsion of fat, proteins, and water. I find that blending the ingredients for the sauce with the hot pasta water makes a stable sauce that can be directly added to the cooked pasta. This dish should be prepared and eaten as soon as it is made.

The Cook’s Notes 

While this is an effortless dish, making the cheese sauce can be tricky. It can quickly burn, stick to the bottom of a pan, and fall apart. Luckily the sauce for the pasta is an emulsion made up of proteins, fats, and water. I make the pasta sauce outside the pan in a blender. Using a blender provides high mechanical forces that help create a more stable emulsion, aka the cheese sauce. The sauce is then added to the cooked pasta and served, eliminating the need for cooking it on the stove.

Use fragrant varieties of black peppercorns like Tellicherry, Malabar, Vietnamese, or Sarawak here. It’s the only spice used in this recipe, and the quality matters.

Always use freshly ground black pepper, as ground black pepper loses its flavor within a few days.  

Makes 4 servings 

1 lb/455 g pasta like spaghetti, bucatini, or linguini

Fine sea salt

¼ cup/60 g unsalted butter

2 tsp ground black pepper like Tellicherry, Malabar, Vietnamese, or Sarawak plus extra for garnish

1 ½ cups/90 g finely grated Pecorino Romano plus extra for garnish

Cook the pasta according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Reserve the pasta cooking water. 

Prepare the cheese sauce for the pasta. Melt the butter over medium heat in a small saucepan. Once the butter starts to sizzle, add the black pepper and swirl until fragrant, 30 to 45 seconds. Pour the warm butter mixture into a blender. Add the Pecorino Romano and 1 ¼ cups/300 ml hot pasta water. Blend until smooth and emulsified. The sauce should be creamy and thick; if you want it thinner, add 1 to 2 Tbsp of hot pasta water. Pour the sauce over the pasta and fold to coat well. Serve immediately and garnish with additional grated Pecorino Romano and other ground black pepper if desired.