“The Bear” Inspired Spaghetti
I started watching The Bear last year when it came out, then promptly forgot all about it for a while. The second season has premiered in June this year aaand I have yet to start watching it.
However, the food on the show has stayed on my mind for way longer than that and, last year, I had a half hearted attempt to make the (in)famous tomato sauce for spaghetti that Chef Carmy whips up for the family dinner - the meal the restaurant staff share before service. It was very nice, mind you, but working with only the recipe card and the few scenes in the series proved to be a little more challenging than expected.
I wanted to give it another chance a few weeks ago and decided to pay more attention to every step, as well as make a few tweaks of my own.
The resulting tomato sauce ended up being so delicious. To me, it’s an upgrade from the Marcella Hazan classic tomato sauce; I also decided to not strain the garlic-basil infused oil so as to keep every last ounce of flavour (as well as to avoid food waste, if possible).
The show strongly suggests the use of canned San Marzano tomatoes which are, indeed, extremely flavourful (and also an important plot point). Having ripened in the Amalfi sun, they are considered some of the best tomatoes in the world. If, however, they are not easily available to you, make sure you use the best quality you can find/your favourite tinned tomatoes.
In the end, a little garnish of parmigiano reggiano, as well as a spoonful of stracciatella (the soft cream/cheese mixture found inside burrata) were the things it needed to truly make this an amazing dish. Not only does it have few ingredients and steps, it also is exquisite in its simplicity.
If you’re looking for the ultimate tomato pasta sauce, this is it, and, if you make it, make sure to comment and subscribe to my newsletter for more weekly recipes straight to your inbox!
Image credit: Hulu
Ingredients (serves 4 hungry people, makes enough sauce for 500g/1lb of dried pasta)
5 garlic cloves
large handful of basil
pinch red pepper flakes
2 x400g (14 oz) cans peeled San Marzano tomatoes
salt and pepper to taste
60 g (1/2 stick) butter
1 large onion, peeled and halved
1/2 cup olive oil
500g spaghetti
To serve
grated parmigiano reggiano
stracciatella (1 ball burrata or mozzarella would also work very well here)
Start by making your infused oil. Heat the olive oil in a pan, add the peeled and smashed garlic cloves, red pepper flakes and basil (stems and all). Once the oil starts to sizzle and the basil is wilted, remove from the heat and let steep while you make the sauce.
For the sauce, heat the butter and a tablespoon of olive oil in a large pan (this will prevent the butter from burning). Add the halved onion, cut side down, and let it brown nicely. Add the canned tomatoes to the pan (I like to squeeze them with my hands or you can use a potato masher in the pan to crush them).
When the sauce comes to a boil, turn the heat down to medium-low and season with salt and pepper. Cover with a lid and let simmer for 30 minutes or so.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta according to package instructions.
Reserve 2 tbsp of the infused olive oil. In a small food processor, blend the basil and garlic oil to a fine paste. Add the purée to the tomato sauce and let simmer another 15 minutes. Remove the halved onion from the sauce.
When the pasta is cooked very al dente strain it, reserving about one cup of pasta water. Add the pasta to the sauce and mix well until it is evenly coated.
Add a bit of pasta water if needed, to loosen the sauce. Cook the pasta in the sauce for about 2-3 minutes - it will infuse it with even more flavour.
Serve immediately - top with grated parmigiano reggiano, spoonfuls of straciatella and the reserved infused garlic/basil oil.
Dig in and enjoy!