Amatriciana
A bold, rustic sauce from the mountain town of Amatrice. It is the evolution of Gricia, adding tomato to the holy trinity of guanciale, pecorino, and pepper.
Amatriciana is from Amatrice, in the Lazio Apennines. Rome adopted it later and claimed it, but the soul of the dish remains in the mountains.
Only a few ingredients
Guanciale
Dry pan, medium heat. The fat runs clear and the edges get colour. That fat stays in the pan — it is the base of everything that follows.
not pancettaChili Pepper
A dried peperoncino, crumbled in while the fat is still hot. Half a minute. Pull it out if you want less heat — or leave it.
peperoncinoPeeled Tomatoes
Crushed by hand before they go in. High heat first, then lower it. The guanciale fat works into the tomato — don't add extra oil.
crushed by handPecorino di Amatrice
Grated at the end, not cooked in. Over the finished plate — not stirred into the sauce. A little at a time.
Guanciale, not bacon.
Guanciale is cured pork cheek, not pancetta and not bacon. The fat is looser, sweeter, and renders differently. Bacon — smoked and cured differently — changes the character of the sauce completely. It is not a substitute.
No onion. Not in the original.
Amatrice's protected recipe contains no onion. Rome added it. You may prefer the Roman version — but it is the Roman version.
Bucatini
The classic Roman pairing.
Spaghetti
The original pairing from Amatrice.
Ready to cook?
These sources we trust. Each one makes it correctly.
Other sauces from the same region
Carbonara
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Aglio e Olio
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Cacio e Pepe
Beyond simplicity lies complexity. Cheese and pepper. That is all. Yet the three-minute emulsification required to build this sauce separates the masters from the novices.
Burro e Parmigiano (Alfredo)
A silken emulsion of butter, Parmigiano Reggiano, and pasta water. Roman simplicity at its peak—no cream, only technique. The sauce emerges when cold butter meets hot pasta and starchy water.
Vignarola
A springtime celebration of Rome's finest vegetables—fava beans, peas, and artichokes tossed with guanciale and Pecorino Romano. Light, seasonal, and deeply Roman.
Papalina
A creamy Roman sauce of peas, heavy cream, and either prosciutto or guanciale. It is a richer cousin to Peas and Bacon, with papal grandeur in its name.
Zozzona
A rustic, hearty Roman pasta of tomatoes, pancetta, and a hint of cream. The name comes from the Roman dialect word 'zozz,' meaning dirty, simple man—it's a working person's dish.
Gricia
The ancestor of Carbonara. Guanciale, Pecorino, and black pepper without the egg—a dish of pure Roman clarity, celebrated for its restraint.
Arrabiata
The angry sauce. Four ingredients, one rule: enough chili to matter.