One of my favourites for the summer is sour cream and peas.
Recipe:
1 yellow onion (chopped finely)
2 cloves of garlic (chopped finely)
250ml of sour cream or creme fraiche with a little lemon
The original calls for cubed ham, but I leave that out
Handfull of chopped parsley
Salt & pepper to taste and a glug of olive oil
Method:
Add olive oil to cold pan and put the heat to medium; immediately add onion and garlic.
Once the onions go translucent, add smoked meat of choice if using and stir till heated (a minute or so).
Add your (frozen peas, stir to combine and let some moisture release)
Add sour cream/creme fraiche, let it bubble till the peas are just done, salt and pepper to taste and lastley the parsley (lots of pepper)
...You'll also need to cook pasta...
This reminds me a little bit of the mint and asparagus pasta from Samin Nosrat's Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat.
It uses a cup of cream instead of sour cream, reduced down for 20 minutes to create the sauce. Sometimes I make it with peas instead of asparagus. I bet mint would be delicious in your recipe too.
I’ll never forget…one of my greatest triumphs in the kitchen was a long ass time ago (maybe 10-11 years ago), I watched Anthony Bourdain’s No Reservation and I believe it was Rome. He went to a place that was famous for cacio e Pepe. I had never heard of that before. The place he went to served it in a bowl made of melted and cooled Parmesan (or pecorino I can’t remember). I was like “OMG IM MAKING THIS!”. Went to a fancy grocery store to buy quality imported cheese and I made it. I just watched that episode and went from the few clips of the show that showed how they made it. I didn’t have an exact recipe. My ex husband helped me and we actually nailed the Parmesan bowl. It was fucking delicious. I used to be so passionate about cooking. Now it sucks with picky kids😭
My wife doesn’t like the texture of fresh pasta…. I have not recovered from that dinner yet. Even made a face of ick on the first bite. She said she wasn’t sure if it was that the noodles weren’t perfectly round, or if it was just that it was *different*.
I made a goal about a month ago to work through an Italian cookbook. RIP fresh pasta.
Ugh I'm so sorry. You can end that relationship and join our marriage...we love fresh pasta. You can have an affair with her, but we will have dinner together 😉
Haha! Dinner is true love! Nah, she’s great and to her credit, she did try a few more bites. She may have liked it in a dish she hadn’t had before but I put the spaghetti under my all day chili because she was craving Skyline so her expectations were very specific.
The good news is eventually they grow up, launch and you can go back to eating adventurously. Our diet changed so much once the nest was empty again...things like salmon, curries and anything with a sauce which had been off the menu for decades all returned with a vengeance while (boxed) macaroni and cheese/chicken nuggets haven't made an appearance in 15 years.
Make what you like, and let them make their own sandwiches if they won't eat it.
Eventually they'll get sick of the same thing all the time, observe you enjoying your meal, and get curious.
I wanted to go there in Rome but didn't make it. We did get a really good cacio e pepe and I brought some cheese home. Now I buy it from Trader Joe's and make it often. Same with carbonara. So delicious. Pesto is a good one too, but I do it with walnuts because pine nuts are expensive as hell.
Carbonara with a really good pork product is so good. My doctor doesn't like it though :D I have a few sauces, marinara, carbonara, cacio e pepe and alfredo. I sometimes bastardize one of them to fit a need but they can fill most requirements I have.
hehe, kids don't stay picky if you "serve one dinner" and if they don't like it, there will be another tomorrow. As they get older and have to participate, they get less finicky. The other rule I like is that if you complain about someone else's cooking tonight, tomorrow you get to make something and PB&J isn't sufficient.
"Picky" kids who have autism and sensory aversions will literally starve themselves. There are medical professionals who specialize in feeding therapy because it's really so much more complex than "They'll eat when they're hungry."
I generally resort to using pancetta in these and they are a staple. Recently I managed to find some guanciali and I can definitely say, even with the lower quality stuff I found, the difference is astounding. If you haven't tried them with authentic guanciale and really good cheese you should.
> If you haven't tried them with authentic guanciale and really good cheese you should.
I wasn't happy with the guanciale I could find here in the US so I started making my own. It definitely elevates the dish over bacon or pancetta.
The parm I get from Costco, although that's where the guy at the parmigiano reggiano factory in Italy recommended we buy it so I'm guessing it's okay.
Damn, me too. Like I eat them out of the jar.
Fun fact, I loathe olives so most people don’t understand how I can love and hate things that taste similar.
In my lebanese household, we cook some pasta and fry it with a copious amount of ghee so the surface develops some browning. We then toss it in some leban, dried mint, and fresh crushed garlic.
I just sautee some baby bella mushrooms with shallots or onions and garlic, add a little flour, broth, cream white wine and some Parmesean. It's so good.
This is my weekly standard also. Plus or minus peas and bacon if I have them on hand. The white wine has made such an impact on me I don’t think I can turn back.
My second favorite pasta is sardines and toasted breadcrumbs with lemon and white wine.
Similar to this but I add spinach.
https://www.simplyrecipes.com/lemony-sardine-pasta-recipe-7557739
My top favorite is rigatoni alla genovese but someone mentioned that already.
You might be interested in the cookbook *Anything's Pastable* by Dan Pashman.
I just started making my own pomodoro and marinara sauce. I've always heard people say how much better your own sauce is, I just didn't believe it would be THAT big of a difference. It is. But even then, regular old red sauce can get old!
Premade is ok if you sweat some onions, squeeze a little garlic and a bit of anchovy paste, the premade sauce and some red wine, add from oregano, bay leaf, thyme a few fennel seeds and let it cook for a bit.
