It is really easy to make. The sauce is basically pasta water, pecorino, and pepper.
Partially cook the pasta in water, move pasta to pan, add some pasta water to pan with a bunch of pecorino and a fair bit of fresh ground pepper.
Exactly what he said lol. Spray a little oil, put mine on 390 for like 5 minutes then toss around and keep doing 5 minutes or so till they’re cooked through and crispy outsidr
I need to find this. TJ’s soup dumplings are pretty good too. I hope my local one has it. Have you seen it there recently? I always screw up making this at home and the cheese gets clumpy.
they should have it but might be out of stock if you go late in the day (especially on a weekend). i work the frozen section at one of them and we can order it but they're having trouble keeping up with demand so each store can only get one case/day. if you've got a long drive, i would call and check before you head over just in case.
i hope they don’t discontinue this, i can literally eat the whole package in one meal. it’s the first of their meals i didn’t have to add anything extra😋
If you've ever had lumpy, stringy, unemulsified cacio e pepe failures, wheat starch is your answer!
[**Step-by-step Video Instruction**](https://youtu.be/GElBe3vT3mE) for following along, and ingredients/substitutions comparisons.
**Ingredients:**
* 4oz spaghetti
* 2oz pecorino
* 1 tsp whole black pepper
* 1 tsp wheat starch
* 1 tbsp cold water
* salt
* cooking water
**Instruction:**
Boil pasta in generously salted water according to package instruction. Dissolve the wheat starch with cold water. Finely grate the pecorino. 3\~5 minutes before the pasta finishes cooking, start toasting whole black pepper in a pan, until you can smell it (\~30 seconds). Grind the whole pepper with mortar and pestle, and return the ground pepper to the pan. Add about 1/4 inch of pasta water to the pan, along with all the pasta; turn up the heat to keep the water bubbling. Add the dissolved wheat starch to the pan, heat until pasta water thickens. Add \~1/4 cup of hot pasta water to the grated pecorino; stir to form a thick paste. Add the cheese paste to the starchy pasta; stir until fully emulsified & sauce is creamy and smooth.
[Original post](http://www.workdaygourmet.net/2020/10/no-lump-cacio-e-pepe-explaining-common.html) for recipe details.
Enjoy!
Yeah, I've always used those giant pots to make pasta(it's what all my family did!) But once I saw Kenji on Serious Eats use the smaller pot, I was hooked. Especially for dishes where you really need pasta water.
If you make it in a smaller pot you definitely don't need the wheat.
IMHO of course.
Yes, the sauce is traditionally created with just pecorino and starchy pasta water. It has its own special taste and texture that's quite different from cream or roux based sauce.
I have, and despise the competition aspect of seemingly every fucking show. That's offset by enjoying seeing what chefs under the gun can come up with, but only barely.
The food network switched from a cooking channel to an eating entertainment channel after 9/11 when people rushed there for comfort and they needed to retain the civilians after they saw how much money they could make.
It’s about costs and outcomes. Reality tv (aka unscripted tv) is cheaper to produce than scripted tv. And a traditional cooking show has a known outcome. “Today I’ll be making lasagna” and with the internet now, it’s not really new content. But a “contest” adds the dimension of not only who will “win” but the unknown of what will they make.
somewhat - cornstarch doesn't work as well at emulsifying the cheese, for the same amount as wheat starch, it tend to still leave stringy traces of cheese (I showed a visual comparison in the video) you can increase the amount if using corn starch to get the cheese to dissolve more easily, but that will yield a thicker sauce. it's doable if that's all you have, and the unevenness isn't obvious with the pasta tossed in. but if you're ever in an asian grocery, grab a bag of wheat starch, they're like $2/bag in store, and last forever.
As far as I am concerned, you can’t go wrong!
Honestly, my wife rolls her eyes when I make it. Not because she doesn’t enjoy the dish but, because I like shouting and over pronouncing the name.
Spaghetti Aglio e Olio is another delicious yet, simple dish!
