Penne arrabiata - made with 5 ingredients only | easy arrabbiata pasta

Penne arrabiata recipe with step by step photos. Penne arrabbiata is one of the pasta dishes that any spice lover like me 🙂 will love to have.

What is Penne Arrabbiata?

The word Arrabbiata literally means "angry" in the Italian language. It basically refers to the “spiciness” coming from the red chilies in the dish.

Penne arrabbiata is one of the pasta dishes that are spicy. However, you can adjust the spiciness as per your taste.

If you do to prefer spicy kick then you can also try penne pasta with marinara sauce.

The flavors of arrabbiata sauce are simple yet delectable. Olive oil, garlic, red chili flakes & basil creates a magical flavor in the arrabbiata sauce.

Recipe Features

• The recipe is made from scratch - In this recipe post, we will make arrabbiata sauce from fresh tomatoes & then combine it with pasta.
• Quick & easy recipe - The best part of making penne arrabiata is that you can cook it within 30 minutes. Yes, you heard it right…From making the arrabbiata sauce & cooking the pasta, all done within 30 minutes.
• 5 ingredients recipe - The ingredients are quite simple & easily available in your kitchen pantry. You need only 5 ingredients to make the spicy arrabiata sauce - olive oil, garlic, red chili flakes, tomatoes & basil leaves.
• The recipe includes step by step photo & a recipe video.

How do you make Arrabiata sauce from scratch?

• Blanch the tomatoes. Peel off the skin & remove seeds.
• Grind it to a fine paste. Keep it aside.
• Saute garlic & red chilies in olive oil over a medium-low flame.
• Add the prepared tomato paste & salt.
• Cook on medium heat for 5 minutes.
• Add basil leaves & simmer for 15-20 minutes.
• Arrabiata sauce is ready. (check out the post for detailed step by step photos to make the arrabbiata sauce)

If you like this recipe, you may be interested in these other quick dinner recipes:

• Easy tomato pasta
• Egg fried rice
• Egg biryani in pressure cooker

How to make penne arrabiata

Preparations:

• Boil water in a pan. Wash the tomatoes. Mark cross shape at the bottom of tomatoes. (pic 1)
• Put it in boiling water for 5 minutes. (pic 2)
• Remove & immediately put it in cold water. (pic 3)
• Peel off the skin. Discard the stem & the seeds. Roughly chop it. (pic 5 & 6)
• Grind it to a fine paste. (pic 7 & 8)

Making the arrabbiata sauce

• Heat a pan. Add olive oil and garlic. (pic 1)
• Saute the garlic for 2 minutes.
• Add red chili flakes & sauté for 30 seconds. (pic 2)
• Add the prepared tomato puree and salt. (pic 3 & 4)
• Cook on a medium flame for 5 minutes.
• Lower the flame, check the seasoning & simmer the sauce.

Making penne arrabbiata

• Meanwhile… Cook pasta according to the package instructions.
• Reserve 1 cup of cooking pasta water.
• The sauce will be reduced by now. Add basil leaves & stir. (pic 5)
• Drain the pasta to a colander & immediately add pasta to the simmering sauce. (pic 6)
• Add ½ cup of pasta water & toss it well so that the sauce coats the pasta. (pic 7)
• Cook it for 2 minutes so that the sauce is absorbed by the pasta. (pic 8)
• Remove from the heat.
• Finish penne arrabbiata with finely grated parmesan cheese (Parmigiano-Reggiano), 1 teaspoon olive oil & chopped parsley. (Pic 9 to 12)

Cooking Tips

• Roma (or San Marzano) or plum tomatoes are the best choices for making the arrabbiata sauce. If not available then pick up big ripe tomatoes that have more flesh & low water content.
• Use the best quality pasta. I have used pasta made with durum wheat semolina. Durum wheat has higher protein content.
• I have used penne rigate pasta. Penne and Arrabiata are made for each other 🙂
• Cook pasta as per the timing instruction mentioned on the package.
• Cook pasta in a big pot. There should be enough room for pasta to move around for even cooking.
• Add salt to the boiling water before adding the pasta.
• Add uncooked pasta in boiling water. Never add the pasta in lukewarm or cold water.
• Stir pasta occasionally while it is cooking so that they do not stick to each other.
• Remove the pasta 1 minute before it is al dente. Further cooking takes place with the arrabbiata sauce.
• Reserve pasta cooking water before you drain it. Use it while cooking pasta with the sauce. The water helps the sauce to coat the pasta.
• When you drain the pasta do not add oil to it or wash it in cold water. The oil will create a barrier & the sauce will not coat well to the pasta.
• Add drained pasta immediately to the simmering sauce. The pasta should never wait for the sauce.
• Serve warm with some finely grated parmesan cheese on the top.
• Add red chili flakes as per your taste.
• Add sugar if tomatoes are sour (acidic).
• Red chilies add a little zing & flavor to the pasta sauce. Increase or decrease the red chili flakes to adjust the spiciness.
• You can also add a small chopped carrot (instead of adding sugar) while making the tomato paste. It tastes the best. Before adding the carrot wash it & peel the skin. Chop & add it to the grinder.

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