Spaghetti aglio e olio
Spaghetti tossed in olive oil that has gently cooked with sliced garlic and chili, the late-night Italian classic made from what is already in your cupboard.
- 25 min total
- 15 min hands-on
- Anyone can make this
- Serves 2
- About $1.01 a serving
- 670 calories
- Vegetarian
Dolly says: I’d make this on a weeknight. It’s on the table in 25 minutes.
Ingredients
For 2 servings.
- 8 oz spaghetti
- 5 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- ¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped
- ¼ cup grated parmesan (optional)
From your pantry
- 1 tbsp salt, plus a pinch
- ¼ cup olive oil
- ½ tsp red pepper flakes
Each serving has about 670 calories, 15 g protein, 88 g carbs and 29 g fat, and costs about $1.01 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No spaghetti? Fettuccine works.
- No fresh parsley? Cilantro works.
- No grated parmesan? Parmesan wedge works.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
Fill a large pot with water, add 1 tablespoon salt, cover and over high heat.
Bring to a boil. It means heating a liquid on high until it’s fully boiling before you move on. A lid on the pot gets it there faster, which makes it a good moment to chop something.
How you’ll know: Big bubbles break all over the surface, and they keep coming when you lift the lid.
High heat
Dolly’s tip: The lid gets it boiling faster. The water should taste pleasantly salty, like the sea.While it heats, the garlic and the parsley.
Thinly slice. Thinly slicing means cutting slices about an eighth of an inch thick, roughly two coins stacked. Thin slices cook in seconds and soften fast, which quick dishes need.
How you’ll know: A slice bends a little when you hold it by one edge, and slow, steady cuts beat fast ones.
Chop. Chopping means cutting food into bite-size pieces that don’t need to be neat. Keep them roughly the same size so everything cooks evenly.
How you’ll know: Your pieces are about half an inch and roughly alike, even if none of them are pretty.
Dolly’s tip: Slices, not minced. Thin slices turn golden slowly and evenly, while minced garlic burns in seconds.Add the spaghetti and cook 2 minutes less than the package says, stirring in the first minute so it doesn’t stick.
High heatTimer: 8 min
Meanwhile, put the olive oil and garlic in a large cold , set it over low heat, and cook 4 to 5 minutes, swirling now and then, until the garlic is pale .
Skillet. A skillet is a frying pan: wide and flat with low, sloped sides. The shape lets steam escape, so food browns instead of stewing.
How you’ll know: It’s the pan you’d fry an egg in, and a 10 or 12 inch one handles most recipes.
Golden brown. Golden brown is the color of good toast, somewhere between yellow and light brown. It means the outside is cooked and crisp but not burnt.
How you’ll know: It looks like toast and smells toasty; dark brown with a bitter smell means it went too far.
Low heatTimer: 4 min 30 sec
Dolly’s tip: Starting cold means the garlic can’t scorch. Pull it the moment it’s light gold, because dark brown garlic tastes bitter.Scoop out 1 cup of with a mug, then the spaghetti.
Reserve pasta water. It means scooping out a cup of the starchy cooking water before you drain the pasta. A splash helps the sauce cling and turn silky, and it’s the step everyone forgets.
How you’ll know: A mug of cloudy water is sitting by the stove before the pasta goes into the colander.
Drain. Draining means pouring off liquid, like tipping pasta into a colander or spooning extra fat out of the pan. Pour hot grease into a can or jar, not the sink, where it hardens and clogs the pipes.
How you’ll know: Only a few drips are left, and the food isn’t sitting in a puddle.
Dolly’s tip: This is the step everyone forgets. That cloudy water is what turns oil into a sauce.Stir the pepper flakes into the garlic oil, then carefully pour in ½ cup of the . It will sputter and turn cloudy.
Reserve pasta water. It means scooping out a cup of the starchy cooking water before you drain the pasta. A splash helps the sauce cling and turn silky, and it’s the step everyone forgets.
How you’ll know: A mug of cloudy water is sitting by the stove before the pasta goes into the colander.
Medium heat
Add the spaghetti and parsley and with tongs for 1 to 2 minutes, adding splashes of , until the oil and water become a glossy sauce that coats every strand.
Toss. Tossing means gently lifting and turning food so everything gets coated, like pasta in sauce or vegetables in oil. It coats every piece evenly without mashing anything.
How you’ll know: Every piece looks glossy or evenly coated, with no dry spots hiding underneath.
Reserve pasta water. It means scooping out a cup of the starchy cooking water before you drain the pasta. A splash helps the sauce cling and turn silky, and it’s the step everyone forgets.
How you’ll know: A mug of cloudy water is sitting by the stove before the pasta goes into the colander.
Medium heatTimer: 1 min 30 sec
Dolly’s tip: Keep tossing hard. The movement is what turns oil and water into sauce instead of a greasy puddle.Taste, add of salt if it needs it, and serve right away with parmesan on top if you like.
Pinch. A pinch is what you can hold between your thumb and two fingers, less than an eighth of a teaspoon. It’s a small, forgiving amount, so there’s no need to measure.
How you’ll know: It’s a light sprinkle you can barely see on the food, not a little pile.
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
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