here’s my puttanesca sauce technique!
Many of the ingredients are very salty so I don’t add any salt to the sauce.
saute a lot of chopped garlic in olive oil, just until fragrant
add a generous squeeze of tomato paste and saute until it sticks to the pan and colors the oil.
then add a whole 2oz can of anchovies in oil. Add the oil too. Add some chili flakes too if you like.
Smash the anchovies with your spoon. They will eventually become totally indetectable in the finished sauce.
Add about 1/2 cup of chopped and pitted olives. I usually use all kalamata but I had green cerignolas to use up today too.
Then add a 28oz can of whole tomatoes. Smash them around with your spoon too. Clean out the can with about 1/2c water and add that too.
Now simmer the sauce and stir regularly to keep it from sticking. It may splutter a bit. Cook this down until it’s more orange than red, and the tomato sourness is gone. It should be much thicker and richer and it kind of sizzles when you stir it. The walls of the pan should have some nicely caramelized bits.
Add a handful of capers if you like. Then stir in your al dente cooked pasta and top it with Parmesan and maybe some sliced basil. Dilute with pasta water if it’s too thick.
