Spaghetti with Garlic Olive oil and Chili
Olive oil, garlic, and chili are all you need to make Italian spaghetti aglio, olio e peperoncino. It’s the perfect dish to make when your fridge is bare, when you need a super-quick meal, when you need to feed a lot of people fast, or when you simply want a delicious Italian recipe that uses the minimum ingredients to obtain the maximum flavor.
Using just a few storecupboard ingredients, spaghetti aglio, olio e peperoncino nevertheless celebrates the winning combination of good extra virgin olive oil, infused with a kick of garlic and a zing of chili pepper, coating perfect ‘al dente’ spaghetti. Like so many Italian recipes, its beauty is in its simplicity which allows the flavors to truly shine through.
A dish which is eaten at any time of any day and in whatever season of the year, mastering the perfect aglio, olio will mean that you always have a great traditional Italian recipe at your fingertips which does not require fancy ingredients or lots of time. Whether you whip it up as a speedy lunch or eat it, as many Italians do, as a late-night stomach pleaser, it is a recipe that will never let you down.
As with most Italian recipes, every household has their preferred method of creating the dish. We like to use our trusted cookbook Il Talismano della Felicità to make sure we achieve the perfect balance of spiciness but once you have the technique you can adjust the flavors to your own palate.
Check out Foodie Sisters Valeria and Benedetta in the kitchen making Spaghetti Aglio, Olio e Peperoncino in the video below before giving it a go yourself!
Spaghetti Aglio, Olio e Peperoncino
(Serves 6)
600g spaghetti
2 whole cloves of garlic
Extra virgin olive oil
Bunch of fresh parsley, chopped
Salt
Red chili pepper
Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil and add the spaghetti.
While the pasta cooks, heat a cup of olive oil in a large frying pan and add the whole garlic cloves and chili. Cook until the garlic starts to turn golden then remove the garlic cloves from the pan.
Once the spaghetti are ready, drain and mix with the oil then add the chopped parsley before serving.
Buon appetito!

