Carrot 'pappardelle' with tomato and chilli
I've been cooking a lot of vegetarian dishes at home over the past few months and this has been one of my favourites. It's a great idea to replace pasta with carrot ribbons, or you could try it with zucchini noodles. I like how simple but delicious it is. The carrots are sweet and earthy (make sure you don't overcook them), and the tomato sauce is spicy and sweet. I can't get enough of this dish, really!
Ingredients
4 medium organic carrots
freshly grated parmesan, to serve
Tomato and chilli sauce
100ml extra virgin olive oil, plus extra to serve
3 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
pinch of sea salt
1½ tsp Mexican Salsa Macha chilli paste* (available from fireworksfoods.com.au)
40g (⅓ cup) green olives (I like the Picholine brand)
500g ripe tomatoes, cherry or heirloom, halved or chopped
Method
1. For the "pappardelle", you can peel the carrots if you like, but I just wash them well. Cut the top and tail off and slice them about 2.5mm thick on a mandolin.
2. To make the sauce, place a saucepan on medium heat and add the olive oil, garlic, salt, Salsa Macha and olives and cook until the garlic softens. Add the tomato, raise the heat a little, and cook for about 20 minutes until the tomato breaks down to make a sauce.
3. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to the boil and cook the carrot ribbons for about 1 minute to 90 seconds – you want them al dente, just like pasta. Drain.
4. Place the carrot ribbons in four pasta bowls and top with the sauce, parmesan, a good grind of black pepper and drizzle with olive oil. Serve immediately.
*The Mexican Salsa Macha – which I love using – gives the dish a deep, roasted flavour and packs a real punch.
Appears in these collections
- 55 ripe and ready recipes to celebrate summer tomatoes
- 50 vegetarian pastas for a simple but satisfying midweek meal
- Six low-cost vegetarian dishes (none of them involving cabbage)
- Crunch time: 20 recipes that prove economical, reliable carrots can be cool and interesting, too
- Neil Perry's recipes 2020
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Neil Perry is a restaurateur, chef and former Good Weekend columnist.
