Penne alla vodka recipe

Creamy tomatoey pasta goodness

Posted 2024-01-11

Time

Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 50 minutes

Ingredients

• 2 cans of tomatoes
• Prosciutto crudo, shredded fairly small
• Half an onion, diced
• 2 large cloves of garlic, sliced
• (Some) fresh basil, shredded
• Vodka - 50ml too much (big flame) so try 25ml
• Peperoncino (hot chili, with seeds) - can substitute chili flakes
• 1 cup cream
• ~25g knob of butter
• (Enough) penne
• (Some) parmesan
• (A bit of) parsley

Method

1. Purée cans of tomatoes in a blender.
2. Add the prosciutto to the pan and cook until it starts to brown.
3. Add the diced onion.
4. Once the onion is translucent add the garlic and basil.
5. Remove from the heat and add the vodka.
6. Light the vodka fumes and flambé for a bit to develop some of the complex compounds.
7. Add the puréed tomatoes and peperoncino or chili flakes.
8. Bring to a simmer and reduce for about 30 minutes (until thick but not dry)
9. Add the cup of cream and a knob of butter.
10. Simmer on low until the pasta is ready.
11. Salt the pasta water and add the penne. Use a limited amount of water.
12. Cook until as done as you like.
13. Drain the pasta but save the water.
14. Add the sauce to another frying pan.
15. Add the pasta to the pan and mix.
16. Add some pasta water to the pan (between 2tbsp and a cup). The sauce should get silkier.
17. Grate in some parmesan - enough to make a bit of a layer in the middle.
18. Add a sprinkling of fresh parsley and mix.
19. Server with more parmesan and parsley on top.

Source

• Unknown Tiktok video

Verdict

This recipe is a bit haphazard because it was a spur of the moment meal inspired by a now-lost video on my partner’s phone. But it tastes great and you get to wing it a bit!

Be very careful when flambéing if you’re under your kitchen vent hood. Turns out the grease and airflow there are perfect for creating a small fire! Luckily it went out when I turned off the vent hood.