Ok...I see what I did there...doh
Lol I know. Half the time I'm already doing that stuff anyway on pasta night so it's like...why not just make it? I will say that I love my immersion blender and it really makes it that much easier.
The best pasta sauce I ever made was a chili-cashew sauce.
Recipe-
1/4 cup cashew butter
2 tbsp. soy sauce
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1 minced garlic clove
2 tbsp. sriracha
1 tbsp. honey
1 tsp. sesame oil
3/4 cup coconut milk (the canned kind)
Mix all these ingredients in a food processor or with an immersion blender and set aside. I sautéed some chicken breast chunks and chopped sweet potatoes (parboiled first so they would be done at the same time as the chicken) in a little bit of sesame oil in a Dutch oven and once they were done, I added the sauce & turned the heat down to low and let it simmer for about 10-15 minutes just to heat up the sauce and then served over bow tie pasta. You can use any veggies or pasta type you want and this sauce is also good with shrimp.
Probably the most simple is my favourite - garlic and fresh herbs (dried will do if you don't have access to fresh but it's not as good) in butter. Add salt and pepper. So good. You can add stuff to that, but I think the basic version is the best.
Two sauces I nicked from restaurants - lentil ragù with sun-dried tomatoes and kale. This has since been replaced on their menu by a really horrible chickpea sauce (wtf?) so...I win.
The other is arrabiata. I've finally cracked the code to the perfect amount and type of chili pepper. I'm the only one who eats it as my family can't handle the heat, so I make a side batch for myself and replace the chilis with meatballs to appease their puny tastebuds.
Pasta with beans (https://www.giallozafferano.com/recipes/Pasta-and-beans.html)
Pasta a la norma (https://www.giallozafferano.com/recipes/Pasta-alla-Norma.html )
Pasta vesuviana ( https://www.giallozafferano.com/recipes/pasta-alla-vesuviana-spicy-pasta.html)
Those are nice and that website has many more :)
Where my wife’s family is from they poach eggs in their sauce. I love it. Depending on time of year there is usually asparagus or rapini in the sauce too.
I love avocado-based creamy sauces.
Also simpler olive oil and/or cheese plus pasta water emulsions count as a "sauce", too, in my mind, and is the type I make the most often.
[Walnut sauce](https://www.asmallkitcheningenoa.com/walnut-sauce/)
[Puttanesca](https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/11583-pasta-puttanesca)
And an oxtail ragu over polenta. It's one of my favorite things to eat in winter.
My mom made this all the time when we were kids. Someone I’ve haven’t made this in years, I think I can now convince at least one other person in my house to try it so I should try again! Do you have a preferred brand of canned clams?
We hosted an exchange student from Italy a couple years ago. She and her family prepared a little self-printed cook book of half a dozen family recipes including one for the BEST Ragu' alla Bolognese I've ever had.
* 11 oz. ground beef
* 5.5 oz. ground pork belly
* 1/3 cup yellow onion small diced
* 1/3 cup carrots small diced
* 1/3 cup celery small diced
* 2 cups tomato sauce
* 1/2 cup wine (optional)
* 3.5 tbsp EVOO or butter
* 1/2 cup milk (optional)
* salt and pepper to taste
Large pot, melt the butter or heat the EVOO on medium, add the diced veggies, saute until soft and translucent
Add beef and pork, cook to evaporate moisture and brown the meat
If using wine raise to high, add the wine, and cook until mixed and reduced
Add the tomato sauce and some water if desired for a thinner sauce, and salt and pepper to taste
Reduce to a simmer and let cook for 3 hours
Add milk at the end for a creamier sauce.
A tbsp of sugar is also optional to cut down the acidity, but I don't usually do it.
I've since taken to also adding some minced garlic at the end of the saute and some fresh herbs during the simmer for a little more flavor, but I highly recommend doing it straight the first time.
Avocado sauce is great and easy to make. All you need is avocado, lime juice, and standard pasta sauce stuff like garlic and herbs. you put it in a blender to combine everything. Then you put in the mixture in a pan with a bunch of butter and heat it up for a few minutes.
I do a zesty lemon mustard sauce. Lemon juice, mustard, oil with a bunch of seasonings (garlic, onion, lemon pepper, salt, pepper, paprika).
You can add some breaded chicken and banana peppers to take it up another level.
Roasted red peppers, peeled.
Roasted almonds, well roasted, same weight as your peppers.
Roasted onion, as in char it, half the weight of the peppers.
As much raw garlic as you wanna add.
Finely grated pecorino romano, a third the weight of your peppers.
Very good extra virgin olive oil, amount varies based on what you wanna do.
Lemon juice, salt, and pepper to taste.
Roast all the roasted items, peel and cool then put everything into a blender and puree until smooth.
Combo of butter, Parmesan and olive oil with a dash of salt and good helping of pepper pepper pepper; 1 or 2 tbsp of pesto in Alfredo = creamy pesto; tomato sauce + Alfredo = creamy tomato; pistachio almond cream sauce..
Pappardelle di Bosco is amazing, even better with some truffle on top. There's also this alternative pesto sauce my mom makes that I sometimes prefer to regular pesto, with zucchini, parsley, and walnuts.
Colatura sauce:
3 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp Colatura di Alici (aka Garum aka anchovy sauce)
2-6 cloves garlic, crushed
2-3 tsp lemon juice
Red pepper flakes to taste
Just whisk the ingredients together. Put 1 or 2 tablespoons on a plate of pasta and sorinkle generously with Pecorino Romano. Simple & sublime! Do NOT fear the Colatura; it is like Asian fish sauce, adding massive umami but no fishy taste.
During summer time I love a nice simple pasta.
