Our spaghetti pangrattato recipe makes pasta with crunchy breadcrumbs, lemon zest, flat leaf parsley, and grated Parmesan. This deliciously simple pasta is quick and easy to make and has loads of texture and flavour courtesy of the Italian condiment pangrattato, which is crispy, fresh, zesty, and packed with umami. Serve with lemon slices or wedges to squeeze over the pasta.
If you made our pangrattato recipe for the Southern Italian garnish made from stale bread and breadcrumbs, then this is what you need to do with it: make this super simple spaghetti pangrattato recipe with the Italian crunchy breadcrumbs, lemon zest, flat leaf parsley, and grated Parmesan condiment.
Our spaghetti pangrattato recipe makes a super simple yet incredibly delicious pasta – in this case we’ve used spaghetti, but linguini, bucatini and fettucini will work – that’s both stirred through and topped with pangrattato, as well as a generous drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. It’s nothing if not versatile so you could sprinkle on chilli flakes, crispy bacon, crunchy shallots or whatever you like.
If you’ve cooked and enjoyed our recent quick and easy pasta recipes such as my canned tuna pasta with scallions, capers and fresh herbs, this asparagus, mushrooms and bacon gnocchi recipe, creamy tomato pasta sauce with gnocchi recipe, my penne Bolognese recipe for a ‘cheat’s Bol’, and this cherry tomato feta pasta recipe, then you’re going to enjoy this spaghetti with pangrattato recipe.
Spaghetti Pangrattato Recipe for Pasta with Crunchy Breadcrumbs
Our spaghetti pangrattato recipe will make you a deliciously simple pasta that’s a cinch to make and comes together no time. Spaghetti is stirred through and topped with pangrattato – or pangrattita or mollica di pane, considered to be a ‘poor man’s parmesan’ in Southern Italy, where it originated.
And that’s it! It’s too easy. But this spaghetti pangrattato recipe is nothing if not versatile. You can easily bump up the texture or spice, make it cheesier or fresher. Add more pangrattato, more zest, more grated cheese, or more fresh herbs.
For a more substantial dish, you could also add anchovies or canned seafood, such as tinned tuna, canned sardines or smoked oysters, stir-fried fresh seafood such as prawns, clams, cockles, or mussels, or fried bacon or ham.
I only have a few tips to making this spaghetti pangrattato recipe as it’s so easy.
Tips to Making this Spaghetti Pangrattato Recipe for Pasta with Crunchy Breadcrumbs
Just a few tips to making this spaghetti pangrattato recipe as it’s a cinch to make and comes together quickly. First, put a large pot of salted water on the stove to boil as there’s no sauce to make.
When the water is on a rolling boil, add the spaghetti (or bucatini, linguini or fettuccini) and cook until al dente according to the packet instructions, around 8-9 minutes.
A couple of minutes before the pasta is ready: in a deep frying pan, skillet or wok over medium-high, heat 2 tablespoons of the extra virgin olive oil until shimmering, add the minced garlic cloves, and fry until fragrant and beginning to colour, then reduce the heat to low.
Use tongs or a pasta fork to transfer the spaghetti to the frying pan, along with a couple of tablespoons of the cooking water, and stir to coat with the garlicky oil.
Shower the spaghetti with three tablespoons of pangrattato, and stir it through the pasta so it’s evenly distributed, then use tongs to distribute the spaghetti between serving plates.
Drizzle the remaining extra virgin olive oil onto the pasta, sprinkle on the rest of the pangrattato (and optional chilli flakes if you like), and garnish with lemon slices or wedges to squeeze onto the pasta, and serve immediately with a bowl of pangrattato on the table. Enjoy!
Spaghetti Pangrattato Recipe for Pasta with Crunchy Breadcrumbs
Ingredients
- 250 g spaghetti - or liguini or bucatini
- 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil - divided
- 2 garlic cloves - minced
- 4 tbsp pangrattato - divided, see recipe
- 1 tsp chilli flake - optional
- 2 lemon slices or wedges
Instructions
- Put a large pot of salted water on the stove to boil. When it’s on a rolling boil, add the spaghetti and cook until al dente according to the packet instructions, around 8-9 minutes.
- A couple of minutes before the pasta is ready: in a deep frying pan or skillet over medium-high, heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil until shimmering, add the minced garlic cloves, and fry until fragrant and beginning to colour, then reduce the heat to low.
- Use tongs or a pasta fork to transfer the spaghetti to the frying pan, along with a couple of tablespoons of the cooking water, and stir to coat with the garlicky oil.
- Shower the spaghetti with three tablespoons of pangrattato, and stir it through the pasta so it’s evenly distributed, then use tongs to distribute the spaghetti between serving plates.
- Drizzle the remaining extra virgin olive oil onto the pasta, sprinkle on the rest of the pangrattato (and optional chilli flakes if you like), and garnish with lemon slices or wedges to squeeze onto the pasta, and serve immediately with a bowl of pangrattato on the table.
Nutrition
Please do let us know if you make our spaghetti pangrattato recipe for pasta with crunchy breadcrumbs, as we’d love to know how it turns out for you.
