Black Carbonara Squid Ink Pasta 培根蛋黃墨魚麵

Have you been to Eataly ? This hyped Italian food market is definitely a new trendy spot in East London offering a huge selection for Italian food obsessives. The first time I went to Eataly, it was just a quick look around, but during the second time visit I got myself squid ink pasta from their fresh pasta counter as I just can’t resist its gorgeous black colour. I made black carbonara which is very simple and doesn’t take too much time from start to finish. Also, I thought squid ink pasta would taste more salty and briny, but it actually tastes just like normal pasta with a very light seafood hint. However, its dramatic colour would certainly give you a delightful visual treat to enjoy a dish.

 

Here is how I make my Black Carbonara:

 

INGREDIENTS
-120g squid ink pasta 
-40g bacon lardons 
-1 egg and extra 1 egg yolk
-2 tbsp grated cheese⁠

-Basil and additional grated cheese to garnish.

-Ground black pepper to taste. (optional)

 

METHOD

1. Cook pasta in a large pan of boiling salted water until al dente. (I cook for 6-7 mins)

2. Beat 1 egg with grated cheese in a bowl.

3. Fry bacon lardons in a heated pan with 1-2 tbsp oil until brown and crispy.

3. When the pasta is ready, drain and transfer to the pan with bacon fat over low heat, mix well to coat thoroughly.
4. Turn off the heat, stir in egg and cheese mixture, season with black pepper if needed.

5. Drop an egg yolk, garnish with basil and additional grated cheese.

 

 

Mentaiko Butter Pasta 明太子奶油義大利麵

Have you ever tried Mentaiko Pasta?

 

Mentaiko Pasta 明太子パスタ is my favourite ‘Wafu’ (Japanese Style) cod roe pasta loaded with rich flavour. It’s a classic household stable in Japan and also a very popular Wafu pasta dish in Taiwan. You might have seen some premade Mentaiko sauce packets from Japanese grocery stores, but if you can get fresh, high quality Mentaiko fish roe from fishmonger, you would be surprised how easy to handle this ingredient. The cooking method is simple as well, just need to whip it up and you would get a savoury, soul-satisfying pasta dish in 15 minutes. This is a Must-try recipe if you haven’t had it before!

 

INGREDIENTS

-120g spaghetti.

-3 tbsp vegetable oil.

-4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped.

-50g salted cod roe

-20g unsalted butter

-Spring onion curls and nori seaweed to garnish.

(Use shiso leaves if you have)

 

METHOD

1. Heat 3 tbsp vegetable oil in a pan, fried chopped garlic until crispy, drain and set aside. (keep garlic oil)

2. Boil spaghetti in salted water until al dente.

3. Meanwhile use spoon to remove mentaiko/cod roe from skins. (leave some to garnish.)

4. Mix drained spaghetti with mentaiko and butter, add 2 tbsp spaghetti water and give it a good stir.

5. Sprinkle with fried garlic, spring onion curls and nori seaweed.

6. Drizzle with some garlic oil to give it additional aromatic flavour.

Pappardelle Beef Bolognese

 

First time buying fresh pappardelle from Lina Store and was thinking to make some Italian pasta dishes at home. Have searched a couple of recipes online, then I decided to go for Beef Bolognese as I wanted some thick and hearty sauce to go with this broad, flat pasta. Adapted from Chef Pasquale Sciarappa’s Pappardelle Bolognese recipe that he made for Orsara Recipes, this is my version to recreate it and it tasted totally delicious.

 

𝐈𝐧𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 : (portions for two)

-200g fresh pappardelle (or any pasta of your choice)

-190g Sun-dried tomato paste from Sacla

-175g beef mince.

-1/2 onion, chopped.

-2 garlic cloves, chopped.

-1 cup dry white wine.

-4 bay leaves.

-5 cherry tomatoes, halved.

-Salt and black pepper to taste.

-Grated parmesan and fresh basil leaves to sprinkle on top.

