Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Midweek Pasta - Spaghetti With Anchovies And Breadcrumbs




Lets have a little break from Chinese food for a little while with this delicious pasta dish - a joint effort with one of the tummies. We both did our research and this is the result after comparing notes. It is absolutely worth the effort of making your own breadcrumbs for this dish as it is after all the main ingredient here. It might sound like a very strange dish by just looking at the ingredients if you have never tasted this dish before but you will soon realise everything is there for a reason. 



serves 4 as a one dish meal with a salad
you'll need;
500 g of spaghetti
70 g of sultanas
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 cup of homemade breadcrumbs*
8 anchovies, minced
4 tbs of pine nuts, toasted
1/3 cup of chopped parsley
1 tbs of dried oregano** (optional)
salt and pepper to taste
2 bird chilies or pinch of chili flakes
olive oil
parmesan cheese, grated (optional)
* to make your own breadcrumbs - place bread slices of your choice (mustn't be stale) on a wire rack then dry in a very low oven  for 15 minutes. Turn the bread slices half way through. Blend in in a food processor when cool. 
** I dried my fresh oregano in the microwave - just place some oregano on a piece of kitchen towel and nuke it on high for a minute.



Place breadcrumbs in a hot pan and dry roast til golden. Add in enough olive oil to coat the crumbs and set aside.



Prepare the rest of the ingredients. Cook spaghetti together with the sultanas in plenty of salted water.



Heat up some olive oil and cook the anchovies til dissolved. Add garlic, chili, herbs and pine nuts and mix well.



Next in the breadcrumbs and mix well.



Mix drained spaghetti and sultanas with half of breadcrumbs mixture. Always add a little of the pasta cooking water at this stage. Season with black pepper.



Plate the spaghetti, top with extra breadcrumbs mixture and drizzle with some extra virgin olive oil. Serve immediately with a simple side salad.

28 comments:

  1. No, it doesn't sound funny at all. I sounds delicious. Tessa Kiros has one recipe like this in her book that also uses breadcrumbs and anchovies but she added mashed soft boiled egg into it and toss it around. Madly delicious!!!!

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  2. Hi tummy!!! waaaaaaa... those looks yummylah! 1st time i tahu ada resepi mcm ni, we both love any kind of spaghetthi or pasta.. weeeeee.... im droolinggggg.. mouthwatering!

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  3. I had anchovies with pasta the other night but would never have thought to add sultanas! I also love the idea of breadcrumbs to add texture.

    BTW - I'd like to get in touch with you with a proposal. Can you e-mail me at the address on my blog.

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  4. Delicious and such a droolworthy pasta, looks interesting..

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  5. Harriet from CarltonJune 16, 2010 at 5:47 PM

    This is a favourite pantry dish of ours. I must add some sultanas next.
    Thanks for the tips on making homemade breadcrumbs!

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  6. recipe baru ni pasti masuk dalam my list ni:)

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  7. This is a texture heaven...the nuts, the crumbs and the sultanas. I think I am going to make this just need to get some sultanas and pine nuts!

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  8. Great pantry dish and now I need to top up my pantry lol
    This is by far the most exciting spaghetti with breadcrumbs that I have seen.

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  9. Woooowww...espectacular de bueno!
    ;-D

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  10. Quinn,
    Mmm adding eggs sounds good too! Must try!

    ijayuji ,
    Kalau suka pasta ini pasti akan menjadi kegemaran sekeluaga!

    Mr Noodles,
    It is a texture and flavour heaven!
    I have sent you an email.

    Priya ,
    Thank you very much!

    Harriet ,
    Thank you! I was very surprised about the sultanas too but it is so delicious!

    makcikmanggis,
    Terima kasih makcik! :)

    KL girl in MELB,
    It is indeed! Thank you!

    darren,
    Thank you very much! I think we picked the best bits and combined what we think might work!

    Amada,
    Muchas gracias!

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  11. Love this and will try with sultanas next! Also I will be making my own breadcrumbs..thank you!

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  12. This sounds so delicious with the anchovies and chili! I like the idea of adding breadcrumbs and sultanas!

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  13. Delicious one dish meal that I would love to try!

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  14. hey tummy...this one z drooling me yaar...its name sounds intersting...i love spaghetti...and with anchovies sounds different n intersting...

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  15. I love your combined effort. Will be trying your version when I crave for spaghetti!

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  16. Pasta is always my go to mid week dinner. So quick and simple.

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  17. Sounds very delicious, I've done breadcrumbs, anchovies and cauliflower before but never sultanas. Have to try it out, sounds great.

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  18. Never thought of adding breadcrumbs in pasta~very creative. Must bookmark!

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  19. go on you can make my cake its sooo easy!!

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  20. Sounds and looks tempting. Love the idea of sultanas/breadcrumbs in the sauce!
    There are some awards for you on my blog! No award rules! LOL!
    B xx

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  21. wow..the blend of flavors and the aromatics must have been wonderful!!! what a perfect pasta dish!

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  22. Hey, I need to ask you some questions regarding this recipe:

    http://3hungrytummies.blogspot.com/2009/10/ipoh-horfun.html

    When you say 1/2 large prawns, did you mean 1/2kg of them? Also, where did you get your prawn shells from in Melbourne? Do you ask them from your seafood seller?

    If you could please gimme your email or email me at bakingquinn@gmail.com, it would be awesome, I have so much to tell you!

    Thanks!

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  23. I love simple pasta dishes and I'm a fan of anchovies as well. This sounds terrific. I hope you are having a great day. Blessings...Mary

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  24. Hey buddy hope you were not out on your bike during the storm. I can tell this is going to be a new favourite with the little one.

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  25. Tricia F,
    Thank you! It makes a huge difference!

    pigpigscorner,
    Thank you! Do give it a try!

    shanshan ,
    Thank you! Please do!

    Reshmi ,
    Thank you! You must try this!

    CW,
    Thank you! Please do!

    Adventures in Domestic Cooking ,
    Thank you very much!

    penny ,
    Absolutely!

    shaz,
    Thank you! I was not too sure about the sultanas at first but it was a good decision!

    Anncoo ,
    Thank you! Try it soon!

    Rebecca,
    Will do!

    Betty,
    Thank you! I will be collecting that!

    Chef Dennis,
    Thank you very much!

    little panda ,
    Thank you very much!

    Quinn,
    I have sent you an mail! :)

    Mary ,
    Thank you! You too!

    fitzboy,
    Hell no lol . I can see how that will work!

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  26. This looks very interesting and good. The saltines on top give it a comfort food feel to it. I would have to leave the anchovies off for my daughter though. She loves Caesar salads but won't eat it if they use anchovy.

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