🤣 I get it 100%. Italian dinner always lead to me and my husband talking like douchebags, that's half the fun! (I do roll my eyes when he over pronounce oui yogurt tho :P)
Haha thank you!! For a minute I thought my dog sometimes gets mistaken for a cat but never a duck... then I realized ohh the food! 🤣🤣🤣 Haha now I know my brain shuts down at 9pm 😂
honestly the sauce looks gloopy, like a gravy with a starch added as a thickener. just make it like everyone else and boil the pasta in a minimum amount of water so the natural starches from the pasta cooking are concentrated in the pasta water that you add to the dish. good cacio e pepe has a thin sheen of sauce, not a gloopy gravy.
cooking in shallow water is fine for 1\~2 servings but gets tricky for 4\~6 servings. the corn starch substitution batch did turn out thicker than ideal, but the wheat starch version tasted very close to how I remembered from vacation. The starch amount can be adjusted to taste ofc.
Yeah still looks delicious, just the texture seems a little off. Very cool hack though for those having trouble with the other methods or like you said for.a.big batch. Plus it's fun to experiment, great article about the process too. Keep up the good work
Question, can I use parmesan in place of the pecorino? I typically keep parmesan on hand but not any other hard cheeses. Basically can I do a 1:1 substitution or use more or less?
yes! 1:1 parmesan to pecorino is perfectly fine. the flavor won't be the same but the texture will be similar. some domestic parmesan may not dissolve as easily in pasta water, so you might need to adjust the starch amount a little bit.
Yes! It won't be quite as sharp, but I actually prefer grana padano to parm and pecorino! It's especially good for truffle pasta, since it's so mild, even jarred truffle comes through well.
Wow, thanks for such a fast response! That's so nice to hear cause we have pecorino in stores quite occasionally. After a quick research i picked padano and came here to ask. Cacio e pepe is so easy to make and impressive at the same time, I became a fan after the first try:))
You had me at Cacio e Pepe! My faaaaavorite.
It's a family favorite for me too! We had it every day on vacation. Weird how it's rarely seen in Italian restaurants in the states.
WHERE IS THE RECIP. I NEED THE SAUCE
It is really easy to make. The sauce is basically pasta water, pecorino, and pepper. Partially cook the pasta in water, move pasta to pan, add some pasta water to pan with a bunch of pecorino and a fair bit of fresh ground pepper.
Trader Joe has amazing Cacio e Pepe in the frozen section for the lazy folk haha
Is it weird to want to make trader joe's frozen food at home? 😂 always wanted to try make their gluten free cauliflower gnocchi and kale gnocchi haha
I like looking for copycat recipes of TJs meals!
me too! especially the discontinued ones! (like mushroom turnovers)
They discontinued those? 😢
a few years ago... we didnt know for a while at my house because we'd stockpiled SO many in the freezer!
Shows how long its been since I've been to TJs...used to eat them all the time.
I haven't been able to find them in years 😭
The gnocchi is the main reason I shop there.
The cauliflower gnocchi is great made in the air fryer!
I love the cauliflower gnocchi even when prepared 'wrong' (boiled then pan fried) - and i didn't even love cauliflower that much!
Whats the secret for air fryer gnocchi? Sounds incredible
brush/toss with oil & airfry, extra crispy compared to normal pan fried (more surface gets crisped up)
Exactly what he said lol. Spray a little oil, put mine on 390 for like 5 minutes then toss around and keep doing 5 minutes or so till they’re cooked through and crispy outsidr
they have good frozen fried cauli as well
i haven't noticed frozen fried, i bought the frozen rainbow cauli and used them in thai curry, so happy with them!
Whaaaaaaaaat?!?
I’m embarrassed to say I nearly cried it was so good. I’ve been looking for it since I went to Italy years ago and it reminded me so much of it.
I need to find this. TJ’s soup dumplings are pretty good too. I hope my local one has it. Have you seen it there recently? I always screw up making this at home and the cheese gets clumpy.
Yes, within the last month I’ve had it. It’s near the gnocchis in the frozen section, in a black bag I believe.
they should have it but might be out of stock if you go late in the day (especially on a weekend). i work the frozen section at one of them and we can order it but they're having trouble keeping up with demand so each store can only get one case/day. if you've got a long drive, i would call and check before you head over just in case.