 

𝐂𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐝 :

-Heat oil in a large non-stick pan over a medium heat, add beef and mince and gently stir with a wooden spoon until browned.

-Reduce the heat, add chopped garlics and onions, keep stirring for 2-3 minutes until soften.

-Pour in dry white wine, leave to bubble and cook away.

-Add tomato paste, bay leaves, and halved tomatoes, continuously stir and break up the cherry tomatoes.

-Add a pinch of salt and black pepper to taste.

-Reduce to the lowest heat, cover with a lid to simmer for about 25 minutes. (stir occasionally.)

-When Bolognese is nearly ready, cook pappardelle in a large pot of boiling salted water according to the packet instruction.

-Once pappardelle is al denta, drain and reserve some cooking water, then move it to the pan, mix with Beef Bolognese sauce.

-Serve with grated parmesan and fresh basil leaves if you like.

 

前幾天去Kings Cross的時候順便去Lina Store買了他們家手工的寬帶義大利麵，回程途中就一直盤算要拿來煮甚麼才好，後來在Youtube看了Pasquale Sciarappa老爺爺剛好有示範一道波隆那肉醬寬帶麵，就決定參照他的方法做牛肉番茄肉醬麵了！老爺爺有吩咐說如果要用市售的蕃茄醬的話，一定要買玻璃瓶裝的，絕對不能買罐頭的！他的話我有聽進去，另外我記得每次我在超市買蕃茄糊或番茄紅醬之類的東西，印象中都買到不甚好吃的，所以最後是拿了Scala的日曬番茄紅醬，這次煮出來的波隆那肉醬就很成功。還有我這回是一次煮了兩人份的，麵量夠多所以擺盤起來好像比較好看？！

 

Spicy Garlic Butter Prawn Spaghtti

I know spaghetti is Italian’s thing but do you know it also goes well with soy sauce ? Have seen this dish from @marionskitchen at Youtube, I knew it would be delicious and I absolutely love it when I tried out. Inspired and adapted from Marion’s original recipe, here is how I made it :

 

Ingredients:

-Spaghetti.

-Prawns.

-Octopus. (I used thinly sliced octopus.)

-Garlic cloves, sliced and chopped.

-Unsalted butter, 50g.

-Chilli flakes, 1 tsp.

-Soy sauce, 3 tbsp.

-Oyster sauce, 1 tbsp.

-Spring onions, chopped.

 

To make garlic oil:

-Cook the sliced garlic in a saucepan with oil over medium heat.

-Once the garlic is starting to turn golden at the edges, transfer to another heat-proof bowl and set aside.

 

How to make:

-Cook the spaghetti. (Follow the cooking instruction on the packaging)

-While the pasta is cooking, pour oil into a frying pan over medium heat.

-Add chopped garlic and cook for 3 minutes until soften, then add prawns and octopus.

-Add soy sauce and oyster sauce, stir well.

-When the pasta is al dente, move the pasta straight into the pan. (Also spoon some pasta water so it won’t get too dry.)

-Add butter and chilli flakes, mix well until the sauce has been absorbed by the spaghetti.

-Top with a drizzle of garlic oil, sprinkle with spring onions and more chilli flakes.

 

大家有常追的Youtube煮菜頻道嗎？我最近會看Marion’s Kitchen，她有些結合中西料理的家常菜色真的滿適合我這種旅居海外卻還是擁有亞洲胃的人，這道加了醬油跟蠔油的奶油義大利麵可能在義大利人眼中覺得超不正宗，不過就像日本人會把義大利麵「改造」成和風口味，用中式醬料調理義大利麵最後再撒上青蔥其實也是很對味！然後這次使用的章魚片是在Waitrose買的Octopus Carpaccio(用油、檸檬汁、酒醋醃製的一種義大利小菜)，單吃我覺得口感有點像台式豬耳朵，加在義大利麵一起拌炒也很好吃。