Tortiglioni with Ham in a Spicy Cream Sauce

How to cook the pasta and make the sauce

For tortiglioni with ham in a spicy cream sauce I chose exactly this pasta: it is large and has a roomy cavity that fills nicely with a not-too-thick cream sauce and holds it well. Besides, good ham or ham sausage can be cut into big strips that match the size of the pasta. For this dish the best choice is good-quality ham sausage. You can use smoked cured pork loin or any similar meat, so there is plenty to choose from.

It is best to use 20% cream for the sauce: it is not too fat and thick enough that it will not spread out. Take a whole chili pod; its heat will be just “guessed” in the overall flavor of the dish, without making it burning hot. If you have no fresh chili, use ground flakes, but carefully, as they can add noticeable heat.

The sauce comes together quickly, so it is worth cooking the pasta at the same time.

1. Cook the pasta. In a pot, bring 2 l of water to a boil over high heat, salt it (10 g of salt) and cook the pasta. The cooking time is given on the package, and in that time the pasta will be al dente.

2. Fry the garlic and chili. Peel them and chop finely with a knife. While the pasta cooks, heat a frying pan over medium heat, melt the butter and fry the garlic and chili for 2-3 mins.

   

3. Fry the ham. Cut it into strips or matchsticks, add it to the pan and fry for another 2-3 mins, stirring constantly.

4. Simmer the sauce. Pour the cream into the pan and stir well. Add salt and a little black pepper to taste, and 0.5 tsp of sweet ground paprika, which can be smoked. Simmer the sauce covered over medium heat for 5-6 mins, then remove the lid and reduce the sauce to the thickness of thin kefir. It should not be too thick.

   

How to combine the pasta with the sauce

5. Drain the pasta. By now the tortiglioni will be ready. Set aside 1-2 ladles of the pasta water, drain the pasta in a colander and immediately transfer it to the pan with the ham and spicy cream sauce.

6. Mix the pasta and sauce well. If needed, add some of the pasta water in small portions. In the end the sauce should almost completely fill the tortiglioni tubes and cling to the surface of the pasta.

   

Serving

7. Put the pasta on serving plates and sprinkle with grated Parmesan. Serve the pasta for breakfast while it is hot. There is no need to add any herbs, as the cream sauce does not call for them.

   

   The dish is very filling, about 700 kcal per serving, so you will stay full until lunch. Despite the whole hot pepper pod, the sauce tastes piquant but not hot, and the garlic is barely noticeable. This pasta is best cooked for a single meal. It should not be reheated or saved for later, so it is better to make a little more fresh.