calabrian chili cherry tomato alla vodka

Must have meat: If you want to add some meat to either bulk up the protein of this dinner or stretch it to feed more people, Italian sausage would be great here. Buy ground Italian pork or chicken sausage (spicy or mild — your choice based on spice preference), add it to the skillet after you’ve sautéed the shallot and garlic, and cook until browned, breaking it up into little crumbles with your spatula. If there’s a lot of grease in the pan after it cooks, pour that off then proceed with the recipe as written. (If there isn’t a lot of grease, just skip that!) If you don’t like sausage, you could also just cook chicken or shrimp on the grill or stovetop to serve with it. This ultimate grill guide has lots of ideas for simply cooked proteins. How much Calabrian chili paste? I use 1 tablespoon! It definitely gives it spice. If you want more subtle heat, use 1 to 2 teaspoons. If you want no spice, omit it. Prep ahead: To get a jumpstart on dinner, you can dice the shallot and mince the garlic up to a day ahead of time — store them in the fridge in an airtight container. Make ahead: Or go ahead and cook the sauce up to 3 days ahead of time! Boil your noodles right before you plan to eat dinner. Meanwhile, reheat the sauce in a pot on the stove, adding as much pasta cooking water from the noodles you boil as needed to loosen it back up/coat the noodles well. Love your leftovers/stock the freezer/cooking for 1 or 2/double it: Leftover pasta will keep for up to 4 days stored in an airtight container in the fridge. You could also freeze this vodka sauce to enjoy weeks/months from now

Unbalanced

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Step 1

Bring a large pot of heavily salted water (2 tablespoons of kosher salt in the water is my general rule) to a boil and cook 1 pound rigatoni until al dente (read the box to find your pasta’s ideal cook time). SCOOP OUT ABOUT 1 CUP OF THE PASTA COOKING WATER BEFORE YOU DRAIN THE PASTA!! Set the pasta water aside.

Step 2

While the water comes to a boil and the pasta cooks, make the sauce.

Step 3

Mince 1 large shallot and 4 garlic cloves.

Step 4

Melt 2 tablespoons unsalted butter in a large saucepan or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the minced shallot and garlic and a big pinch of kosher salt. Cook until they’re soft and translucent, about 4 minutes. Add 3 tablespoons tomato paste and stir constantly until it becomes dark red, about 3 minutes.

Step 5

Stir in 1/4 cup vodka and 1 tablespoon Calabrian chili paste (OR LESS, if you don’t want it to be a bit spicy!) and crank the heat up to medium-high. Stir for about 30 seconds, until the mixture is thick and pasty.

Step 6

Stir in 2 pounds whole cherry tomatoes and a big pinch of kosher salt. Lower the heat to medium, cover the saucepan, and cook for 7 to 10 minutes, until the tomatoes start to burst.

Step 7

Now is a good time to grate 1 cup of Parmesan. You can grate it using a box grater, microplane, or your blender. To use the blender, throw chunks of Parm in and pulse until it reaches a grated consistency.

Step 8

Uncover and stir for several more minutes until the tomatoes are really starting to burst and get saucy. Use your spatula or the back of a spoon to lightly press and release their juices, if needed.

Step 9

Stir in 1 cup heavy cream. Once it’s warm (but not bubbling, just warm!), very slowly sprinkle and stir in 1 cup of grated Parmesan a little at a time, only adding more Parm once the previous bit has had time to melt into the sauce. It’s important to go slow and that the sauce isn’t too hot when you add your cheese, or the cheese will clump up instead of melting.

Step 10

Add the drained cooked pasta into the sauce. Stir to coat. If it’s too thick, loosen with a splash of pasta cooking water (you will have pasta water left over — just throw out whatever you don’t use!). Taste and add more kosher salt if needed.

Step 11

Serve in low bowls with more grated Parm and some freshly cracked black pepper on top.

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