This is a take on the famed cacio e pepe pasta dish from Siena in Tuscany. Pici is a type of thick, hand-rolled pasta. You can buy pici pasta online from souschef.co.uk and amazon.co.uk (or make it fresh yourself).
5 ingredient recipes · Italian recipes
Cacio e pepe with asparagus
Cacio e pepe is one of the simplest – and tastiest – pasta dishes you can make. The original version is just three ingredients (cheese, pepper and pasta) but we’ve added asparagus for a seasonal twist. If you like the look of this, how about our creamy broccoli and bacon spaghetti?
Serves4 as a starter, 2 as a main
Hands-on20 min
DifficultyEasy
Method
Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil over a medium heat. Cook the pasta for 2 minutes less than the packet instructions or until it still has bite . Drain, reserving one mugful of the cooking liquid.
Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large deep pan over a low-medium heat and add the asparagus. Cook gently for 2-3 minutes, then add 100ml of the reserved pasta cooking liquid and bring to the boil.
Add the pepper, drained pasta and grated cheese to the pan. Stir well for a minute or so until the cheese melts and forms a rich sauce (add a little more pasta cooking liquid if the sauce is too thick).
Divide among warm bowls and serve straightaway, scattered with salt, extra black pepper and some more grated cheese.
Nutrition
| Calories | 492kcals |
|---|---|
| Fat | 29.2g (18g saturated) |
| Protein | 17.4g |
| Carbohydrates | 37.8g (2.7g sugars) |
| Fibre | 4.2g |
Quick wins, tips & make ahead
Watch the recipe video…
Rate & review
If you loved this
See all →More 5 ingredient recipes
Lemon meringue pie sorbet
🍽 Makes about 1 litre (enough to serve 8)◆ Easy
Coconut and blueberry granita
🍽 Makes about 500g of each granita (enough to serve 8)◆ Easy
10-minute strawberry ice cream sandwich
🍽 Serves 1◆ Easy
Keep browsing
