Penne Puttanesca (Easy Pantry Recipe!)

A simple pantry pasta dinner doesn't get any tastier than this! Penne puttanesca is packed with bold and refined flavors. Use the best ingredients and you'll have the most delicious bowl of al dente penne pasta drenched in a tomato anchovy caper olive sauce. It's so tasty it doesn't even need parmesan on top. Once you've made this once, I bet you'll want to make it every single week!

📝 Ingredients

• 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil ((good quality if possible))
• 7 cloves garlic (sliced thinly)
• 28 ounces chopped tomatoes ((28 ounces = 800 grams = 2 regular sized cans or 1 large can))
• 6 anchovies (chopped into small pieces)
• 2 tablespoons capers
• 2/3 cup black olives (roughly chopped (pitted olives make it easier))
• 1/4 teaspoon chili flakes (or red pepper flakes (increase amount up to 1/2 teaspoon if you would like more heat))
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano ((or substitute with mixed Italian herbs))
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil ((or substitute with mixed Italian herbs))
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1 cup fresh parsley (washed and chopped, plus a little extra for sprinkling over to serve)
• 14 ounces penne pasta

👨‍🍳 Instructions

1. 1Cook garlic and anchovies in olive oil for 2 minutes without browning the garlic.: Heat the olive oil on a medium heat in a pan with a large surface area (such as a large frying pan or cast iron pan), then add the sliced garlic and chopped anchovies. Cook for a couple of minutes without browning the garlic.
2. 2Add all other sauce ingredients (apart from the parsley) and half a can of water.: Add the chopped tomatoes, capers, black olives, chili flakes, dried herbs, and pepper to the pan. Half fill one of the empty tomato cans with water and add that to the pan, too.
3. 3Let simmer for 20 minutes or until thickened.: Let the sauce simmer for around 20 minutes, or until the sauce has thickened and reduced to your liking (it should be rich and silky, but not too watery, or too thick).
4. 4Cook pasta until al dente and drain.: Meanwhile, cook the pasta in salted boiling water until al dente (around 11 minutes, or according to the pasta package instructions) and drain.
5. 5Stir in parsley and adjust seasoning.: Stir the fresh chopped parsley into the sauce. Adjust the seasoning if necessary.
6. 6Stir the sauce into the pasta.: Stir a generous amount of the puttanesca sauce into the pasta (only the amount of pasta you are going to eat immediately). There should be enough sauce for about 4 portions altogether.
7. 7Serve immediately, sprinkling more parsley over the top.: Serve immediately in bowls, sprinkling more fresh parsley over the top if you like.