Bucatini Puttanesca ~ a deliciously easy one-pot pasta dish with a simple, zesty sauce and loads of kalamata olives, capers and fresh cherry tomatoes.
Meatless Mondays don’t need to be boring! While I wholeheartedly enjoy any kind of pasta with tomato sauce, we don’t eat it on a regular basis … which is a shame because it’s just so darn good! If you’re like us, a simple 30-minute meal is a must sometimes, so why not incorporate that into a nice Meatless Monday one-pot pasta?
First of all, I don’t think this recipe could get any easier. Sauté garlic, anchovies, red pepper and oregano in a few tablespoons of olive oil, and then add vegetable or chicken broth and the pasta. The aroma of this mixture cooking in your kitchen will transport you to one of those tiny, real-deal Italian restaurants with the white tablecloths, bottles of red wine and cannoli for dessert. This cooks up in about 10 minutes and then add a tablespoon of tomato paste and fresh cherry tomatoes. Pull the pan off the heat and add olives, fresh basil and capers. Done, done and done!
Not sure anchovies are your thing? I would love to twist your arm and get to you try this dish because it will change the way you think about anchovies. You only use 2 anchovy fillets in this recipe, but they impart so much flavor, and I don’t mean the fishy kind. Be sure to buy the good quality (more expensive) anchovies packed in oil. I have another recipe to share with you next week that includes a few more anchovies so get ready 🙂
This recipe serves two very hungry folks, or two regular helpings with a little left over for the next day. Leftovers taste good enough to fight your husband for the last bite!
Bucatini pasta is a thick spaghetti noodle with a little hole through the center. If you can’t find it in your local store, regular spaghetti would work great here too.
Finally, I’m going to make one last pitch to try and convince you to make this recipe … this Bucatini Puttanesca has tons of flavor with just the right amount of heat. Or, as my husband said, it has more flavor than heat, and it wasn’t overpowered by the heat – it’s just perfect! He also said I should use a bigger pot next time (a/k/a make more please.) Maybe I will!
Don’t forget to PIN to your favorite pasta board!
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 anchovy fillets (oil packed)
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 1 (14.5 ounce) can vegetable or chicken broth, (low or no salt)
- 6 ounces bucatini or thick spaghetti
- 2 pints cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons fresh chopped basil leaves
- 2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley
- 12 pitted kalamata olives, sliced
- 1 1/2 tablespoons capers, drained
- dash salt
- fresh ground black pepper to serve
- shaved Parmesan cheese for garnish
Heat a large, high-sided skillet (wide enough for the pasta to lay flat) over medium heat. Add the olive oil and once shimmering, add the garlic, anchovies, oregano and red pepper. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly and breaking up the anchovies with the spatula.
Add the broth and the bucatini to the pan and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the tomatoes and tomato paste. Cook for another 3-5 minutes or until the pasta is done.
Remove the skillet from the heat and add the basil, parsley, olives and capers. Check the seasoning and add salt and pepper as needed. Serve immediately with shaved Parmesan if desired.
Recipe adapted from March, 2016 Cooking Light Magazine
TIP: Did you know you can freeze leftover tomato paste? Scoop 1 tablespoon of tomato paste and place it on a small parchment lined baking sheet. Continue until all the paste is mounded on the pan. Flash freeze the paste by putting the pan in the freezer for a few hours or until each mound is frozen solid. Remove to an airtight container or freezer bag. Each time you need 1 tablespoon, you have a pre-measured easy fix!
Looking for a few more good, easy pasta recipes? You might like these too:
- Sicilian Pasta with Almonds and Anchovies ~ from The View from Great Island
- Bow Tie Pasta with Oven Roasted Tomatoes, Asparagus and Boursin ~ from Saving Room for Dessert
- Penne Rosa ~ from The Stay at Home Chef
- 6 Perfect Pasta Recipes ~ from Seasons & Suppers
Here’s a link to the pasta I used in this dish:
The small print: If you decide to purchase something at Amazon after following my affiliate link, I receive a small commission, at no additional cost to you, which I use to pay for web hosting and services for this blog.
And finally, did you watch the game last night? We rooted for the Falcon’s. Poor Atlanta, I wish they would have won! Do you have a favorite commercial? A few of them were pretty good. Anyway – hope you have a fantastic week and thanks so much for stopping by!
