Cravings: Tagliatelle

I managed to get my hands on some delicious, fresh pasta from the Italian Centre, which comes in 3 bundles. There's also a note on the back that says that the pasta is "to be consumed after cooking within 3 days of opening the package". Challenge accepted.

Things I learned this week about fresh pasta:
- Even though some dried pasta is pretty good (I like Barilla, and some other Italian brands I've found at Winners and HomeSense), fresh pasta is wayyy better taste-wise and texturally.
- There are multiple theories about how pasta came to be.
- A non-profit association called the International Pasta Organisation was formed to "increase pasta consumption and awareness"!
- There are so many kinds of pasta out there, that aren't the standard types you find in North American restaurants. While I will still admittedly gravitate towards spaceship and dinosaur shaped pasta at times just because, I'm excited to try some different ones - notably orecchiette and campanelle! Perhaps, I'll even try making my own... Need some inspiration? Check out this video featuring Gennaro Contaldo! I'm obsessed with his video on making Gnocchi Al Forno. I have got to try it one day...

And without further ado, I present to you - Tagliatelle, 3 ways!

1. Keeping it classy

Tagliatelle Bolognese. Food for thought: Tagliatelle actually holds the sauce on it better than spaghetti, because spaghetti is round, while tagliatelle is flatter. 

Tagliatelle Bolognese

**Makes 2-3 servings**

1/2 lb lean ground beef 

1 tsp Red Alder Smoked Sea Salt (from Silk Road Spice Merchant)

3 cloves of garlic

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1/2 cup water

1/4 medium onion

1/2 can of diced tomatoes

3 Tbsp of Garlic Extra Virgin Olive Oil (from Oliv Tasting Room)

A pinch of dried or fresh chopped parsley 

1-2 tsp flakes or grated parmesan cheese

1 bundle of freshly cooked tagliatelle (from Italian Centre Shop)

1. In a bowl, mix smoked salt and black pepper evenly into the ground beef.

2. Add 2 Tbsp of the olive oil into a saucepan over medium heat. 

3. Finely chop the onion and garlic and cook in the pan until translucent and fragrant.

4. Crumble pieces of the ground beef mixture into the pan and cook until no longer pink.

5. Add the tomatoes and water, and stir until combined. 

6. Simmer over low-medium heat for about 45 minutes until the sauce is no longer liquidy.

7. Turn off the heat, and drizzle 1 Tbsp of garlic olive oil over the sauce, and stir it in. 

8. Serve over freshly cooked pasta. Garnish with some chopped parsley and/or parmesan cheese. Buon appetito!

2. Tossing things up

Tagliatelle Aglio e Olio con Gamberetto (i.e. Garlic and oil tagliatelle with shrimp). A simple tossed pasta, but hella delicious.

Tagliatelle Aglio e Olio con Gamberetto

**Makes 2 servings**

1/8 cup unsalted butter

3 Tbsp Garlic Extra Virgin Olive Oil (from Oliv Tasting Room)

1/2 cup frozen baby shrimp

3 cloves of garlic

1 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1 1/2 Tbsp parmesan cheese flakes

A pinch of chili pepper flakes

A pinch of dried or fresh chopped parsley
1 bundle of freshly cooked tagliatelle (from Italian Centre Shop)

1. Melt butter in a saucepan with 1 Tbsp of olive oil over medium-low heat.

2. Add in baby shrimp and toss and stir until cooked through. Meanwhile, slice the garlic.

3. Add in garlic and parmesan and stir until garlic is fragrant.

4. Season with black pepper and chili pepper flakes to your liking.

5. Add 2 servings of freshly cooked pasta into pan, drizzle with remaining 2 Tbsp of olive oil until just combined.

6. Serve and garnish with chopped parsley, and more black pepper, chili flakes, and parmesan to your liking. Buon appetito!

3. Diverging from the norm

Tagliatelle Crack Slurp. Italian by sight, Chinese by taste. A somewhat trippy dining experience, but pretty damn tasty.

Tagliatelle Crack Slurp (Adapted from Lady and Pups)
**Makes 2 servings**
2 chicken thigh skins
1/3 cup + 1/8 cup Garlic Extra Virgin Olive Oil (from Oliv Tasting Room)
1/6 lb of lean ground beef
1/4 tsp sea salt
1 tsp + 1/4 tsp ground white pepper
4 cloves of garlic
1 green onion
1 bundle of freshly cooked tagliatelle (from Italian Centre Shop)
2 Tbsp gochujang
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp dark soy sauce
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1/2 tsp white granulated sugar

1. Toss the tagliatelle with 1/8 cup olive oil to prevent the noodles from sticking, and set aside.
2. Roll the chicken skins into two logs and freeze for at least a couple of hours.
3. In the meantime, prepare 2 soup bowls with seasoning sauce. Combine 1 Tbsp gochujang, 1 Tbsp soy sauce, 1/2 Tbsp dark soy sauce, 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar, and 1/4 tsp white granulated sugar in each bowl, and set aside.
4. Thinly slice garlic and set aside. Chop green onion, and set aside.
5. Remove the chicken skin logs from the freezer, and slice into tiny spirals.
6. In a pan over medium-low heat, add the chicken skins. Occasionally stir the chicken skins so that they don't stick together. Once brown and crispy, remove with a mesh strainer ladle, and set aside. Season right away with salt and 1/4 tsp white pepper.
7. Add the garlic olive oil to the pan with the chicken fat oil.
8. Over medium-low heat, add the garlic. Stir the garlic constantly until browned and crispy, and remove with a mesh strainer ladle, and set aside.
9. Add 2 Tbsp of the chicken fat garlic oil into each of the bowls with your seasoning sauce.
10. With the leftover oil, crumble and cook the beef until no longer pink. Season with 1 tsp white pepper.
11. Add half of the ground beef into each of the bowls, and stir until it is coated evenly with the seasoning sauce. (I used the oil from after cooking the beef to also fry up some Shanghai bok choy too!)
12. Add a serving of tagliatelle noodles into each of the bowls and toss until combined.
13. Top each bowl with fried chicken skin, fried garlic, and chopped green onion, and devour. chī chī chī!

I'm not sure which was my favourite tagliatelle meal, but I know that I enjoyed each one very much! Have you had any recent adventures with tagliatelle or another kind of noodle? Let me know!

-M