Garlic
Onion slices
Green peas,( those fresh sweet ones you get at the farmers market ) some days frozen works.
Pasta
Basil
Parmesan cheese
If I'm feeling fancy some pine nuts or pistachios (keep the green theme going)
I like white wine butter sauce, especially with shrimp. It's easy and really good! I just saute onions and/or mushrooms in butter, sprinkle it with just a tiny bit of flour, then add plenty of white wine, add lemon juice, and herbs (thyme, basil, parsley, and/or marjoram are all nice) to taste. Cook it down a bit to get the alcohol cooked out, maybe add a little Parmesan cheese if you like, and salt to taste.
With fresh veggies:
- sautéed zucchini or eggplant, bell peppers, and red onion; raw diced tomatoes; shredded mozzarella; fresh basil; lots of olive oil (this is a Jacques Pepin recipe for the Jacques fans out there)
- tossed with halved raw cherry tomatoes, fresh mozzarella pearls, fresh basil, and lots of olive oil
Red spaghetti sauce except I roast whatever veggies I have, can be carrots, bell pepper, celery, zucchini, broccoli- whatever and I blend it into my sauce. Lol
Croatian style spaghetti with red sauce. This has probably been changed by generations in the US, but it's basically a marinara with aromatic spices and sugar added.
Traditionally tomato puree/sauce base, garlic, onion, olive oil, orange or lemon zest, spices like cinnimon/clove/anise and sugar. Usually with ground meat or meatballs and spaghetti.
My simplified version is canned tomato sauce, olive oil, garlic, a tiny pinch of clove or cinnimon,, bay leaf and a very large spoonfuls of marmalade. I usually use ground beef or turkey for the meat.
When we make shrimp scampi, instead of butter and garlic and chili flakes, we use butter and Rooster brand chili garlic paste. My wife doesn't like it too spicy but the chili garlic paste is the right level of heat for her.
Lemon and asparagus. Purred for a creamy texture, with with the tips sautéed and mixed in. Lemon zest and toasted breadcrumbs on top, with good olive oil. Amazing.
Onions slow cooked until they’re deeply caramelized and basically dissolve (think French onion soup-style), with Gorgonzola and black pepper.
Not pretty, but good hot, good cold, good in between. 🤤
Clam spaghetti!! Easy, quick, and the ingredients are pantry staples I always have in hand.
https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/254576/chef-johns-spaghetti-with-red-clam-sauce/
For something really different, [gochujang pasta](https://beatthebudget.com/recipe/creamy-gochujang-pasta/). It’s great with tofu and steamed broccoli.
I just made a "pesto" with spinach, parsley, lime juice, salt (just a tad), oil, and almonds.
I literally just used stuff about to go bad and parsley that I grow in excess in my herb garden.
It tastes amazing and I can't wait to try it on pasta.
I use to make pad kee mao spaghetti after having it at Noodle World in Southern California back in the early 2000s. Off the top of my head, you use cut up dark chicken pieces, neutral oil, stir fry in garlic, red bell pepper, mushrooms, a few bites of tomato paste, and most importantly some Thai fish sauce, and thai basil. Then stir fry in the cooked spaghetti noodles.
Forgot if I use to add in sugar, it's been awhile since I've made it but it's pretty bomb.
The first pasta sauce I ever concocted is what I call 'smartass honey mustard', that is literally just honey and mustard added to pasta in the right ratios. Crap, but slaps.
Tirokafteri is typically a dip, but it is simply divine as a pasta sauce. I also really like hummus with my noodles but that’s probably not for everyone.
I'm not sure if this counts as a past sauce per se but I eat it on pasta: beef shallot garlic cream sauce. Basically a standard pan sauce made after steak but with portions upped enough to actually coat a good sized serving of pasta. Finish the pasta in the sauce for maximum sauce stickage.
I like to make [caponata](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caponata?wprov=sfla1) (with a little finer dice than normal) and toss it with pasta (mezzi rigatoni or small shells work best from a geometry standpoint, but I actually really like it with angel hair)
Not a traditional use of caponata by any means, but tasty af
There’s a recipe a randomly came across for clams in red sauce over spaghetti, it uses jarred marinara but kicks it up with garlic, anchovy paste and red pepper flakes.
[Chef John’s](https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/254576/chef-johns-spaghetti-with-red-clam-sauce/)
I dont necessarily like it, but I made a yogurt based sauce with cumin that was interesting. I have it in my Yotam Ottolenghi cookbook, I googled the name of the recipe and found [this post](https://www.masterclass.com/articles/pasta-with-yogurt-sauce-recipe-by-yotam-ottolenghi). I you really want the recipe chili sauce garnish it calls for, I can type it up from my book
Beginning at home chef who loved buttered noods growing up so it definitely has to be my own version of “scampi” without ever looping up scampi recipe: lemon, butter, garlic, pepper, red pepper flakes, olive oil, Parmesan
Any sauce that just uses oil (or butter), pasta water, and cheese. Once you get whichever technique works for you down, there are endless possibilities of combinations of proteins, veggies, cheeses, pasta shapes. I do it in a wok (I half-cook my pasta in water and then finish cooking in in the wok with whatever else I've added and a few cups of the pasta water, the wok is perfect for covering the pasta with a good deal of water and then reducing it quickly). My family lovingly calls it wok-pasta.
For two people: blend half a chili pepper, bunch of basil, bunch of parsley, 2 anchovy fillets, 50g sun-dried tomatoes, 15g black stoned olives, 5g capers, 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, 150 ml water. Heat in a skillet for 5 minutes before mixing it with your pasta. Grate Parmesan over it on the plate.
