Is this really the perfect Cacio e Pepe?
Today I’m reacting to @vincenzosplate making what he calls the perfect traditional Roman Cacio e Pepe. As a professional chef, I’ve made authentic Italian pasta for years, and Cacio e Pepe is one of the simplest yet hardest pasta dishes to get right.
With only pecorino romano, black pepper, and pasta, everything comes down to technique. The sauce can split, clump, or turn into a cheesy disaster if you’re not careful. Be sure to head over to Vincenzo’s channel and show him some love!
@vincenzosplate https://youtu.be/Cx-KmIa-zco
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34 Comments
the pan was definitely the last time I used it and never used a teflon pan ever again hahahaha cacio e pepe its such an amazing pasta. its easy but difficult at the same time. my latest cacio e pepe recipe is the ultimate. I invite you to watch it because it will change your life
There's not enough cheese and pepper.
And I hate those giant tweezers. Especially in a non stick pan.
I agree with roasting the peppercorns as a whole.
I think all this chatter about pasta quality is kind of pointless, because I have to buy those who are available.
The sauce contains enough salt to season the pasta. These clowns will use any excuse to try to justify their over use of salt. Real cooks know how to build flavor without the over use of an unhealthy chemicle.
So true @chefjamesmakinson at 6:40:
mis on place!
as Chef JP would say.
Thanks for this review!
So is the difference between Carbonara and Cacio e Pepe just egg and guanciale? It seems like they're prepared the exact same way; it's pretty interesting.
I've tried some of Vicenzo's recipes and that are so different from US-style Italian. It tastes and feels incredibly light in the best way. He's one of the few YouTube chefs that has delivered well for me
I used to watch Vincenzo religiously, but he's too much of a crusader. Some Italian chefs are far too uptight about what they perceive is the "correct" way of cooking, and Vincenzo takes that insecurity to the next level.
Still, I really enjoyed your take on this video Chef. Cheers!
vincenzo needs to invest in a better pepper mill lol
You and Vincenzo are one of my favourite cooks lol
Vincenzo said "Parmesan" 😱
the metal on the pan was like nails on a chalk board, but the dish looked great.
i hope that was pepper and not teflon on the noodles..
how much pecorino? YES
I love the way you explain things. I feel like I need to take notes when I try a recipe.
I love the way you explain things. I feel like I need to take notes for when I try a recipe.
Vincenzo is almost always on point but it was painful to see him scrape the metal tongs on the non-stick pan haha
Toasting black peppercorns beforehand is a total game changer. I toast them whole and use a mortar and pestle to crush them. Edit: Vincenzo’s cacio e pepe recipe is fabulous! ❤
Why the F is he using plating tweezers to stir the pasta in a nonstick?!!
Uncle Roger will definitely be putting his leg down over that.🤣
I've made it twice and the first time it was perfect and holy crap amazing, the second time I made it, some of the cheese got clumpy but it was still fantastic
Now I feel like trying to make this recipe.
Another banger by Vincenzo. Thanks for sharing James.
Italian kitchen……. it's so overrated. I think it's their inferiority complex, they've nothing else than pasta to be proud of.
It's funny if they start talking about carbonara. It has to be this and that, it's all bs. Traditional carbonara doesn't exist. In the seventies the recipe was completely different from now. And it's a really big laugh if you start talking about pizza. If an Italian orders a pizza pepperoni he starts crying and asks where are the bell peppers. The idiots even don't know the difference between peperoni and pepperoni.
But I love pizza, with all the toppings, anchovy or pineapple or spicy chicken 😋. And nothing better than pasta with ragu (no spaghetti Bolognese). It's nice, but what I said, overrated.
I prefer using bucatini for Cacio e Pepe, just as thick as spaghettoni but the hole holds onto more sauce.
This damn dish…so simple, so hard to perfect. I see he adopted Kenji's pepper bloom….something I'm sure you already knew…but yeah, it should be whole peppercorn.
Interesting
I like Vincenzo also, and I agree with toasting spices whole instead of ground spices. Better safe than sorry, burnt spices are nasty.
Season the water and not the pasta? Sounds like seasoning the cutting board not the steak 😂
Hang on, pasta contains chemical dyes? Why, what for? Also, Teflon does not harm humans though it is a forever chemical so I still don't want it in by body but isn't bronze dyes worst than Teflon since bronze contains copper and copper is a heavy metal and it poisonous to humans but won't affect us in small amount until it build up enough in your system?
You should point more the prononciation of parmesan than percorino. Why american say parmeJJJJJan it's prameSSSSan. listen to the chef.
Cacio e Pepe I used Alex the French Guy's recipe. (you did ask). Carbonara I always use Vincenzo's recipe. I have and use The Silver Spoon (Italian food bible) but in English they are not the same recipes.
5:24 As an Italian, I would say that the difference between Pecorino and "Pecorina" should be explained, because people who don't know Italian don't realize the big difference. 😉😀
I know I'm strange, but I hate risotto. I love rice pudding though…… work that out.
3:20 i think you lost his point. He's not saying to cook it 3 minutes lessbecause the time written on the packet is wrong. He's saying to cook it 3 minutes less in the water because it'll continue cooking the missing minutes after it's taken off the water. So if you want it al dente, you have to take it off of the water even earlier following this recipe.
12:42. "Risottare," a term derived from "Risotto”, because it's the same technique, is a widely used method in our Italian cuisine. If you know Italian cuisine, you should know this term and therefore this method. But you've probably never worked in a restaurant in Italy.
Vincenzo os great but using metal tools in none stick pan is a big no , never do this Vincenzo, yellow card for you !