Simple Pasta (Tomato + Cheese)

Ingredients

• 100g pasta (penne, fusilli or spaghetti)
• 1 tin of chopped tomatoes (or a jar of tomato sauce)
• 1 clove garlic, crushed (optional)
• Olive oil
• Pinch of salt for the water (LOTS)
• Grated cheese to serve

Tools

Steps

1. 1

   Big pan of salty water

   Fill the big pan with water. Add a HEAPED tablespoon of salt — the water should taste like seawater. Lid on. Boil.

2. 2

   Pasta in

   When it's boiling hard, tip the pasta in. Stir once so it doesn't stick. Set a timer for the time on the packet minus 1 minute.

3. 3

   Sauce

   While pasta cooks: in the smaller pan, glug of olive oil + garlic on LOW for 30 sec. Add tomatoes + pinch of salt. Bubble gently for 5–7 min.

4. 4

   Drain (keep a mug of water!)

   Just before draining, save a mug of the starchy pasta water. Drain pasta in the colander.

5. 5

   Combine + serve

   Tip pasta into the sauce pan. Add a splash of pasta water. Stir 30 seconds. Onto plates. Cheese on top.

What Could Go Wrong

• Water needs to be properly salty — under-salted water = bland pasta forever.
• Don't drain pasta-water away without saving a mug. It rescues the sauce if it's too thick.
• Watch the boil-over: lid off when pasta goes in, or set the lid skewed.