Spicy Salami Rigatoni with Olives and Capers
For all its simplicity, this is an intensely flavored pasta dish that packs a real punch. Serve with a very simple salad; you don't want a lot of complicated flavors to compete with the sauce.
Ingredients
20 cherry tomatoes on the vine
2 teaspoons plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
8 ounces rigatoni pasta
8 ounces spicy salami (preferably Sopressa Vicentina or soppressata), casing removed, salami thinly sliced into half-moon pieces
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup extra-fine capers
1/4 cup kalamata olives
1/3 cup dry white wine
1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
Directions
PREP TIME
MINS
COOKING TIME
MINS
Serves
Make-Ahead:
The tomatoes can be roasted up to 4 hours ahead, covered and kept at room temperature.
Preheat the oven to 400°F.
Place the tomatoes on a small non-reactive baking sheet and drizzle with 2 teaspoons of oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast the tomatoes in the oven for about 10 minutes, or until they begin to split. Remove from oven and set aside.
Add the rigatoni to a large pot of boiling salted water over high heat, and cook, stirring often to ensure the rigatoni doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pot or to each other, until al dente, about 8 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat a large heavy sauté pan over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon of oil, and then add the salami and cook until light golden in color, about 30 seconds on each side. Transfer the salami to a plate and reserve.
Return the pan to the heat. Add the garlic and sauté in the drippings remaining from the salami until tender, about 1 minute. If the salami does not render enough oil, add just enough olive oil to sauté the garlic. Add the capers and olives to the hot pan and toss. Add the wine and simmer until reduced by about half, about 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes and parsley and toss gently. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil. Remove the pan from the heat.
Strain the rigatoni, and then toss the rigatoni and salami in the pan with the sauce. Season to taste with pepper.
Transfer the pasta to plates, spooning any salami and tomato mixture from the pan over the pasta, and serve.
