Simple to make pasta dish - one that got my mom singing "hou-sek hou-sek" and made me very happy.
Here's the ingredients, chopped garlic, smoked bacon back, Italian parsley, a handful of cashew nuts, a tbsp of dried chilies and 350-375gm spaghetti and a tsp of oregano(optional). It took me less than 30 minutes to prepare and cook.
When cooking pasta, make sure there is ample boiling water and olive oil is added into the water to ensure the pasta do not stick to each other. Use enough salt in the water till it taste like seawater. Place the pasta into the pot when the water is boiling.
Immediately after placing the pasta into the pot, toast the cashew nuts on dry deep dish pan or using medium hot oil(this is add flavor to the oil for cooking later). Strain the nuts from the oil once it turns gold, do it fast otherwise it will be burnt.
In the same pan of 1/2-3/4 cup of hot oil, toss in the minced garlic, chili flakes, oregano and bacon together. This is to ensure garlic is not over cooked and browned. Add in black pepper, white pepper and salt to taste. Turn of the heat once it is fragrant.
Cut the parsley to 5mm length and toss in the non-leafy parts into the garlic and chili sauce. This is to allow the tougher part, which is usually more aromatic, to blend in gently with the rest of the ingredients.
By now the pasta should be cooked, strain and toss the hot pasta in the pan of garlic and chili sauce. Put in the rest of the parsley(leafy) and cashew nuts and toss evenly. Serve immediately.
Ta-Da! My weekend homemade spicy pasta! If you like it spicy, add more chili flakes and pepper. I find this recipe versatile, you could always stick to the basic garlic and chili flakes and replace the meat - prawns, scallop, roast chicken or veal and nuts - pine nuts, walnut, almond slices, etc.
Besides this pipping hot claypot dish, there is also the heady Rice Wine Chicken Mee Sua(Rm15.90). Highly recommended considering if you wish to dine simple non-halal Chinese food in 1U.
