🍳 Cacio e Pepe with Parmesan Crisps 🍳

In several Italian dialects cacio e pepe translates as ‘cheese and pepper, and that’s essentially all that goes into this sauce. The magic ingredient that binds them together is the pasta cooking water. It is full of starch, which emulsifies with the butter and helps the sauce cling to the pasta. The Parmesan crisps are optional, but such an easy and impressive way to finish the dish.

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan/Gas 6. Line a baking tray with baking paper.

2. To make the crisps, take half the Parmesan and place it in four equal piles on the prepared tray. Place on a high shelf in the oven for 10–12 minutes, or until the Parmesan has turned golden brown. Set aside.

3. Bring a kettle of water to the boil. Half-fill a saucepan with it, season with salt and return to the boil. (It’s important to add just enough water to cover the pasta so that the water will become as starchy as possible.) Add the pasta, stir well and cook for 10 minutes, or until al dente.

4. Meanwhile, toast the peppercorns in a dry frying pan until aromatic. Using a pestle and mortar, grind them coarsely.

5. Place a large sauté pan over a medium heat and melt the butter in it. Add the ground pepper and let the butter foam, then add a ladleful of the pasta water and bring to the boil. Swirl the pan or whisk the contents to emulsify the sauce.

6. Remove the pasta from the water with tongs and add it to the sauté pan with a second ladleful of the water and the remaining Parmesan. Stir well to coat, and add more pasta water if needed.

7. Add the pecorino and salt, tossing the pan to combine.

8. Serve in bowls with the Parmesan crisps crumbled over the top.