Another Food Post

Is this turning into a food blog?  Who cares?  It's my blog and I'll post about whatever I want!

Did I ever tell you how much I love Italy?  Tonight, I love her a little bit more.  Whether any Italians would actually make/eat what I had for dinner tonight, I've no idea, but it was certainly inspired by the colours & flavours I've come to associate with Il Maggior Bellissimo Paese.

Tagliatelle Tricolore

This is Tagliatelle with Chicken, Anchovies, Tomatoes & Basil.  But I call it Tagliatelle Tricolore because it's the colours of the Italian flag.

The recipe is dead simple:

Chuck a small tin of anchovies, including the oil, into a frying pan with some medium-hot oil.  Don't worry, the anchovy flavour isn't strong; this just gives the dish a background element which highlights the other flavours.  Allow the anchovies to dissolve into the oil.

Roughly chop a decent handful of vine-ripe tomatoes - into halves or thirds will do.  Add to the frying pan and adjust the heat so the juices are just about sizzling.  You want to soften and reduce the tomatoes, not brown them.  Add a pinch of salt and a few turns of the black pepper grinder at this point.  The salt will help to soften the tomatoes.  Use white pepper for better aesthetics; I just prefer the flavour of black.

Chop 3-4 large cloves of garlic and add to the frying pan.  Waiting until some of the tomato juice has escaped will help prevent the garlic from browning, preserving the flavour.  Add a generous four-finger pinch of unrefined soft brown sugar.  It seems like a lot for a savoury dish, but it really helps soften the tartness of the tomatoes, balancing the dish.

Bring a saucepan of water to the boil and add a pinch of salt.

Thinly slice 1 large or 2 small chicken breasts and add to the frying pan.  Adding it raw at this stage allows it to absorb all the flavours from the sauce, prevents it from browning and results in tender & juicy meat.  Slicing it very thinly ensures it will cook through and big cubes wouldn't work so well with this dish.

Dunk 4 nests of dried tagliatelle into the boiling water.  Keep the sauce moving whilst the pasta softens for 5 minutes or so.  Once the pasta is a few minutes short of al dente, transfer it to the frying pan.  Add maybe a ladleful of the water from the pasta and stir everything together.  Finishing off the pasta in the sauce helps it to really absorb all those wonderful flavours.

Once most of the liquid has been absorbed by the pasta (3-5 mins) grab a good handful of fresh basil leaves and toss through.  Like spinach, they'll wilt almost immediately, so you really do want to add them just before serving.

Slap the whole lot unceremoniously onto a plate, shave some parmesan over the top and garnish with some fresh basil leaves.

Serve with an ice cold Chenin Blanc.  I know it's not Italian, but it bloody works with this dish!

Simple, quick and delicious.  Bellissima!