Weeknight Tomato Pasta

If I had to name the recipe I cook most often, this would be it. It's the dish I make when the fridge is bare, when I'm too tired to think, and when guests show up and announce they're hungry.

The trick — and there is one — is finishing the pasta in the sauce with a splash of pasta water. That's how you get the glossy, clinging texture instead of pasta sitting in a puddle.

Ingredients

Instructions

1. Bring a large pot of well-salted water to the boil. Cook the pasta one minute short of the package directions.
2. While the pasta cooks, heat the olive oil in a wide pan over medium-low. Add the garlic and chilli flakes and cook gently for 2 minutes — you want fragrant, not browned.
3. Crush in the whole tomatoes with your hands, add a good pinch of salt, and simmer for 8–10 minutes until thickened.
4. Reserve a cup of pasta water, then transfer the drained pasta straight into the sauce with a splash of the cooking water. Toss vigorously for a minute until the sauce coats every strand.
5. Tear in the basil, finish with black pepper, and serve with plenty of Parmesan.

Cooking tips

• Whole tinned tomatoes give a fresher flavour than pre-chopped — crush them yourself.
• Pasta water is liquid gold. The starch is what turns oil and tomato into a proper sauce.
• A drizzle of good olive oil at the very end lifts the whole bowl.

More like this

If you enjoyed this recipe, you'll find more of my favourite main dishes recipes in the archive, or browse the full collection.