Pantry Pasta
You may not have tomatoes in your empty fridge, but if you did, you’d want these za’atar roasted bad boys alongside this pasta.
You know how when you’re leaving for a long trip somewhere you have to clean out you fridge of all the stuff that will go south in a big way while you’re gone? Or if you’re like me, you forget to, and come back to unrecognizable primordial slime on the bottom of your vegetable drawer?
And now it’s dark and you’re hungry and all the stores are closed and the night vultures are circling?
I keep my pantry stocked for just such occasions. Capers and lemons last for ages in the refrigerator, and then you open your pantry for some pasta and this one…little…magical ingredient.
Tuna.
“The fuck you say?” you exclaim.
Not just any tuna. Tuna Ventresca - tuna belly packed in olive oil by Italians who give a rip about food. Yes, my friends. This is fancy-schmancy in a can. Or as my daughter says, “This is The Shit.”
All you need for a fine meal after a long day of travel.
You crack that can or jar, boil your pasta, add to a pan of warming garlic and olive oil, throw in capers, lemon zest, and that tuna. You can riff on this all day long, too. Some onion. The last shallot left from the fuck-ton you bought that one time because I made you. (Not sorry.) Or take out the capers and throw in some sun-dried tomatoes or roasted red pepper. Or something else languishing at the back of your pantry. Why not? You may have misses as well as hits, but you’re hungry, so who the fuck cares?
You’ve got food in your belly and you are safe from the night vultures. You live happily ever after, The End.
I used fresh parsley, which would be absent form your post-vacation fridge. Full disclosure: I make this recipe all the time, even when I have a full produce drawer. It’s that good.
Shit You Need
375 grams of dried linguini or non-metric equivalent
2 tablespoons olive oil
7 ounces tuna ventresca in olive oil
3 cloves of garlic, sliced
2 tablespoons salted capers, salt brushed or briefly rinsed off, or 3 tablespoons capers in brine, drained.
Salted capers are a bit more strongly flavored, and very salty, so you need less. You will also need to shake off as much salt as possible before adding them to the dish or it will be over-seasoned. Or you can use capers in brine - just add a bit more and drain the brine first.
the juice and zest of one lemon
2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter
3 tablespoons minced fresh Italian parsley, if you have it
kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
Keep Calm and justeffingcook
Bring a large pot of salted water to boil.
While the water is heating, add olive oil, garlic and capers to a large skillet and let warm on low heat. Add a few cracks of black pepper, and if using brined capers, a bit of salt.
Boil the pasta 2 minutes less than the directions specify. It will finish cooking in the skillet.
Transfer the pasta to the skillet using tongs - don’t drain it, let plenty of pasta water come along for the ride! Turn up the heat and bring to a simmer for 2 minutes - add extra pasta water if necessary.
Add lemon juice and zest and stir to combine. Add cold butter and stir in to thicken sauce.
Taste and adjust seasonings, then add chopped parsley and serve.
