pasta with anchovies recipe

Why anchovies make pasta better

Anchovy pasta produces one of those culinary results where the sum is much greater than its parts. It's not about the pasta tasting like anchovy — it's about the anchovy, when it dissolves in hot oil, releasing the glutamate and fatty acids from its curing, and these compounds act as flavor enhancers for everything else in the dish.

Italian cooks talk about the "fondo" of a sauce — the depth of flavor that turns something simple into something complex. In Southern Italian cuisine, especially in Campania, Sicily, and Puglia, anchovies are the quintessential "fondo." A golden clove of garlic in oil with two dissolved anchovies produces a flavor base that would require hours of broth reduction to achieve a similar level.

At Bacalalo, we have been selecting anchovies at the Mercat del Ninot in Barcelona for 35 years. The recipes we present here are representative of Italian culinary tradition and have been adapted considering the availability of ingredients in Spain.

How to choose the right anchovy for pasta

For cooking pasta, you don't need the largest or most expensive anchovy on the menu. Anchovies for hot cooking serve a different purpose than anchovies for appetizers: their job is to dissolve in the oil and add flavor, not to be a visual star.

The most suitable sizes for pasta are menu-grade anchovies (small and mixed fillets), size 0, or size 1. If you have a jar of Gourmet Selection at home that you use for appetizers, you can perfectly take two or three fillets for pasta without a problem — the quality equally benefits the culinary result. But for intensive cooking, more economical sizes are reasonable.

Anchovies for pasta should be in olive oil (not sunflower) and cured for at least 8-10 months. An industrial anchovy with a short cure and high sodium produces excessively salty sauces without the complexity that a long cure provides.

Recipe 1: Spaghetti aglio, olio, peperoncino e alici

The basic Neapolitan late-night pasta recipe, enriched with anchovies. In Naples, this is the dish made at two in the morning when the kitchen is empty but hunger is not. The anchovy version is what professional chefs make at home — it's what they ask for when they get home after service.

Ingredients for 2 servings:

• 180 g spaghetti (No. 5, good quality durum wheat pasta)
• 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, sliced
• 1 dried chili (or half a teaspoon chili flakes)
• 4 Cantabrian anchovy fillets
• Fresh parsley, chopped
• Pasta cooking water (reserve one glass)

Preparation: Cook the pasta in abundant salted water (the water should taste like the sea). In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic slices and chili. When the garlic begins to brown (do not burn), add the anchovy fillets and press them with a wooden spoon until they dissolve completely in the oil — 2-3 minutes. The oil becomes aromatic and intense. Drain the pasta al dente, reserving a glass of the cooking water. Add the pasta to the skillet with the oil, add a splash of the cooking water, and sauté for 1-2 minutes so the pasta soaks up the flavored oil. Off the heat, add the parsley.

The trick that makes the difference: the pasta cooking water contains dissolved starch that acts as an emulsifier between the oil and water. Adding it allows the oil to form a kind of light creaminess that coats each strand of pasta. Without the cooking water, the pasta will be oily and separated.

Recipe 2: Pasta alla puttanesca

Puttanesca is the most flavorful Italian sauce in the repertoire and also the one that generates the most historical debate. Originating from Naples (although Rome also claims it), it has a combination of ingredients that seems deliberately designed to maximize umami: tomato, capers, black olives, garlic, and anchovies.

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 400 g spaghetti or penne rigate
• 400 g canned peeled tomatoes (good quality)
• 5-6 Cantabrian anchovy fillets
• 100 g pitted Kalamata black olives
• 2 tablespoons drained capers
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 chili
• 5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• Dried oregano

Preparation: In a large skillet, heat the oil with the garlic and chili over medium heat. When the garlic begins to color, add the anchovy fillets and dissolve them. Add the tomatoes (crush them by hand for irregular pieces, do not use finely crushed tomatoes). Reduce for 15 minutes over medium heat. Add the capers and olives, cook for 5 more minutes. Do not add salt — capers, olives, and anchovies have enough sodium. Cook the pasta al dente, drain, reserving cooking water, mix with the sauce. Oregano at the end.

Puttanesca does not contain cheese. In the Southern Italian tradition, pasta with fish or seafood is not combined with cheese. The reason is gastronomically coherent: cheese has its own tannins and proteins that compete with the flavor of the fish. Without cheese, the flavor of anchovies and capers comes through cleaner and more directly.

Recipe 3: Sicilian anchovy pasta (with breadcrumbs and raisins)

This is the most unusual recipe on the list for the Spanish palate, and the most revealing about the complexity of Sicilian cuisine. The combination of anchovies with raisins and breadcrumbs is Arab heritage — Arabs dominated Sicily for two centuries in the Middle Ages and left a taste for sweet and savory in the island's cuisine.

