pickled pepper pantry pasta
bright, punchy, five ingredients
there’s no dish i make more often than pantry pasta. it’s one of my favorite go-tos, and has been for a long time. i typically use tomato paste as the base of the sauce with sautéed onions, garlic, chili flakes and pasta water, but it really depends on what i have around the kitchen that i want to use up. i find just about anything can find its way in from a random loose potato to the butt end of a piece of chorizo to the last teaspoon of capers, a handful of olives, a sprinkle of frozen peas, a splash of heavy cream—you get the idea.
it was along this line of thinking (aka digging through my fridge and pantry for odds and ends) that, on a night not too long ago, i pulled together a sort of spaghetti aglio e olio. i was planning to add some salty, pickle-y thing i thought i had on hand (capers) but had to swap it last minute with what i actually had (homemade pickled peppers) and this pickled pepper pantry pasta was born. after you make this recipe once (or even just read through it honestly), you’ll know it by heart and can keep it in your back pocket for any weeknight where a pantry pasta is on the menu.
the only tips i have for this really easy, straightforward recipe: avoid using pickled peppers with too many additional spices and seasonings, leave out the chili flakes if your peppers are already packing heat,
this time two years ago (a love for pickles never dies!):
triple pickle chopped salad
i recently had greek maroulosalata for the first time, and i loved it. it’s a simple 5-minute salad made from a straightforward handful of ingredients with lots of crunch, tang and salt. while that recipe is not leaving my chopped salad repertoire anytime soon, it did serve as the launch pad for this new salad recipe that, in
pickled pepper pantry pasta
serves 2
4 tablespoons drained mild or hot pickled peppers (pickled banana, cherry, serrano, jimmy nardello or sweet frying peppers would be great; i generally make my own, the recipe for which you can find at the end of this newsletter)
3 cloves garlic
small handful fresh parsley (optional, substitute: fresh basil, mint)
salt for pasta water
250 grams spaghetti (substitute: i like long pastas like bucatini, linguine, tagliatelle but really any pasta shape would work here)
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon chili flakes (optional; definitely skip if you’re using hot pickled peppers)
3 tablespoons pickled pepper brine
freshly ground black pepper
set a large pot of water to boil over high heat. while the water is coming up to a boil, roughly chop 4 tablespoons drained pickled peppers. peel and thinly slice 3 cloves garlic. finely chop a small handful of parsley; use just the leaves here if desired, but i like both leaves and thin stems.
once the water is boiling, season well with salt and add 250 grams pasta. set a timer for about 2-3 minutes shy of the suggested cook time on the package and remember to stir occasionally.
while the pasta is cooking, heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in a large frying pan over low heat. add garlic, 1 teaspoon chili flakes, and half the pickled peppers, frying gently until very fragrant; garlic should only be slightly golden brown and the oil may start to turn a bit orange from the chili flakes. turn off the heat.
once the timer goes off for the pasta, check that it’s a bit more than al dente. let it go a bit longer if the center is much too firm, otherwise use tongs to transfer the pasta to the frying pan, turning the heat back on to low; if you don’t have tongs, drain the pasta in a colander, reserving plenty of pasta water.
toss the pasta to coat in the fragrant oil, then add a generous splash of pasta water and 2 tablespoons pickled pepper brine. keep tossing really well to coat the pasta and create a glossy sauce; you may want to add a bit more pasta water if needed to finish cooking the pasta to al dente and keep things nice and saucy.
once the pasta is cooked to your liking and the sauce is coating all the pasta, remove the pan from the heat. add the chopped parsley and toss to combine, then plate up. top each serving with half of the remaining chopped peppers and serve immediately. i pretty much always finish my pasta plates with a little flaky salt, more freshly cracked black pepper, and a drizzle of olive oil, but that’s up to you. a little parmesan cheese wouldn’t be a bad idea here either.
🌶 easy pickled peppers: thoroughly wash your peppers of choice, thinly slice and add to a glass jar; it’s best if you can pretty much fill the jar or container to the top with the peppers and pack them in relatively tightly. in a bowl, add 300 ml vinegar (i like white distilled for a very sour, neutral flavor but rice, apple cider or white wine vinegars also work well here), 200 ml cold water, and 100 grams granulated sugar; if you need to make a bigger or smaller batch of brine, keep the ratio 3 parts vinegar, 2 parts water, 1 part sugar. stir this mixture until the sugar is completely dissolved, then pour it over the peppers to completely cover; if you have leftover brine you can pickle other vegetables (think cucumbers, radishes, carrots, celery) or you can keep it in a jar in the fridge until you’re ready to pickle more peppers. store in the fridge for at least 24 hours before using, they will keep for up to 2 weeks or more.
if i’m just about to use up the last of the peppers from a previous batch and there’s still plenty of brine, i’ll often add more fresh vegetables that i want to pickle to the jar with the brine and let them pickle for 2 days before using.
I’m making this! Looks so delish.