Tricia
The sauce is spectacular. I made this 3 times, 1x without anchovies, and 2x with. Don’t leave them out; you’ll definitely notice the difference. And I don’t like anchovies whole, but when disintegrated in the sauce they add something that otherwise can’t be had.
I did have trouble with the bucatini – I bought homemade bucatini and they needed only about 5 minutes to cook. And one time for fun I added a half bag arugula at then end with the capers and olives.
Otherwise, this is something else. This made enough as a side dish with some grilled swordfish and broccoli.
What a fabulous pasta recipe! I love every single ingredient. I remember when I couldn’t find bucatini around here—so glad it’s more accessible now!
Thank you Liz! I know you’re going to love it. Have a great weekend!
LOVE Puttanesca sauce! Such vibrant, deep flavor. And easy! Not to mention fast. Yours looks terrific — and thanks for reminding me it’s time to make this again. 🙂
Thank you John 🙂
I love, love puttanesca. Yours looks delicious. I love dishes with anchovies and olives.
Thanks Gerlinde – me too!
Woo hoo! I bet I could eat all this myself, no sharing here! ???? It looks delicious, Tricia; thank you for the recipe!
I’m with you Pam – I need a lot of self control over this delicious dinner!
You won’t have to twist my arm as I like everything in it and have been wanting to try a one pot pasta meal. Your shots of it are making my mouth water.
Thanks Larry! You’re going to love this one 🙂
This is a beautiful pasta dish Tricia, and bucattini is ideal for it. My Sicilian husband is a huge fan of anchovies and olives, so this sauce happens to be his favorite! Love your photos!
Thanks Anna – I love a good food story and I bet your husband has a few!
No need to convince me – I love puttanesca sauce! This is the kind of dish that would taste just a delicious in mid winter as mid summer. Beautiful too!
You are so right Susan – this is a year round go to easy peasy delicious 30-minute treat!
Yes please! How colourful is this! It looks so good, I could just dive right in.
I agree – I could eat this for breakfast!
LOVE the one pot ease AND the delicious factor!! xoxo ~ t.
I’m with you Tanna – one pot and loads of flavor – yum!
Thanks for reminding me of this lovely dish. Rachel Ray’s was my go to receipe for years, but I had put it aside and forgot about it. I’ll give your receipe a try this week, sounds yummy.
Hi Angela! So glad you’re going to try it. This is a keeper and I’ll have to check Rachel’s too 🙂 Thanks for stopping by!
Looks delicious, Tricia. Puttanesca is one of my favorites. Your photos are gorgeous!
Thanks Robyn – anything that cooks in one-pot and tastes like this is worth a try!
We love puttanesca’
Have a great week!
Thanks Monique!
Whenever I don’t know what to make, I always think pasta because it’s just so good! This looks amazing, Tricia. We love bucatini pasta (need to buy some…just saw it this weekend) and we’re fans of anchovies, spice, olives, etc. All delicious things in this bowl! My husband and I would gobble this right up!
Thanks Monica – we did some serious gobbling ourselves. My husband has already been asking for this again. A real keeper! Hope you had a lovely weekend.
Hi Tricia, what a delicious looking pasta dish, bucatini is perfect for this. Love your meatless Monday posts.
Thank you Cheri!
I could polish off that whole bowl in one big slurp! I love the strong flavors of puttanesca, and buccatini is such a good choice, it really stands up to it. I’m a relatively recent convert to anchovies, and I like to keep a tube of the paste in the fridge, it lasts forever and it’s always there when I need it. Love your photos, sharing and pinning!
I thought of you with this recipe Sue – and will have to try the anchovy paste next time 🙂 Thank you!
The colour simply brightens my mood and not to mention it’s easy to prepare and so tasty too.
Sometimes we just need easy, delicious and inexpensive – love it! Thanks Angie
Definitely my kind of dinner. I love that it’s easy but also very company worthy!
I like the way you think Chris – it would be great for company so thanks!
That’ s a great bowl of pasta! Love the flavours and one pot is always good 🙂
Thanks Jennifer – I’m into this one-pot, one-pan thing. Brilliant!