Comments on: Cacio e Pepe: A Spicy, Creamy, Simple, Cheap and Satisfying Roman Meal

By: Meatless Monday ~ Simple Vegetarian Pasta Dishes | The Conscious Perspective – Providing education and awareness about conscious living, current events, & personal growth

Mon, 31 Oct 2011 11:50:44 +0000

[...] Cacio e pepe ~ We Are Never Full [...]

By: Quora

Quora — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 15:39:36 +0000

What are some great simple pasta recipes?…

Cacio e Pepe (Pasta with Cheese and Pepper). Very simple, quick and classic Roman dish consisting of pasta, oil and or butter, hard cheese and cracked pepper. Here are a few example recipes with the variations being in the cheeses chosen and using Oliv…

By: Mario Batali Simple Italian Food: Recipes from My Two Villages

Mario Batali Simple Italian Food: Recipes from My Two Villages — Sun, 25 Sep 2011 02:11:21 +0000

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By: Liam

Liam — Sat, 04 Jun 2011 16:25:31 +0000

Actually, all you need to do to keep the cheese from clumping is:

1. Make sure it is grated very fine (almost powdery) – but don’t use the pre-grated stuff unless you get it very fresh from a reputable small market to grates it fresh daily and sells it quickly.

2. Use less water to boil the pasta, so that you get a higher starch content in the water. When the pasta is nearly done, take a spoonful or two of the pasta cooking water and mix it in with the grated cheese – this will coat the dairy proteins in the cheese with starch and prevent them from clumping. You actually don’t need any more butter or oil if you don’t want to (though butter will emulsify a bit better, but oil is more Roman).

By: Jonny & Amy

Jonny & Amy — Fri, 13 May 2011 17:16:43 +0000

@Donna: thanks for your question. Cheese, especially hard, gratable cheese, can clump and get gross if heated too high. This causes the fat in the cheese to separate from the solids. This might be happening if you’re not turning the burner off before adding the cheese. Hope this helps!

By: donna

donna — Fri, 13 May 2011 17:07:29 +0000

The cheese in cacio e pepe keeps clumping. What am I doing wrong?

By: richie

richie — Wed, 29 Sep 2010 02:06:51 +0000

Dont have to go to Babbo for this dish. Walk a couple of blocks to Sullivan Street and have it at Lupa (Batalis’ “Roman Bisto”)

By: admin

admin — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 18:03:19 +0000

@Jenny / Ida Anna – thanks for your comments. Not only is this an old post that does need updating according to your prescriptions, but real cacio di roma is virtually impossible to get even in New York where we’ve only found it once or twice. I do have to disagree with you (Ida) about leaving out the butter. While your mother might not like it, research suggests it is commonly used in the preparation of this dish. Jenny, thanks for the explanation – we are fully aware of what cacio di roma is, and it is very similarly to other sheeps’ milk cheeses (pecorini), except in this case it is usually slightly smaller and less sharp, but in our view, it still makes an excellent substitute.

By: Ida Anna

Ida Anna — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 04:15:06 +0000

Buono – ma non autentico! This recipe is not the authentic Roman version. Cacio e pepe is a Roman staple. Whether in Roma or not, do as the Romans do: omit the butter, oil and parmigiano. Also, use an ‘all egg’, semolina spaghetti or similar pasta. My Italian mamma agrees. Why adulterate what the Italians have already perfected? Ascoltare e imparare!

By: jenny

jenny — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 22:20:50 +0000

beautiful blog – thanks.

but i have to ‘get my on my food snob’ here as well…since the traditional roman cheese used in ‘cacio’ is, in fact, Cacio Di Roma, which gives the dish it’s name. Percorino Romano is commonly substituted, but is not authentic. Here’s about the Cacio:* Cacio Di Roma is a semi-firm textured cheese from Lazio. It is made with pasteurized ewe’s milk that is heated and then inoculated with lamb’s rennet.
It’s a creamy textured cheese with a mild, balanced flavor finishing with a touch of fruit. It’s the essence of the classic Italian table cheese found universally in Central and Southern Italy. In is referred to as Caciotta for its small round form. Not only is it enjoyed as a table cheese either before or after a meal, it is also used in everyday cooking as it melts very well. Some typical uses are as a filling for ravioli, in salads, on pizza or for simple things like grilled cheese sandwiches.
* source: Mario Batali.com