Pasta con le zucchine

Name: Pasta con le zucchine
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Lombardy & Campania
Ingredients: 400 g spaghetti or mezze maniche; 600 g zucchini (about 4 medium), sliced into thin 3mm rounds; 4 tbsp good olive oil; 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced; 1 large handful fresh basil leaves, torn; 80 g Pecorino Romano, finely grated; 40 g Parmesan, finely grated; 1 tsp fine salt, plus more for pasta water; black pepper, to taste; 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, to finish

Pasta with slow-cooked zucchini, basil and pecorino

Origin: Kingdom of Italy, Lombardy & Campania

From the journey of Zucchini.

Among the many pasta preparations of the Italian summer, pasta con le zucchine has a particular place: it demonstrates the Italian genius for extracting deep flavour from the most modest ingredients through technique alone. Where the more famous pasta alla Nerano (from the Amalfi Coast village of the same name) uses abundant olive oil and specific local cheeses, this simpler Lombard and Campanian preparation centres on the slow cooking of zucchini until it melts into an almost creamy sauce (no cream added, no meat, no complexity beyond the sweetness of zucchini coaxed by heat and olive oil into something silky and rich. The technique is everything: zucchini cooked quickly at high heat turns grey and bland; zucchini cooked slowly at medium-low heat, undisturbed, in a generous pool of olive oil, caramelises at the edges, softens through to the centre, and eventually disintegrates into a texture that emulsifies with pasta water and aged cheese into a smooth, glossy sauce that clings to every strand. This transformation) from watery raw vegetable to concentrated, sweet, unctuous sauce: is one of the most satisfying processes in Italian cooking. In Lombardy, where zucchini is the emblematic summer garden vegetable, this dish is made throughout July and August with the smallest, tenderest specimens that accumulate faster than any household can consume them raw.

Ingredients

Pasta

400 g spaghetti or mezze maniche

Main

600 g zucchini (about 4 medium), sliced into thin 3mm rounds

Cooking

4 tbsp good olive oil

Aromatics

2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 large handful fresh basil leaves, torn

Cheese

80 g Pecorino Romano, finely grated
40 g Parmesan, finely grated

Seasoning

1 tsp fine salt, plus more for pasta water
black pepper, to taste

To Finish

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, to finish

Method

Heat the olive oil in a wide, heavy frying pan over medium-low heat. Add the garlic and cook gently for 1 minute without colouring. Add the sliced zucchini, spread in a single layer (you may need to work in batches initially), and season with salt. Cook over medium-low heat, turning the rounds occasionally, for 18–22 minutes until the zucchini is very soft, golden at the edges, and beginning to break down.
When the zucchini is very soft, use the back of a spoon or a fork to roughly crush about half of the rounds into the oil: not a smooth purée, just a rough breakdown that will thicken the sauce. Stir in the torn basil and remove from heat.
Cook the pasta in generously salted boiling water until 2 minutes before al dente. Reserve at least 300ml pasta water before draining.
Return the zucchini pan to medium heat. Add the drained pasta and a generous splash of pasta water. Toss vigorously for 1–2 minutes, adding more pasta water as needed to create a loose, silky sauce that coats every strand. Remove from heat.
Add both grated cheeses in stages off the heat, tossing continuously and adding pasta water as needed to keep the sauce flowing and creamy rather than clumping. Add a generous grinding of black pepper and a final drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Serve at once in warm bowls.

Notes

The smallest, youngest zucchini give the most flavour (the skin-to-flesh ratio is higher and the seeds are undeveloped. Large, seedy zucchini produce a watery sauce. In summer, seek out the smallest specimens at the farmers' market or harvest your own when they are no longer than 15cm. The zucchini flowers, if available, can be torn and added at the same time as the basil) they add a fragile sweetness that is quintessentially Italian.

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Journey Point Map Key

Ingredient originTrade or transit route

Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control