Penne alla vodka is an interesting recipe that comes with a variety of flavors and is a unique pasta dish that you can try serving for dinner the next time you’ve got a pasta craving.
INGREDIENTS
1 lb. tubed pasta, such as penne or rigatoni
3 tbsp. butter
1/2 c. heavy cream
Kosher salt
1/2 c. tomato paste
2 tbsp. vodka
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1 shallot, minced
1/2 c. freshly grated Parmesan, plus more for serving
Basil, for serving
Steps
Get a skillet and melt the budder over medium levels of heat, adding in the garlic and shallot, cooking this for about 405 minutes until it softens up.
Put the red pepper flakes and the tomato paste in there, stirring this often until the paste and the shallots are coated, and the garlic is flavorful and darkening, usually about five minutes or so.
Put the vodka in there and stir it all together so that it’s incorporated, and then scrape up the browned parts from the bottom of this, then turn the heat off.
Get a pot of water that’s slated to a boiling level, cooking your pasta al dente, and then hold two cups of the pasta water before you drain it to reserve
Get the sauce heated up again, and then add a quarter of the pasta water to this, along with the heavy cream, making sure it’s combined and stirred well. Put half of the parmesan in there, letting it melt and stirring it until then. Turn the heat off, stirring in the pasta that’s cooked, and then fold the rest of the parmesan in, and then add more pasta water if the sauce is a bit dry. Season it with some salt as needed, and then serve the pasta topped with the basil leaves that are torn and the parmesan for an amazing pasta dish!
Tips
Can I use specific pasta that I enjoy?
While it may seem like you need to use penne for this, you don’t have to.
Fat rigatoni works with this, and it is something that’s great for catching more sauce, but it’s called this because it just sounds better like this. The add-ins and pasta are de3finitely a good addition to this.
Can I use bacon, pancetta, or prosciutto?
You can! If you do this, you should cook the meat over a medium level of heat until the pork becomes crisp and the fat ends up being rendered. Remove this with a spoon that’s slotted, letting it sit to drain on a plate that’s lined with paper towels. You can then continue the recipe as needed. To add this in, toss this into the pasta as it’s finished before you add the basil and the rest of the parmesan. With this, you’ll also want to adjust the salt too, since the pork will be quite salty, and you should make sure to wait till that’s added before you adjust the salty levels of this pasta.
What other meats can I add?
Some people love to add Italian sausage to this to give it a nice flavor to this. Some people may use rotisserie chicken as well, and it can be quite easy to add if you’re looking for an easy meat to incorporate.