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 400 g bucatini or spaghetti
• 6-8 Cantabrian anchovy fillets
• 50 g sultana raisins (soaked for 15 minutes in warm water)
• 50 g pine nuts
• 4 tablespoons coarse breadcrumbs
• 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic
• Saffron threads (optional but authentic)

Preparation: Toast the breadcrumbs dry in a skillet until golden and crispy. Set aside. In the same skillet, heat the oil, brown the garlic, dissolve the anchovies. Add the pine nuts and lightly brown. Add the drained raisins and saffron dissolved in a tablespoon of hot water. Cook the pasta, drain, mix with the sauce. Serve with plenty of toasted breadcrumbs on top — in Sicily, breadcrumbs ("muddica") are the "cheese" of the south, the humble people's answer to the pecorino pastas of the north.

Recipe 4: Pasta with anchovy butter and lemon

The most elegant version on the list. Anchovy butter is described in detail in our article on anchovies in butter: the perfect appetizer recipe. Used in pasta, it produces a dish that sits between Italian simplicity and French culinary elegance.

Ingredients for 2 servings:

• 180 g tagliolini or linguine
• 3 tablespoons anchovy butter (prepared beforehand)
• Zest of one lemon
• Juice of half a lemon
• Grated Parmesan (in this recipe, exceptionally, cheese works)
• Parsley or chives

Preparation: Cook the pasta al dente. Reserve a glass of cooking water. In a large bowl or in the skillet off the heat, place the cold anchovy butter cut into pieces. Add the hot pasta on top. Mix quickly with the cooking water until the butter melts and forms a cream that coats the pasta. Add the lemon zest and juice. Parmesan when serving.

Lemon is the acidic counterpoint that balances the richness of the butter and enhances the marine flavor of the anchovy. Without lemon, the dish is heavier. With it, it has freshness.

Recipe 5: Pasta with anchovies, broccoli, and garlic

The most nutritious and everyday version on the list. Broccoli has a slightly bitter taste that contrasts well with the saltiness of the anchovy, and its texture when lightly cooked adds body to the dish without the need for any elaborate sauce.

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 400 g orecchiette or penne
• 1 medium broccoli, separated into florets
• 6 Cantabrian anchovy fillets
• 4 cloves garlic, sliced
• Chili flakes
• 5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• Pecorino or Parmesan cheese for serving

Preparation: Cook the broccoli in the same water where you will cook the pasta, for 3-4 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside. Cook the pasta in the same water (the water absorbs the flavor of the broccoli, which adds complexity). In a skillet, heat oil, brown garlic, dissolve anchovies. Add the broccoli and sauté for 2-3 minutes, crushing some florets so they integrate with the sauce. Mix with the pasta, add cooking water if necessary to bind. Serve with cheese and chili.

Key techniques for anchovy pasta

There are three techniques that apply to all the above recipes and it is worth understanding why they work.

Dissolve the anchovies in hot oil. Do not add the anchovies to the pasta — add them to hot oil and press them with a spoon until they completely dissolve. This cooking process releases the aromatic compounds of the anchovy into the oil, which acts as a carrier for those compounds throughout the pasta. If the anchovy is added whole to cold pasta, the flavor is concentrated in specific spots.

Reserve cooking water. The starch dissolved in the pasta cooking water is the natural binding agent between the anchovy oil and the other ingredients. Without it, the pasta will be greasy; with it, a light creaminess forms that evenly coats each piece of pasta.

Do not overcook the pasta. Anchovy pasta is always finished in the skillet with the sauce. If you cook it to the perfect al dente point in the pot, it will overcook in the skillet. Remove it 1-2 minutes before the al dente point indicated on the package and let it finish in the sauce with the cooking water.

For more uses of anchovies in cooking beyond pasta, see our guide to anchovy recipes: easy and gourmet ideas.

Frequently asked questions about anchovy pasta

Does anchovy pasta taste too strong of fish?
No, if the anchovy dissolves in hot oil instead of being added whole. When the anchovy breaks down, its flavor integrates with the oil and is distributed evenly without any bite tasting specifically of fish. It's a deep background flavor, not an aggressive surface flavor.

How many anchovies are needed for 4 people?
For a pasta where anchovy is the main flavor ingredient (aglio e olio, puttanesca), between 6 and 8 fillets for 400g of pasta is the correct proportion. For a pasta where anchovy is a booster for other ingredients (broccoli, vegetables), 4-5 fillets are sufficient.

Can fresh pasta be used in these recipes?
Yes, especially in the anchovy butter and lemon recipe, where fresh tagliolini work wonderfully. In tomato sauce recipes (puttanesca), dry pasta holds up better to the cooking time in the sauce.

Is anchovy pasta suitable for pregnant women?
Anchovies in olive oil, well cooked or integrated into hot sauce, are safe for pregnancy from a microbiological standpoint. The main concern is elevated sodium, which should be considered in the context of the day's complete diet. See our article on anchovies in pregnancy: safety and alternatives.

Can anchovy pasta be frozen?
We do not recommend freezing pasta with anchovy sauce. The texture of the pasta deteriorates with freezing, and oil-based anchovy sauces tend to separate when thawed. These recipes are quick enough to be prepared on the spot.