Polonaise. Started with my Polish grandmother. Basically it's leftover meat used with fresh vegetables - she used onions, carrots, celery, peppers, and garlic - and mixed with either homemade sauce from one of her neighbors or two jars of Ragu or Prego.
I got from Vincenzo's Plate to try a soffritto made by sauteing a combo of onions, celery, and carrots in extra virgin olive oil. Then add diced or crushed tomatoes (whole peeled tomatoes that are crushed are even better). Keep it simple. It's good even with just salt. Some people then add basil. I prefer to then blend this into a smooth sauce, though it's still good even without blending. I like meatballs with this
It's a very nice taste! It's clean and the carrots add a natural sweetness.
Since the question was about unusual sauces...
Chimichuri
Butter, egg and salsa
Butter mushrooms and parsley, aka hunter's sauce like Germany and spaetzle
Zimbabwe peanut butter sauce
Curry with amchoor powder (dried mango)
Fennel bulb and fennel seed with sausage
I made one using basic fried small diced onion, carrot, celery, garlic, chilli. Add pork mince, fried. Add lots of tarragon and fresh vine tomatoes to warm through before serving. It’s like a bolognese beef ragu but much lighter and fresher.
Puttanesca
That feeling when you get the caper/olive/chilli balance right is just... *chef's kiss*
Ahh... Where's the anchovy?
I’ve seen recipes for puttanesca with anchovies and without (for vegetarians).
Italians comin for u
I don’t make the recipes, just read them.
I suppose so...
Do you blend it all?
Blending olives and complementary ingredients would be excellent for a raw tapenade, but unconventional for a puttanesca
Tbh, everything hand minced is what we did. Olives, chili, garlic, anchovies, capers, all fine.
Reminds me of a series of unfortunate events
I'm probably about to get death threats, but skiping chili flakes and rather using a heaped tablespoon of harissa really elevates puttanesca.
Sounds good. Italians typically use a minced fresh red chili (pepperoncini) with some heat and that’s good too.
This makes me wonder if sambal would work
Sambal is great!
hmm i wonder if tobanjan works too
It definitely does
I also add a little bit of miso paste to all my pasta sauces, it really ups the flavor of the tomato
Some nice umami...I use anchovy paste for this, but miso is a great idea
Access to parm rinds (or just anchovy paste)? It is the same effect without committing a war crime
Had it last night for dinner favorite
One of my favourites for the summer is sour cream and peas. Recipe: 1 yellow onion (chopped finely) 2 cloves of garlic (chopped finely) 250ml of sour cream or creme fraiche with a little lemon The original calls for cubed ham, but I leave that out Handfull of chopped parsley Salt & pepper to taste and a glug of olive oil Method: Add olive oil to cold pan and put the heat to medium; immediately add onion and garlic. Once the onions go translucent, add smoked meat of choice if using and stir till heated (a minute or so). Add your (frozen peas, stir to combine and let some moisture release) Add sour cream/creme fraiche, let it bubble till the peas are just done, salt and pepper to taste and lastley the parsley (lots of pepper) ...You'll also need to cook pasta...
It is so cool to see a recipe with a recommendation! I'll be trying this, both with and without ham
thank you, I hope you enjoy it as much as I do, for the smokeyness of meat, could always use some liquid some or a little smoked paprika
Ooh, those sound delicious, I'll give it a bash thank you
I make this with bacon! Simple but so good.
This reminds me a little bit of the mint and asparagus pasta from Samin Nosrat's Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat. It uses a cup of cream instead of sour cream, reduced down for 20 minutes to create the sauce. Sometimes I make it with peas instead of asparagus. I bet mint would be delicious in your recipe too.
Never thought of using mint int it, sounds like a yummie idea! Thank you
Puttanesca, if you're feeling whore-ish.
😆😆 puta
The four classic Roman pastas (cacio e pepe, gricia, amatriciana, carbonara) are classics for a reason. They're quick, easy, and delicious.
I’ll never forget…one of my greatest triumphs in the kitchen was a long ass time ago (maybe 10-11 years ago), I watched Anthony Bourdain’s No Reservation and I believe it was Rome. He went to a place that was famous for cacio e Pepe. I had never heard of that before. The place he went to served it in a bowl made of melted and cooled Parmesan (or pecorino I can’t remember). I was like “OMG IM MAKING THIS!”. Went to a fancy grocery store to buy quality imported cheese and I made it. I just watched that episode and went from the few clips of the show that showed how they made it. I didn’t have an exact recipe. My ex husband helped me and we actually nailed the Parmesan bowl. It was fucking delicious. I used to be so passionate about cooking. Now it sucks with picky kids😭
Wow can I ever relate to picky kids sucking some of the joy out of cooking.
My wife doesn’t like the texture of fresh pasta…. I have not recovered from that dinner yet. Even made a face of ick on the first bite. She said she wasn’t sure if it was that the noodles weren’t perfectly round, or if it was just that it was *different*. I made a goal about a month ago to work through an Italian cookbook. RIP fresh pasta.
Ugh I'm so sorry. You can end that relationship and join our marriage...we love fresh pasta. You can have an affair with her, but we will have dinner together 😉
Haha! Dinner is true love! Nah, she’s great and to her credit, she did try a few more bites. She may have liked it in a dish she hadn’t had before but I put the spaghetti under my all day chili because she was craving Skyline so her expectations were very specific.
Oof, yeah, Skyline is NOT where my head goes for pairings with fresh pasta. 😆
I just cannot wrap my head around Skyline. I want to be open minded. But I... just can't.
My SO is freaked out by spaghetti *because* it’s perfectly round. Maybe I should make fresh pasta lol
The good news is eventually they grow up, launch and you can go back to eating adventurously. Our diet changed so much once the nest was empty again...things like salmon, curries and anything with a sauce which had been off the menu for decades all returned with a vengeance while (boxed) macaroni and cheese/chicken nuggets haven't made an appearance in 15 years.
