Words and Images by Germaine Stafford

Sitting in the cosy lounge area of Il Convivio, Angelo Troiani explains that what is now one of Rome’s most important restaurants began as an adventure. ‘It started off as a fun idea,’ he says. ‘And thankfully, back then I had no idea what I was getting into!

Luckily, things have gone well. ‘As everyone knows, the restaurant business is tough, and you have to be capable of moving with the times without losing sight of the past, or of the traditions and ingredients that form the basis of our great cucina Italiana.

It’s difficult to find truly seasonal produce nowadays; even strawberries seem to be on offer all year round. I try not to fall into the trap of offering dishes simply because they are fashionable at certain times of year - that’s not good enough.

This is one of Rome’s oldest and most traditional dishes. Simple and quite delicious.

Ingredients

(serves four people)
400g buccatini pasta (preferably from Gragnano);
130g guanciale (cured pork cheek) or good bacon, cut into strips;
2 fresh tomatoes, chopped; 300g tinned Italian tomatoes, chopped;
50g onion, finely chopped; 1/2 clove of garlic; 2 dsps balsamic vinegar;
75g pecorino cheese, grated; salt and pepper; pinch of chilli pepper; pinch of salt.

Preparation

In a frying pan with a little olive oil, fry onion and garlic until transparent. Add the guanciale or bacon and cook until golden brown. Remove half the guanciale and place to one side. Add the balsamic vinegar to the pan and cook until it has evaporated.

Mix in the two types of tomatoes, season with salt, pepper and chilli, and cook for another 6-7 minutes over a low heat. Season if necessary.

Meanwhile cook the pasta in lots of salted water until it is just al dente. Drain pasta, add it to the other ingredients in the frying pan and toss to mix. Serve piping hot with the rest of the guanciale or bacon arranged on top and a good sprinkling of pecorino cheese.

How to cook Bucatini all'Amatriciana

We included two videos. The first one features a professional cook. Through the second video you can also improve your Italian language skills following the Italian cook instructions (luckily the video has English subtitles!)

Try to make them at home and tell us which version did you like the most!