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About the Recipe:
I remember cooking Ottolenghi’s middle eastern cacio e pepe for a Sheikh and his family, and then thought- if it worked for zha’tar, then it must work for African flavours too?
Simple, interesting, and it shockingly works. I even had an Italian taste it. Key is in the sauce!
Ingredients:
250g Gluten Free caponi/rigatoni style pasta (corn and rice is most similar to regular pasta)
1 liter of water with 1 tbsp salt/ reserving 325ml water after cooking the pasta
1tbsp olive oil
5g whole black peppercorns
5g leaf masala
45g ghee
55g parmesan
45g pecorino
To Plate:
20g grated pecorino (10g per plate)
30g toasted desiccated coconut (15g per plate)
5g torn fresh coriander leaf
7g fresh mint, chopped fine
Drizzle of olive oil to finish
Zest of one lime per serving/plate
Method:
Bring the water to boil. Boil pasta at a simmer, until al dente. This should be about 9 minutes, but check packaging and to taste. Drain and reserve in a large bowl with a tbsp of pasta water and a tbsp of olive oil. Reserve 325ml of the pasta water and set aside.
Blend the peppercorns in a processor and mix in with the leaf masala. In a pan large enough to hold the pasta at a later stage, add the butter. When melted, add the spices. Cook two minutes until bubbling. Add the pasta water and reduce until thickens, or about five minutes. It should be like a thick soup consistency. Add the cooked pasta and mix well. Take off the heat. Very slowly add the parmesan, a little bit at a time. Then add the pecorino. Keep stirring to keep smooth.
Place 175g into a bowl. Drizzle with olive oil. Top with coconut, mint, coriander, and lime zest.