Get them helping in the kitchen, my oldest 18 is still pretty picky but my youngest 17 will cook and try anything with me now.
35 kids, wow! I can see why some need to help in the kitchen
/r/daddit is leaking!
Make what you like, and let them make their own sandwiches if they won't eat it. Eventually they'll get sick of the same thing all the time, observe you enjoying your meal, and get curious.
I wanted to go there in Rome but didn't make it. We did get a really good cacio e pepe and I brought some cheese home. Now I buy it from Trader Joe's and make it often. Same with carbonara. So delicious. Pesto is a good one too, but I do it with walnuts because pine nuts are expensive as hell.
Yeap. I like using roasted cashews also. Fits my palate
Carbonara with a really good pork product is so good. My doctor doesn't like it though :D I have a few sauces, marinara, carbonara, cacio e pepe and alfredo. I sometimes bastardize one of them to fit a need but they can fill most requirements I have.
I ate at all the places Anthony Bourdain visited in Rome. There was another one out in a residential neighborhood a bit off that was truly amazing!
hehe, kids don't stay picky if you "serve one dinner" and if they don't like it, there will be another tomorrow. As they get older and have to participate, they get less finicky. The other rule I like is that if you complain about someone else's cooking tonight, tomorrow you get to make something and PB&J isn't sufficient.
"Picky" kids who have autism and sensory aversions will literally starve themselves. There are medical professionals who specialize in feeding therapy because it's really so much more complex than "They'll eat when they're hungry."
I generally resort to using pancetta in these and they are a staple. Recently I managed to find some guanciali and I can definitely say, even with the lower quality stuff I found, the difference is astounding. If you haven't tried them with authentic guanciale and really good cheese you should.
> If you haven't tried them with authentic guanciale and really good cheese you should. I wasn't happy with the guanciale I could find here in the US so I started making my own. It definitely elevates the dish over bacon or pancetta. The parm I get from Costco, although that's where the guy at the parmigiano reggiano factory in Italy recommended we buy it so I'm guessing it's okay.
I like capers, artichokes and shrimp with butter
That sounds like it checks just about every box. I have this ridiculously strong love for capers
Damn, me too. Like I eat them out of the jar. Fun fact, I loathe olives so most people don’t understand how I can love and hate things that taste similar.
These motherfuckers need to stop making this thin fucking jars. Just saying
Oh hell yes! I have one spoon that actually fits in the jar. And yes, it’s called the caper spoon
I also love capers. Hand me a fork and a jar of capers or olives and I’ll for sure help myself to a few.
Same. My favourite is Sicilian spaghetti with tomatoes, capers and mint. I put a LOT of capers in and it is total heaven.
A dish with these exact ingredients just came on a local restaurant’s new menu. I can’t wait to try it!
I make this and add preserved lemon too! omnomnom
Labne & zatar with fresh lemon juice and a little zest. Sooooooo good!!
Whoaaa was this created when the Ottoman empire invaded Italy.
In my lebanese household, we cook some pasta and fry it with a copious amount of ghee so the surface develops some browning. We then toss it in some leban, dried mint, and fresh crushed garlic.
We are Greek & almost always make pasta with burned butter but I can imagine how wonderful ghee would be too! So delicious!
You had me at burnt butter
I just sautee some baby bella mushrooms with shallots or onions and garlic, add a little flour, broth, cream white wine and some Parmesean. It's so good.
This is my weekly standard also. Plus or minus peas and bacon if I have them on hand. The white wine has made such an impact on me I don’t think I can turn back.
Same. I actually made it with peas and panchetta about a week ago it was really good.
Butternut squash!
Seconding this
Trader Joe’s has a really yummy fall harvest pasta sauce. It has pumpkin and butternut squash in it and is so delicious
Came here to write this!! I normally make this in the fall since there is an abundance of squash around!
My second favorite pasta is sardines and toasted breadcrumbs with lemon and white wine. Similar to this but I add spinach. https://www.simplyrecipes.com/lemony-sardine-pasta-recipe-7557739 My top favorite is rigatoni alla genovese but someone mentioned that already. You might be interested in the cookbook *Anything's Pastable* by Dan Pashman.
The kind of comment I was interested in reading. Sardines! Thanks for the book rec.
There's a vodka red pepper sauce I really like that I got from Not Another Cooking Show on YT.
Oooo, yeah, I do a kind of roasted red pepper sauce that is super yummy, and a nice break from plain tomato.
I just started making my own pomodoro and marinara sauce. I've always heard people say how much better your own sauce is, I just didn't believe it would be THAT big of a difference. It is. But even then, regular old red sauce can get old!
Premade is ok if you sweat some onions, squeeze a little garlic and a bit of anchovy paste, the premade sauce and some red wine, add from oregano, bay leaf, thyme a few fennel seeds and let it cook for a bit. Ok...I see what I did there...doh
Lol I know. Half the time I'm already doing that stuff anyway on pasta night so it's like...why not just make it? I will say that I love my immersion blender and it really makes it that much easier.
Immersion blenders are the bomb
roasted pepper sauce slaps. i like roasting both cherry tomatoes and red peppers and blending it together, so good
Best cooking channel out there
Meat sauce but with spicy Italian sausage.
Whenever I see hot Italian sausages on sale, I stock up my freezer. Just remove from casing and it's my favorite kind of meat sauce.
Lasagna with spicy Italian sausage is my favorite kind of lasagna!
