Pasta With Pancetta, Ricotta and Tomato

Good penne pasta with pancetta, ricotta cheese and a simple yet flavour packed tomato sauce. This pasta recipe is so easy, comforting and can be made in around 20 minutes.

We love ricotta pasta sauce it's so creamy and good.

This version is made with pancetta, red wine and tomato and although it's not as quick as our Ricotta Pasta Sauce: 2 Ways recipe (<< no-cook pasta sauce) it's still speedy and as good!

Tip: Reserve at least a cup (250ml) of pasta water for every pasta sauce you make. That way if you ever find yourself a little short on sauce, it's too thick or it needs an extra oomph of flavour, you can add a little pasta water and trust us you'll be amazed with the results.

What Can we Substitute Pancetta For?

A great substitute for pancetta would be sun-dried tomatoes or capers. In fact, they both would also be a great substitute for prosciutto in our butternut squash lasagna recipe. Sun-dried tomatoes are packed full of an good amount of flavour, they are sharp, salty and also sweet, making them a solid substitute in a lot of pasta sauce and especially cheesy dishes.

Visual walk-through of the recipe

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the penne pasta until al dente, according to packet instructions.
2. Add the pancetta in a large pan and fry for 1-2 minutes until it starts to brown.
3. There should be enough oil in the pan from the pancetta at this point, but if not, add 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil.
4. Add the garlic and oregano and fry for until fragrant, then add the red wine and reduce.

1. Add the passata and 1/2 cup (125ml) of reserved pasta water. Cook the sauce for a few minutes until it has reduced, then turn off the heat. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Add the ricotta and parmesan and stir until completely combined with the tomato sauce. Add the drained pasta and toss until completely coated in the sauce.

Recipe Tips

• If the sauce is too thick for your liking, then add around 3-4 tablespoons of reserved pasta water to emulsify. This will also add extra flavour.
• We love to add an extra dollop of ricotta on top with a drizzle of olive oil and some pepper, it makes it extra creamy and extra indulgent

More Easy Pasta Recipes To try:

• Sun dried tomato pasta with roasted red pepper
• Ricotta Pasta Sauce: 2 Ways
• Mafalde pasta with butter and parmesan
• Creamy butternut squash pasta
• Bucatini with roasted red pepper cream sauce
• Spaghetti alla puttanesca

Ingredients

Makes 4 people

• 1 clove garlic (finely chopped)
• 1 cup smoked pancetta (cubed (100g))
• 14.1 oz penne pasta ((400g))
• 1/4 cup ricotta (good quality (50g))
• 1 1/4 cups crushed strained tomatoes (passata (250g))
• 1/3 cup reserved pasta water (plus 3-4 tbsp if needed (125ml))
• 1 tbsp oregano dried
• 1/4 cup red wine ((60ml))
• 0.7 oz parmesan plus extra for seasoning ((20g))
• 1 pinch salt and pepper (, to season)

Method

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil and cook the penne pasta according to packet instructions.

2. Add the pancetta to a large pan and fry for 1-2 minutes until it starts to brown. There should be enough oil in the pan from the pancetta at this point but if not add 1/2 tbsp olive oil.

3. Add the garlic and oregano and fry for 30 seconds then add the red wine and reduce for 1 minute. Add the passata and 1/3 cup (125ml) of reserved pasta water. Cook the sauce for 3-4 minutes until it has reduced then turn off the heat. Season with salt and pepper.

4. Add the ricotta and parmesan and stir until completely combined with the tomato. Place back on the heat and add roughly 3-4 tbsp of the pasta water.

5. Add the drained pasta and toss until completely coated in the sauce. Top with an extra dollop of ricotta and sprinkling of pepper if desired.

Kitchen notes

• The ricotta will look grainy, do not worry.
• Reserve the starchy pasta water to add to the sauce, do not replace with normal water.
• You can ubstitute pancetta for sun-dried tomatoes or capers