Vodka sauce but spicy and tangy
The Story
I’m a huge fan of classic Italian recipes, but I also love an Italian-American invention, and vodka sauce is one of my favorites. It’s a great sauce, relying on cooking out pantry ingredients like tomato paste to deliver big flavor.
It’s not clear where the dish came from (creamy tomato pasta dishes without vodka appear in many parts of Italy), but the quintessential penne pasta coated in a smooth and creamy tomato sauce with a splash of vodka became popular in the U.S. in the 1970s and ’80s. I take the liberty of switching out the penne for a better pasta shape (here I’ve used radiatori with its curly edges perfectly catching tons of sauce), but don’t take out the vodka. At the concentration it's used in vodka sauce, it serves as an important flavor enhancer.
There’s truly nothing wrong with the traditional way of making it, but when I’m feeling fancy, I like to put a tangy and spicy twist on the original recipe. For the spice, I use Calabrian chili paste, a great pantry item to add to sauces or braises to add a funky, spicy kick. It keeps well in the refrigerator after opening, but I suggest topping your jar off with a thin layer of olive oil to ensure it stays fresh. If you don’t have any on hand, although it’s pretty easy to find in most Italian grocery stores or even on Amazon, you can substitute with 1 teaspoon of red chili flakes. For the tang, I add some citrus with orange juice to counterbalance the spicy kick of the Calabrian chili paste.
Perfect for a busy weeknight coming together in around a half-hour, let this creamy luscious pasta transport you to a cool Brooklyn Italian eatery.
And if you’re looking for another Italian-American pasta dish, check out my Sausage and Peppers Baked Pasta.
Difficulty: 1 on a scale of 1-5
Active time to prepare: 30 minutes
Total time to prepare: 30 minutes
Serves: 4
The Ingredients
3 Tbsp./41 g olive oil
1/2 onion small diced
1/2 tsp./1 g salt
4 cloves of garlic sliced
1/2 tsp./1 g freshly cracked black pepper
1/4 cup/56 g tomato paste
3 Tbsp./ 18 g Calabrian chili paste
1/4 cup/37.5 g vodka
1 cup/240 g heavy cream
1 lb/500 g short pasta (I used radiatori)
1 cup/240 g pasta water
Juice 1 orange (1/4 cup/37.5 g)
1 bunch parsley finely minced
The Recipe
Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a medium/large pot. Add the onion and salt. Sauté until the onion is translucent (6-7 minutes).
Add the garlic and continue to cook until it’s fragrant and turns a light golden brown around the edges (2-3 minutes).
Season with black pepper. Sauté for 1 minute to lightly toast the pepper.
Add the tomato paste and cook until it turns dark brick-red (3-4 minutes).
Add the Calabrian chili paste and cook for another 2 or 3 minutes.
Deglaze with the vodka, scraping up any brown bits of tomato or chili paste that have stuck to the bottom of the pan. Simmer until the alcohol has evaporated (when you smell the mixture, there should be no harsh alcohol smell) (3-4 minutes).
Add the heavy cream. Cook until it has reduced by 1/3 (2-3 minutes).
Cook the pasta until very al dente in salted water. Reserve 1 cup of the pasta water.
Add the pasta to the sauce along with half of the reserved pasta water and the orange juice. If the mixture is still tight (remember that it will tighten as it sits and cools), add the rest of the reserved pasta water.
Taste for seasoning and finish with parsley.
DO AHEAD: Feel free to just make the sauce ahead of time which will keep for 4 or 5 days in the refrigerator or 2 months in the freezer.
LEFTOVERS: If you don’t happen to finish the whole thing, keep it in the refrigerator for 4 or 5 days.