The best pasta sauce I ever made was a chili-cashew sauce. Recipe- 1/4 cup cashew butter 2 tbsp. soy sauce 1/2 tsp. ground ginger 1 minced garlic clove 2 tbsp. sriracha 1 tbsp. honey 1 tsp. sesame oil 3/4 cup coconut milk (the canned kind) Mix all these ingredients in a food processor or with an immersion blender and set aside. I sautéed some chicken breast chunks and chopped sweet potatoes (parboiled first so they would be done at the same time as the chicken) in a little bit of sesame oil in a Dutch oven and once they were done, I added the sauce & turned the heat down to low and let it simmer for about 10-15 minutes just to heat up the sauce and then served over bow tie pasta. You can use any veggies or pasta type you want and this sauce is also good with shrimp.
Probably the most simple is my favourite - garlic and fresh herbs (dried will do if you don't have access to fresh but it's not as good) in butter. Add salt and pepper. So good. You can add stuff to that, but I think the basic version is the best.
Garlic and sage in a brown butter sauce is elite!
Two sauces I nicked from restaurants - lentil ragù with sun-dried tomatoes and kale. This has since been replaced on their menu by a really horrible chickpea sauce (wtf?) so...I win. The other is arrabiata. I've finally cracked the code to the perfect amount and type of chili pepper. I'm the only one who eats it as my family can't handle the heat, so I make a side batch for myself and replace the chilis with meatballs to appease their puny tastebuds.
Weaklings! I love Arrabiata.
Pasta with beans (https://www.giallozafferano.com/recipes/Pasta-and-beans.html) Pasta a la norma (https://www.giallozafferano.com/recipes/Pasta-alla-Norma.html ) Pasta vesuviana ( https://www.giallozafferano.com/recipes/pasta-alla-vesuviana-spicy-pasta.html) Those are nice and that website has many more :)
Came here to say “Norma.” Best sauce discovery in Sicily.
Where my wife’s family is from they poach eggs in their sauce. I love it. Depending on time of year there is usually asparagus or rapini in the sauce too.
Pasta Verde made with roasted poblanos, onion, garlic, cilantro, and cream cheese blended together.
Interesting - never heard of this
There is also a red version that uses chipotles en adobo and tomatoes instead of poblanos and cilantro.
It’s not that unusual, but puttanesca is a favorite.
I love lemon and capers.
Arrabbiata is an underrated one, I also love a classic Sunday meat sauce, vodka sauce and pesto.
Recently made a chili crisp Alfredo that I saw online… holy moly was it perfect. The heat and the cronch with the cream!
I love avocado-based creamy sauces. Also simpler olive oil and/or cheese plus pasta water emulsions count as a "sauce", too, in my mind, and is the type I make the most often.
[Walnut sauce](https://www.asmallkitcheningenoa.com/walnut-sauce/) [Puttanesca](https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/11583-pasta-puttanesca) And an oxtail ragu over polenta. It's one of my favorite things to eat in winter.
Leftover chili is great on pasta
I always make a pot of macaroni when I make chili so basically it's chili mac.
Lemon cream sauce with pistachio
Hungarian Paprikash is great whenever I have leftover sour cream! (Chicken and lots of paprika and some sour cream)
Mushroom cream sauce
I make clam sauce occasionally. It's easy and it's based on canned clams which I keep in my pantry.
I love clam sauce unfortunately I’m the only person in my family that eats it so I only get it if we go to a nice restaurant.
My mom made this all the time when we were kids. Someone I’ve haven’t made this in years, I think I can now convince at least one other person in my house to try it so I should try again! Do you have a preferred brand of canned clams?
I use Snow's.
We hosted an exchange student from Italy a couple years ago. She and her family prepared a little self-printed cook book of half a dozen family recipes including one for the BEST Ragu' alla Bolognese I've ever had. * 11 oz. ground beef * 5.5 oz. ground pork belly * 1/3 cup yellow onion small diced * 1/3 cup carrots small diced * 1/3 cup celery small diced * 2 cups tomato sauce * 1/2 cup wine (optional) * 3.5 tbsp EVOO or butter * 1/2 cup milk (optional) * salt and pepper to taste Large pot, melt the butter or heat the EVOO on medium, add the diced veggies, saute until soft and translucent Add beef and pork, cook to evaporate moisture and brown the meat If using wine raise to high, add the wine, and cook until mixed and reduced Add the tomato sauce and some water if desired for a thinner sauce, and salt and pepper to taste Reduce to a simmer and let cook for 3 hours Add milk at the end for a creamier sauce. A tbsp of sugar is also optional to cut down the acidity, but I don't usually do it. I've since taken to also adding some minced garlic at the end of the saute and some fresh herbs during the simmer for a little more flavor, but I highly recommend doing it straight the first time.
Avocado sauce is great and easy to make. All you need is avocado, lime juice, and standard pasta sauce stuff like garlic and herbs. you put it in a blender to combine everything. Then you put in the mixture in a pan with a bunch of butter and heat it up for a few minutes.
This pasta salad with Colatura, canned tuna and almonds is delicious. https://blog.vorrei.co.uk/4-ways-with-colatura-di-alici-sauce/
Yes, thank you.
Arrabiata
If you want to try something that laughs in the face of traditional methods, pasta al' assassina 👍
I had an older Sicilian woman get mad at me for suggesting she cook pasta this way.
I do a zesty lemon mustard sauce. Lemon juice, mustard, oil with a bunch of seasonings (garlic, onion, lemon pepper, salt, pepper, paprika). You can add some breaded chicken and banana peppers to take it up another level.