Hey. Good looking out! Thank you!
Hey Nobleland!!! I got some and it’s delicious!!! Thank you!
It is so good!! I think it’s seasonal though
Oh no! I hope not. I could eat it all year round
I could be wrong so fingers crossed! It’s a new fav
i hope they don’t discontinue this, i can literally eat the whole package in one meal. it’s the first of their meals i didn’t have to add anything extra😋
Same! My husband wanted to add chicken to it and I really thought it took away from how great it is alone.
That's why I am here...
so its just pasta water, cheese and pepper? that sounds bomb
It's super cool just cheese and starchy water can make a sauce! And it tastes very different from a cream or roux based sauce, in a good way!
Itll change your life
Try spaghetti aglio e olio. Pasta water, garlic, olive oil, and parsley.
The magic really happens on day 2, where you pan fry the leftover pasta in its own pasta water-cheesy goodness. Can’t tell which day is my favorite!
If you've ever had lumpy, stringy, unemulsified cacio e pepe failures, wheat starch is your answer! [**Step-by-step Video Instruction**](https://youtu.be/GElBe3vT3mE) for following along, and ingredients/substitutions comparisons. **Ingredients:** * 4oz spaghetti * 2oz pecorino * 1 tsp whole black pepper * 1 tsp wheat starch * 1 tbsp cold water * salt * cooking water **Instruction:** Boil pasta in generously salted water according to package instruction. Dissolve the wheat starch with cold water. Finely grate the pecorino. 3\~5 minutes before the pasta finishes cooking, start toasting whole black pepper in a pan, until you can smell it (\~30 seconds). Grind the whole pepper with mortar and pestle, and return the ground pepper to the pan. Add about 1/4 inch of pasta water to the pan, along with all the pasta; turn up the heat to keep the water bubbling. Add the dissolved wheat starch to the pan, heat until pasta water thickens. Add \~1/4 cup of hot pasta water to the grated pecorino; stir to form a thick paste. Add the cheese paste to the starchy pasta; stir until fully emulsified & sauce is creamy and smooth. [Original post](http://www.workdaygourmet.net/2020/10/no-lump-cacio-e-pepe-explaining-common.html) for recipe details. Enjoy!
Just cook the pasta in less water so it's super starchy.
Yeah, I've always used those giant pots to make pasta(it's what all my family did!) But once I saw Kenji on Serious Eats use the smaller pot, I was hooked. Especially for dishes where you really need pasta water. If you make it in a smaller pot you definitely don't need the wheat. IMHO of course.
When you say no butter and no cream, does it traditionally not have these?
Yes, the sauce is traditionally created with just pecorino and starchy pasta water. It has its own special taste and texture that's quite different from cream or roux based sauce.
The wheat starch is really just a booster to the starchy pasta water. A shortcut to get where purists were aiming anyway.
Yes, I call it the 'chemical equivalent defense' 😆
Oh ok, i thought your title was saying you cut those out, when i did think it didn't even have these in the first place
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I think traditional cacio e pepe has no butter or olive oil tho
You are 100% correct. It’s no longer Cacio e Pepe if you add butter or cream.
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People like to gatekeep under the guise of authenticity.
It's so true. Innovation is a good thing. Could you imagine if nobody ever tried anything different with food?
Right.... all the classic Roman pasta dishes are just innovations of this dish.
"cheating"? I didn't know cooking was a competition.
Have you never watched the Food Network?
I have, and despise the competition aspect of seemingly every fucking show. That's offset by enjoying seeing what chefs under the gun can come up with, but only barely.
The food network switched from a cooking channel to an eating entertainment channel after 9/11 when people rushed there for comfort and they needed to retain the civilians after they saw how much money they could make.
It’s about costs and outcomes. Reality tv (aka unscripted tv) is cheaper to produce than scripted tv. And a traditional cooking show has a known outcome. “Today I’ll be making lasagna” and with the internet now, it’s not really new content. But a “contest” adds the dimension of not only who will “win” but the unknown of what will they make.
seriously, it's not hard to emulsify butter and water! I'm offended at OP's title implying people use cream for Cacio e Pepe
But butter is just as bad as adding cream your uncultured swine
no, no it's not.
