Spaghetti with Garlic, Oil and Chilli

Andy | Dinner | Italian

Prep time: 5 min Cook time: 15 min Servings: 1

This is the easiest pasta recipe I know, and one I think everyone should learn how to make properly. Big day at work and need dinner in 15 minutes? This Italian classic Aglio, Olio e Peperoncino is exactly that, they even call it the midnight spaghetti. The recipe is adapted from the original Aglio e Olio which is just pasta, garlic and olive oil - and it's delicious with just those three ingredients. However, I prefer the version with chilli for that extra flavour.

In my variation, I like to add parmesan to the sauce right at the very end for extra flavour and creaminess and then grated some extra over the top to serve. This is optional, the original aglio e olio doesn't use parmesan at all.

Just seven ingredients (one of them is water), and the whole technique is about getting garlic-infused olive oil to emulsify with starchy pasta water and cling to the spaghetti. Get the emulsification right and you’ve got the foundation for every pasta sauce that comes after it.

Garlic, Olive Oil and Chilli Spaghetti Explained

Cooking the pasta

Use a generous amount of water, well salted. Drop the spaghetti in by holding it in two hands above the pot and twisting your hands in opposite directions as you let go. The pasta fans out and slides in evenly without breaking. Don’t snap the spaghetti to fit it in the pot, the bottom softens within seconds and the rest follows it down. Stir every minute or so to keep the strands from sticking. Cook to al dente, which means there’s still a little bite when you taste it. Pull it out 30 seconds before you think it’s done, it’ll keep cooking in the sauce. However, if you prefer your pasta well done, cook it to your liking!

Infusing the oil

Smash the garlic cloves with the flat of your knife and cut them in half. We’re not chopping them, we want them in big enough pieces to infuse the oil without burning. Drop them into the cold olive oil over a low heat. This isn’t frying, it’s infusing. Low and slow until the cloves go pale gold. Once they’re there, the chilli flakes go in for 30 seconds to bloom in the warm oil. Garlic that goes brown will turn the whole sauce bitter.

The emulsification

This is the bit that separates a good aglio e olio from a great one. Add the cooked spaghetti to the pan with a splash of pasta water and start tossing constantly. The starch in the pasta water bonds with the olive oil to create a glossy, silky sauce that coats every strand. If it’s looking oily and separate, add another splash of pasta water and keep tossing. The parmesan goes in last, then a final handful of parsley. A saucier (a pan with curved sides) makes this much easier than a flat-bottomed pan because the pasta can roll over itself as you toss.

Ingredient Notes

Extra virgin olive oil: This is essentially the entire flavour of the sauce, so use a good extra virgin. You don’t need to break the bank but the supermarket house brand won’t cut it. Look for a fresh, peppery oil from a producer you trust.

Spaghetti: You want a good quality dried spaghetti for this one. You can use other pasta shapes, but the sauce won't emulsify and stick the pasta as well as spaghetti. Fresh pasta works too but the technique is built around the starch in dried pasta water.

Pasta water: Yes, this is an ingredient. The starchy, well-salted water from the pasta pot is what turns olive oil into a creamy emulsion. Always scoop out a mugful before you drain.

Equipment

Chopping board
Chef’s knife
Large saucepan
Saucier or deep frying pan
Tongs
Microplane or fine grater

Ingredients

200g spaghetti
3 cloves garlic
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
½ tsp dried chilli flakes
sea salt, to season
small handful flat leaf parsley
40g Parmesan cheese, plus extra to serve

Directions

Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil. Add the spaghetti and cook for 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally to avoid it sticking together, until al dente.
While the pasta is cooking, finely grate the parmesan and finely chop the parsley.
Smash the garlic cloves, then cut in half. Pour the oil into a deep frying pan or saucier, add the garlic cloves and place over a low heat. Stir occasionally and allow the garlic to infuse the oil.
Once the garlic starts to turn golden, add the chilli flakes and cook for 30 seconds.
Using tongs or a slotted spoon, add the cooked pasta to the pan and toss to combine. Add a little extra pasta water if needed. Toss the pasta continuously to emulsify the sauce.
Add the parmesan and continue tossing, then add most of the parsley and toss again. Season with some salt to taste.
Transfer to a serving plate and garnish with the remaining parsley and some extra parmesan cheese. Serve immediately and enjoy!

Recipe notes

Chef Tips

Don’t let the garlic brown

Garlic that goes past golden and into brown will turn the sauce bitter and harsh. Keep the heat low, watch it constantly, and pull the pan off the heat the second the cloves are pale gold. If the oil is smoking, you’ve gone too hot.

Save pasta water before draining

Scoop out a mug of pasta water before you tip the pot into the colander. You’ll need it to emulsify the sauce, and you’ll always need more than you think. It’s free, it’s there, and forgetting to save it means restarting the whole sauce.

Toss

Tossing the pasta in the pan with the oil and pasta water is what creates the emulsion. Lift and shake the pan rather than stirring with a spoon. A saucier makes this much easier because the curved sides let the pasta and sauce roll over itself. If you’re using a flat-bottomed pan, do your best to lift and toss rather than stir.

Use tongs to move the pasta

Skip the colander. Lift the spaghetti straight from the boiling water into the pan with the infused oil using tongs, dripping a bit of pasta water in as you go. You get the right amount of starchy water transferred without measuring, and the pasta doesn’t sit around in a colander cooling down.

Storage

Aglio e olio is a now dish. It doesn’t store well, the sauce splits and the pasta turns gummy in the fridge. If you do end up with leftovers, reheat in a pan with a splash of water over low heat, tossing to bring the sauce back together. But really, just cook it fresh each time. It’s 15 minutes start to finish.

FAQs

Can I scale this up for more people? Yes, the recipe scales linearly. For each extra person, add 100 to 200g of pasta, 1 to 2 more cloves of garlic and a bit more oil. The technique is the same. If you’re cooking for 4 or more, use a wider pan so all the pasta gets tossed with the sauce properly.

Can I add anything else to it? Once you’ve nailed the original, sure. Lemon zest is great, capers are great, a few cherry tomatoes burst in the oil before the chilli flakes work beautifully. Some grilled prawns or anchovies tossed through at the end take it from solo dinner to dinner-party territory. Just don’t overload it. The dish is meant to be simple.

Why is my sauce oily and separated? The emulsion hasn’t formed properly. Two fixes: add more pasta water (it needs to be starchy water from cooking the pasta, not fresh tap water), and toss harder. The starch needs friction with the oil to combine. Keep the pan moving and don’t stop until the sauce looks creamy and clings to the pasta.