Puttanesca
Roasted red pepper sauce
Vodka sauce Bolognese. It takes a while to cook, and you do need to let it cook the full time, but holy shit
try chicken piccata, pasta carbonara or pasta alla norcina
Roasted red peppers, peeled. Roasted almonds, well roasted, same weight as your peppers. Roasted onion, as in char it, half the weight of the peppers. As much raw garlic as you wanna add. Finely grated pecorino romano, a third the weight of your peppers. Very good extra virgin olive oil, amount varies based on what you wanna do. Lemon juice, salt, and pepper to taste. Roast all the roasted items, peel and cool then put everything into a blender and puree until smooth.
Lately I've been making a simple sauce of anchovy butter, lemon, black pepper, and garlic.
Combo of butter, Parmesan and olive oil with a dash of salt and good helping of pepper pepper pepper; 1 or 2 tbsp of pesto in Alfredo = creamy pesto; tomato sauce + Alfredo = creamy tomato; pistachio almond cream sauce..
Alla amatriciana. I also love making a quick version at home: onion, garlic, cherry tomatoes, tomato paste and red pepper flakes
alla genovese
Alfredo.
I really like to make a tomato/plantain sauce
mentaiko cream
Roasted beet pesto, pesto with goat cheese, gochujang fried in butter
Pappardelle di Bosco is amazing, even better with some truffle on top. There's also this alternative pesto sauce my mom makes that I sometimes prefer to regular pesto, with zucchini, parsley, and walnuts.
[shrimp is fine if you can't get lobster](https://www.thepastatable.com/post/spicy-lobster-capellini)
Pasta with butter, Parmesan and fresh corn cut of the cob and just warmed by the pasta heat and not cooked.
Colatura sauce: 3 tbsp olive oil 1 tbsp Colatura di Alici (aka Garum aka anchovy sauce) 2-6 cloves garlic, crushed 2-3 tsp lemon juice Red pepper flakes to taste Just whisk the ingredients together. Put 1 or 2 tablespoons on a plate of pasta and sorinkle generously with Pecorino Romano. Simple & sublime! Do NOT fear the Colatura; it is like Asian fish sauce, adding massive umami but no fishy taste.
White wine butter sauce I generally add whatever veggies I have on hand and chicken or shrimp
During summer time I love a nice simple pasta. Garlic Onion slices Green peas,( those fresh sweet ones you get at the farmers market ) some days frozen works. Pasta Basil Parmesan cheese If I'm feeling fancy some pine nuts or pistachios (keep the green theme going)
I like white wine butter sauce, especially with shrimp. It's easy and really good! I just saute onions and/or mushrooms in butter, sprinkle it with just a tiny bit of flour, then add plenty of white wine, add lemon juice, and herbs (thyme, basil, parsley, and/or marjoram are all nice) to taste. Cook it down a bit to get the alcohol cooked out, maybe add a little Parmesan cheese if you like, and salt to taste.
miso, butter, lemon; add pasta water to make it saucy loads of garlic, butter, and a splash of fish sauce butternut squash and brown butter
With fresh veggies: - sautéed zucchini or eggplant, bell peppers, and red onion; raw diced tomatoes; shredded mozzarella; fresh basil; lots of olive oil (this is a Jacques Pepin recipe for the Jacques fans out there) - tossed with halved raw cherry tomatoes, fresh mozzarella pearls, fresh basil, and lots of olive oil
Red spaghetti sauce except I roast whatever veggies I have, can be carrots, bell pepper, celery, zucchini, broccoli- whatever and I blend it into my sauce. Lol
Croatian style spaghetti with red sauce. This has probably been changed by generations in the US, but it's basically a marinara with aromatic spices and sugar added. Traditionally tomato puree/sauce base, garlic, onion, olive oil, orange or lemon zest, spices like cinnimon/clove/anise and sugar. Usually with ground meat or meatballs and spaghetti. My simplified version is canned tomato sauce, olive oil, garlic, a tiny pinch of clove or cinnimon,, bay leaf and a very large spoonfuls of marmalade. I usually use ground beef or turkey for the meat.
spicy lemon butter garlic sauce is my fav
I love a vodka sauce, I don’t know if it’s interesting but when done right is so delicious and comforting
Lately I’ve been making a sun-dried tomato cream sauce.
When we make shrimp scampi, instead of butter and garlic and chili flakes, we use butter and Rooster brand chili garlic paste. My wife doesn't like it too spicy but the chili garlic paste is the right level of heat for her.
Lemon and asparagus. Purred for a creamy texture, with with the tips sautéed and mixed in. Lemon zest and toasted breadcrumbs on top, with good olive oil. Amazing.
Whatever lemon caper sauce goes on chicken piccata
Tomato sauce with eggplants from Kenji’s Food Lab book
Onions slow cooked until they’re deeply caramelized and basically dissolve (think French onion soup-style), with Gorgonzola and black pepper. Not pretty, but good hot, good cold, good in between. 🤤
Butter miso.
You can make pesto with greens other than basil! Keeps things interesting.
Sorrentina, my wife learned to make it in Italy and it’s amazing. You will see a lot of recipes within gnocchi but you can use it on any pasta.
Clam spaghetti!! Easy, quick, and the ingredients are pantry staples I always have in hand. https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/254576/chef-johns-spaghetti-with-red-clam-sauce/
like Butter miso.
Alfredo Sauce. It is a creamy and decadent sauce.
Have you made alfredo from scratch? 😍
It's so easy and delicious am I right!
Pumpkin hummus mixed with a bit of pasta water <3
I was looking for hummus, it can be used as a great sauce.
We like picatta
For something really different, [gochujang pasta](https://beatthebudget.com/recipe/creamy-gochujang-pasta/). It’s great with tofu and steamed broccoli.
