Penne alla Vodka

• servings: 4 servings
• total time: 1 hour

Ingredients

4 Tablespoons butter

1 medium yellow onion, diced

5 medium cloves garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1 teaspoon sugar

Kosher salt

2 6-ounce cans tomato paste

One 28-oz. can whole peeled tomatoes

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

1 pound short tubular pasta, such as rigatoni or penne

1/3 cup vodka, plus more if desired

3 ounces grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, plus more for serving

Directions

In a large (3- or 4-quart) saucepan or small Dutch oven, melt butter over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring frequently, until onions are very soft but not browned, about 10 minutes; add garlic, and red pepper flakes, season lightly with salt, lower heat and cook untill garlic is fragrant.

Add tomato paste, sugar, and canned tomatoes with their liquid.

Add Vodka.

Bring to a simmer, stirring often and crushing the whole tomatoes roughly with a spoon, until sauce has thickened slightly, about 10 minutes.

Transfer sauce to a blender, and blend until very smooth

Wipe out pot, then return blended sauce to it.

Add cream, and stir to incorporate. Do not boil after adding cream.

Add parmagian cheese and stir in.

Taste and add additional sugar or salt if needed.

Meanwhile, in a medium pot of salted boiling water, cook pasta until just shy of al dente, about 3 minutes less than the package directs.

Using a spider skimmer or slotted spoon, transfer pasta directly to sauce pot along with 1/2 cup (120ml) pasta water (alternatively, reserve 2 cups pasta water, then drain pasta in a colander, then add to sauce with 1/2 cup of the reserved water).

Increase heat to high, and cook, stirring constantly, until pasta is well coated in sauce and reaches the al dente stage, about 3 minutes.

If sauce thickens too much before pasta is ready, add more pasta water in 1/4 cup (60ml) increments as needed.

Taste for salt, and season with more if needed. If you can't detect the vodka at all, you can add a few drops more and stir it in before serving; exactly how boozy you want the sauce is a question of taste, but be careful because a heavy hand will ruin the dish.

Spoon pasta and sauce onto warmed serving plates and top with additional grated cheese.

Serve immediately.

Notes

WHY IT WORKS

Using both tomato paste and canned tomatoes yields a sauce with layers of flavor, combining depth and brightness without overpowering the palate.

Adding vodka at just the right time enhances the fruity aroma and imparts a subtle heat, providing a balanced counterpoint to the richness of the sauce.

Cooking pasta just shy of al dente and finishing it in the sauce ensures optimal absorption of flavor and a perfect texture

Nutrition

• Serving Size: Serves 4
• Calories: 837 kcal
• Total Fat: 37 g
• Saturated Fat: 22 g
• Unsaturated Fat: 0 g
• Cholesterol: 103 mg
• Sodium: 569 mg
• Total Carbohydrate: 104 g
• Dietary Fiber: 8 g
• Total Sugars: 14 g
• Protein: 23 g