The perfect cacio e pepe? It comes down to science.
Cacio e pepe might be considered the Italian cousin of macaroni and cheese. The dish is deceptively simple on the surface, involving nothing more than cooked pasta (ideally, spaghetti or bucatini) combined with pecorino romano cheese and black pepper. But as anyone who has tried and failed to make it knows, getting this pasta to be as creamy and delicious as possible has everything to do with execution.
Researchers (and Italian food lovers) from the University of Barcelona, the Max Planck Institute for the Physics of Complex Systems, the University of Padua and the Institute of Science and Technology Austria say they have cracked the code to making perfect cacio e pepe. They discovered that using powdered starch — rather than just relying on the starch that comes from the pasta water — is the key ingredient to making creamy, not clumpy, cheese sauce.
So, what is the ideal ratio? According to the new study, the goal is to use about 3% of starch for the amount of cheese you use — so, if you use 100 grams of pecorino romano, 3 grams of powdered starch. Measuring this out in advance is key.
Get ready to taste cheesy goodness. Here's what to do.
Prepare the starchy water: Measure your cheese, then see what is 3% of that in order to find the appropriate amount of powdered starch (you can use either potato or corn starch for this recipe). Then add the starch to warm water to create a solution.
Cook pasta: Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and cook your pasta, preferably spaghetti or bucatini. Your aim is to get the pasta al dente, which means 'to the tooth' — i.e., neither too tough or soft. This may mean shaving a minute or two off your pasta box's recipe time. (Test a noodle if you're unsure.) Then drain the pasta and set aside.
Prepare the sauce: In a separate pan large enough to fit your pasta, blend your pecorino romano cheese into the starchy water. Stir so you get a smooth and uniform consistency, sans pasta-ruining clumps.
Reheat the sauce: Slowly heat the cheese and starch mixture back up in the pan. Don't go too high — that will cause the cheese to clump up. And this recipe is all about avoiding those dreaded clumps! Instead, slowly heat until it reaches serving temperature.
Combine the pasta and sauce: Add the cooked, drained pasta into the pan with the sauce. Toss it to ensure it's properly coated with cheesy goodness.
Add black pepper: Use fresh ground pepper to finish the sauce and toss again to coat the pasta. Serve immediately. Buon appetito!
It's true that cacio e pepe is a classic — but as with any classic, there are always some ways to put a new spin on it for when you're feeling like something just a touch different. Here are some ideas from around the internet.
Use crushed red chile peppers: Chef Jamie Oliver has a recipe for a cacio e pepe offshoot that uses red chile peppers in place of black pepper. His version also includes asparagus, which just so happens to be in season.
Add lemon zest: Martha Stewart likes to make a traditional cacio e pepe recipe, but with a twist. She grates the zest of a Meyer lemon into the dish, as well as squeezes in some lemon juice for a touch of acidity.
Make it vegan: A cacio e pepe recipe without cheese? It might sound impossible, but Los Angeles-based chef Matthew Kenney does just this by creating a cheese-like sauce with nutritional yeast and cashew cream.
Turn it into a grilled cheese: Culinary creator Peter Som has a recipe for a cacio e pepe grilled cheese for when you can't be bothered to boil pasta.
Go for a green version: Broccoli gets the cacio e pepe treatment thanks to this recipe from Chowhound.
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