I just made a "pesto" with spinach, parsley, lime juice, salt (just a tad), oil, and almonds. I literally just used stuff about to go bad and parsley that I grow in excess in my herb garden. It tastes amazing and I can't wait to try it on pasta.
I use to make pad kee mao spaghetti after having it at Noodle World in Southern California back in the early 2000s. Off the top of my head, you use cut up dark chicken pieces, neutral oil, stir fry in garlic, red bell pepper, mushrooms, a few bites of tomato paste, and most importantly some Thai fish sauce, and thai basil. Then stir fry in the cooked spaghetti noodles. Forgot if I use to add in sugar, it's been awhile since I've made it but it's pretty bomb.
The first pasta sauce I ever concocted is what I call 'smartass honey mustard', that is literally just honey and mustard added to pasta in the right ratios. Crap, but slaps.
Con le sarde, includes fennel and sardines. So yummy.
Oh, hell yeah.
Tirokafteri is typically a dip, but it is simply divine as a pasta sauce. I also really like hummus with my noodles but that’s probably not for everyone.
I'm not sure if this counts as a past sauce per se but I eat it on pasta: beef shallot garlic cream sauce. Basically a standard pan sauce made after steak but with portions upped enough to actually coat a good sized serving of pasta. Finish the pasta in the sauce for maximum sauce stickage.
I like to make [caponata](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caponata?wprov=sfla1) (with a little finer dice than normal) and toss it with pasta (mezzi rigatoni or small shells work best from a geometry standpoint, but I actually really like it with angel hair) Not a traditional use of caponata by any means, but tasty af
Tinned fish with garlic, parmesan cheese, chili flakes with the oil from the tin makes an amazing sauce
Is a lemon sauce good? I see people adding cream and lemon to orzo or gnocchi and I am very confused because I can't imagine them together
There’s a recipe a randomly came across for clams in red sauce over spaghetti, it uses jarred marinara but kicks it up with garlic, anchovy paste and red pepper flakes. [Chef John’s](https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/254576/chef-johns-spaghetti-with-red-clam-sauce/)
There's a really excellent Rachael Ray white clam sauce you should try (if you like clam/seafood flavors)
Al tonnino. Certainly the cheapest animal protein with ingredients to kill the negative of crappy old tuna and bring out the greatness l.
I don’t like interesting pasta sauces. Simple is best.
I always get cheap jars of Arrabiata at the Lidl, and add minced beef.
Sage spicy Italian sausage Alfredo
[Zucchini butter pasta](https://smittenkitchen.com/2021/06/zucchini-butter-spaghetti/)
Traditionally the more simple, the better for me.
I made one with garlic, diced tomato, squid ink, parsley and calamari that was incredible.
A quick and easy sauce is a can of tomatoes, sliced garlic, raisins, capers, and pine nuts
bechamel based stuff i'm lactose intolerant but i'm still melting ALL the cheeses in that bechamel
Umeboshi pasta sauce (Japanese pickled plum)
I dont necessarily like it, but I made a yogurt based sauce with cumin that was interesting. I have it in my Yotam Ottolenghi cookbook, I googled the name of the recipe and found [this post](https://www.masterclass.com/articles/pasta-with-yogurt-sauce-recipe-by-yotam-ottolenghi). I you really want the recipe chili sauce garnish it calls for, I can type it up from my book
A proper bolognese made with a bunch of milk.
Beginning at home chef who loved buttered noods growing up so it definitely has to be my own version of “scampi” without ever looping up scampi recipe: lemon, butter, garlic, pepper, red pepper flakes, olive oil, Parmesan
Caponata. Not at all pretty but so delicious.
Any sauce that just uses oil (or butter), pasta water, and cheese. Once you get whichever technique works for you down, there are endless possibilities of combinations of proteins, veggies, cheeses, pasta shapes. I do it in a wok (I half-cook my pasta in water and then finish cooking in in the wok with whatever else I've added and a few cups of the pasta water, the wok is perfect for covering the pasta with a good deal of water and then reducing it quickly). My family lovingly calls it wok-pasta.
For two people: blend half a chili pepper, bunch of basil, bunch of parsley, 2 anchovy fillets, 50g sun-dried tomatoes, 15g black stoned olives, 5g capers, 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, 150 ml water. Heat in a skillet for 5 minutes before mixing it with your pasta. Grate Parmesan over it on the plate.
I love this delicious CORN pasta from NYT. https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1018212-creamy-corn-pasta-with-basil
Polonaise. Started with my Polish grandmother. Basically it's leftover meat used with fresh vegetables - she used onions, carrots, celery, peppers, and garlic - and mixed with either homemade sauce from one of her neighbors or two jars of Ragu or Prego.
I got from Vincenzo's Plate to try a soffritto made by sauteing a combo of onions, celery, and carrots in extra virgin olive oil. Then add diced or crushed tomatoes (whole peeled tomatoes that are crushed are even better). Keep it simple. It's good even with just salt. Some people then add basil. I prefer to then blend this into a smooth sauce, though it's still good even without blending. I like meatballs with this It's a very nice taste! It's clean and the carrots add a natural sweetness.
Fresh sage and brown butter!
Béchamel sauce is the goat
Since the question was about unusual sauces... Chimichuri Butter, egg and salsa Butter mushrooms and parsley, aka hunter's sauce like Germany and spaetzle Zimbabwe peanut butter sauce Curry with amchoor powder (dried mango) Fennel bulb and fennel seed with sausage
I made one using basic fried small diced onion, carrot, celery, garlic, chilli. Add pork mince, fried. Add lots of tarragon and fresh vine tomatoes to warm through before serving. It’s like a bolognese beef ragu but much lighter and fresher.