Cacio e Pepe is one of the most famous Roman pasta dishes. A classic pasta dish known for its simplicity. Traditionally made with spaghetti, pecorino romano cheese, freshly ground black pepper, using the starchy water from cooking the pasta. Simple, cheesey, peppery and delicious.

All strong flavors come together to create a pasta dish loved around the world. The roots of this dish goes back to the sheep farmers and the use of quality raw materials. The use of pecorino romano cheese, made with sheep’s milk, is the key element to this dish. To make this delightful pasta dish, keep in mind there is no need to add olive oil, butter or cream.

However in Luciano Monosillio’s Rule-Breaking No Stress Method we do add olive oil into the cheese cream sauce, only 1/4 cup. Luciano Monosillio is a Michelin star chef in Rome, Italy and he is the creator for this method. Luciano is Italy’s reigning King of Carbonara. From Albano Laziale to Michelin starred chef, Luciano’s culinary journey has brought him to Rome, elevating carbonara and reviving it as a staple dish. The home-grown chef loves to play with quality products and tradition at his eponymous restaurant Luciano Cucina (Campo de’ Fiori).

I will tell you how to make the creamy cheese sauce in this recipe. I choose De Cecco Spaghetti n° 12 pasta because of its superior quality. Instructions should be followed carefully to get a great result the first time around. Try to get authentic pecorino romano, the quality of the cheese matters. Cacio e Pepe (cheese and pepper) is popular for its bold flavor and continues to be a staple in Roman cuisine.

Cacio e Pepe has been perplexing to home cooks everywhere for years with stringy clumpy cheese rather than insanely creamy pasta which is what Cacio e Pepe should be. Below I am describing the traditional method to the recipe.

The traditional method

1. Drop the pasta into a pot of boiling water without any salt and cook according to the package.
2. In a separate pan, toast the whole black peppercorns for a minute or two until fragrant. Then either grind them in a mortar and pestle or in a pepper mill. Then add a teaspoon back into the pan and keep the heat off but keeping that pan warm. .
3. 2-3 minutes before the pasta is al dente, add a little pasta water to the pan with the black pepper. Keep the pan warm and to cool the pasta water down slightly so it isn’t too hot. Pasta water boils at 212 ℉ degrees and we never want our cheese to get hotter than 180 ℉.
4. Once the pasta is al dente, add it to the pan with the pepper. Then add about a half ladle or half cup of the pasta water.
5. Then add two generous handfuls of the pecorino and without any flame under the pan. Using only the heat from the pasta and the pasta water, stir the pasta vigorously. Using the strands of pasta to emulsify and slowly melt the cheese sauce to form an incredibly creamy sauce. It will not be clumpy or stingy because the heat is being managed. After a few seconds of stirring the sauce should come together quite easily. If it still is clumpy, the cheese to water ratio may still be off. You need a little more water so add a little bit at a time until it becomes creamy again. If it’s too watery, you’ve got too little cheese, so add a bit more cheese until it thickens back up.
6. Get it into a warmed plate, garnish with more cheese sauce and more pepper, and then serve and eat immediately.

The traditional method has proven to be very difficult to do for home cooks. I researched a bit to see how it can be done differently from the traditional method and found the following way to do it. Its creamy, and the only rule breaker is the addition of the olive oil.

Luciano Monosillio’s Rule-Breaking No Stress Method

1. Drop the pasta into a pot of boiling water without any salt and cook according to the package all the way to al dente.
2. In a blender, add a 1/2 cup of the hot pasta water, a teaspoon of the black pepper, 115 grams of finely grated pecorino romano, then begin blending. While blending, slowly stream in the extra virgin olive oil until its smooth and creamy and resemble a caesar dressing. If it’s too loose, add more cheese to thicken it. Then add it to a pan. Once the pasta is one minute from al dente, add it to the pan with the cheese sauce, and with the flame on low, finish the pasta in the pan until the sauce coats the pasta. Once it is perfect, get it into a warmed plate, garnish with more sauce, more cheese, and more pepper, and then serve and eat immediately.

Choose either of these methods, and you will not be disappointed!

Cacio e Pepe

Kastra Recipes Staff

Cacio e Pepe, or cheese and pepper, a Roman pasta recipe.

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Total Time 30 minutes mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Servings 1 people

Calories 370 kcal

Equipment

• 1 large pot
• 1 large skillet or saute pan Skillet size depends on how much pasta you are preparing
• 1 bowl
• 1 tongs
• 1 spatula
• 1 wooden spoon

Ingredients

  

• 115 grams of spaghetti for one serving
• 115 grams Pecorino Romano grated like snow
• 1 teaspoon cracked black pepper
• 1/2 cup pasta water between 180 ℉ to 190℉
• 1/4 cup Olive Oil Luciano Monosillio’s Rule-Breaking No Stress Method

Instructions

 

Traditional Method

• In a large pot, boil water and once it comes to a boil add the pasta.
• Cook the pasta 1-2 minutes less than the recommended cooking time it says on the package.
  
• Grind the black peppercorns. For this you can use a pestle, or a pepper grinder adjusted so that it doesn’t grind too finely. The black pepper should not be a powder.
• Grate the Pecorino Romano cheese. When ready, set aside in a bowl.
  
• Place the skillet on low heat. Cover the cooking surface with freshly cracked black pepper. Be generous with the amount and toast for approx two minutes then switch off the heat.
• Meanwhile add 2 ladles of pasta cooking water to the toasted black pepper and turn the heat on to low. Make suure the water is between 180 ℉ to 190 ℉.
  
• Now is the time to transfer the pasta from the pot to the skillet. The pasta will finish cooking in the skillet with the pepper sauce. Make sure you keep stirring the pasta and that the pan is not dry.
  
• Once the pasta is finished cooking in the skillet take it off the heat. Add the entire amount of pecorino to the skillet. Stir the pasta continuously, until the cheesey paste is completely dissolved. Make sure there are no lumps and all the pasta is coated. If too dry add a little pasta water, but do not make it runny. Cacio e pepe recipe is ready!
  
• If you like, add more grated pecorino just before serving and another sprinkle of pepper for garnishing the plate. Serve pasta Cacio e Pepe immediately and hot.

Notes

1. To make this recipe use only Italian Pecorino Romano from sheep’s milk for the authentic flavor and texture. It is salty but you will not need to add any salt to your plate once cooked. 
2. The recommended preparation of this dish is to do it in batches, one serving at a time. The cheese needs to be mixed well with the pasta, a little water added each time. To get it right, smaller batches are much easier to do. 
3. The recommended pasta to prepare this dish is as follows: spaghetti (the most common), bucatini, penne, rigatoni, fettuccine or orecchiette.

 

 

Keyword caccio e pepe