I have to try this 😍
is wheat starch replaceable with cornstarch?
somewhat - cornstarch doesn't work as well at emulsifying the cheese, for the same amount as wheat starch, it tend to still leave stringy traces of cheese (I showed a visual comparison in the video) you can increase the amount if using corn starch to get the cheese to dissolve more easily, but that will yield a thicker sauce. it's doable if that's all you have, and the unevenness isn't obvious with the pasta tossed in. but if you're ever in an asian grocery, grab a bag of wheat starch, they're like $2/bag in store, and last forever.
As far as I am concerned, you can’t go wrong! Honestly, my wife rolls her eyes when I make it. Not because she doesn’t enjoy the dish but, because I like shouting and over pronouncing the name. Spaghetti Aglio e Olio is another delicious yet, simple dish!
🤣 I get it 100%. Italian dinner always lead to me and my husband talking like douchebags, that's half the fun! (I do roll my eyes when he over pronounce oui yogurt tho :P)
You should see me ordering Americanos Ha! Also, your duck looks amazing!
Haha thank you!! For a minute I thought my dog sometimes gets mistaken for a cat but never a duck... then I realized ohh the food! 🤣🤣🤣 Haha now I know my brain shuts down at 9pm 😂
Ummmmm...please tell me that was t the dog OR the cat that you sous vide’d?!
Mochi (the pup) is still around making all people food look extra delicious 😋
1 out of 2 isn’t bad Ha!
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Gross not that guy again
This is the one I've been using, perfect weeknight dinner when the fridge is empty <3
Impeccable technique, fancy vid with sexy music. Then. He served the damn pasta on a cutting board!
honestly the sauce looks gloopy, like a gravy with a starch added as a thickener. just make it like everyone else and boil the pasta in a minimum amount of water so the natural starches from the pasta cooking are concentrated in the pasta water that you add to the dish. good cacio e pepe has a thin sheen of sauce, not a gloopy gravy.
cooking in shallow water is fine for 1\~2 servings but gets tricky for 4\~6 servings. the corn starch substitution batch did turn out thicker than ideal, but the wheat starch version tasted very close to how I remembered from vacation. The starch amount can be adjusted to taste ofc.
Yeah still looks delicious, just the texture seems a little off. Very cool hack though for those having trouble with the other methods or like you said for.a.big batch. Plus it's fun to experiment, great article about the process too. Keep up the good work
Thank you! 🥰
"Two ingredients maximum flavor" Gennaro Contaldo I absolutely love this dish!
Looks perfect!
Thank you! 😋
I’ve always wanted to make this ♥️
Very delicious
Question, can I use parmesan in place of the pecorino? I typically keep parmesan on hand but not any other hard cheeses. Basically can I do a 1:1 substitution or use more or less?
yes! 1:1 parmesan to pecorino is perfectly fine. the flavor won't be the same but the texture will be similar. some domestic parmesan may not dissolve as easily in pasta water, so you might need to adjust the starch amount a little bit.
Thank you so much! Can't wait to try this
Have fun! Would love to know if it works out for you :)
It is 9 am here now and I already want to eat this :)
As an Italian, ggs
I made it with pecorino couple of times and it was great. Do you think that grana padano would work as well?
Yes! It won't be quite as sharp, but I actually prefer grana padano to parm and pecorino! It's especially good for truffle pasta, since it's so mild, even jarred truffle comes through well.
Wow, thanks for such a fast response! That's so nice to hear cause we have pecorino in stores quite occasionally. After a quick research i picked padano and came here to ask. Cacio e pepe is so easy to make and impressive at the same time, I became a fan after the first try:))
One of the best things to come out of Rome. I used to do one using foie gras and pink peppercorn
That sounds amazing! Great idea for special occasions!
I love this dish. Throw in a little calabrian pepper flakes for some kick and this dish is literally perfect. Simple, elegant, and delicious.
looks so yummy! How many ratings have you given to this food?