Spaghetti Pomodoro has a secret and I’m sharing that secret with you today. Spaghetti Pomodoro is a fraud.
The word “pomodoro” rolls off the tongue and brings to mind pompadoured men and uptown ladies carrying lacy parasols, but – come to find out, all pomodoro means in English is tomato. That’s right – TOMATO! One would think with a foo-foo name like Spaghetti Pomodoro, it would at least have black truffles, lobster or Devon crab in every bite.
If I had any Italian blood flowing through my bloodline, I might have been aware, but since I am a redheaded American with strong Irish and Scottish roots, it sounded like a fancy-schmancy dish to me.
If I had known the name of this dish meant Spaghetti Tomato, I might not have given it a chance, so I’m glad I learned long ago from William Shakespeare, “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.”
I guess it comes down to this; Spaghetti Pomodoro does deserve a fancy name because it is delizioso!”
It is perfect in its simplicity – pasta combined with olive oil, fresh tomatoes, basil, garlic and fresh Parmigiano Reggiano. The flavors are so light, fresh and inviting. If you want to kick it up a notch, I’m sure it would welcome other ingredients – chicken, shrimp, prosciutto would be just fine for my family, but if you truly want to splurge, shoot for the stars and go for those black mushrooms, or that Devon crab.
I feel bad I called Spaghetti Pomodoro a fraud. To make amends, I’ll set the dinner table with my white tablecloth and fine china. I’ll put on my best dress and Italian heels, grab my parasol then sit down with a plate full of this beautiful spaghetti. Buon appetito!
Enjoy!
Spaghetti Pomodoro
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 cup fresh tomatoes – chopped
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 teaspoons or 4 cloves fresh garlic – minced
- ¼- 1/2 cup vegetable or chicken stock or pasta water
- 1 regular sized can crushed tomatoes or chopped roma tomatoes
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste opt.
- ¼ pound spaghetti – cooked al dente per package directions
- ¼ cup fresh basil – chopped
- Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese to taste – grated and shaved
Instructions
- Heat olive oil over medium heat until hot.
- Add fresh tomatoes, salt & pepper then saute for one minute.
- Add minced garlic – cook for an additional minute.
- Add liquid, tomato sauce, canned tomatoes, tomato paste and cooked pasta. Cook for 3-4 minutes until liquid is reduced. Add basil, stir lightly.
- Place in serving dishes and garnish with fresh cheese and a sprinkle of chopped basil.
Recipe Notes
Pasta Pomodoro would be delicious with added chicken, shrimp, mushrooms, bacon or prosciutto. Whatever you love in spaghetti would work well.
Tampa Cake Girl
Wow! What a great recipe! Pinned and shared on my page.Susie Gall
Thank you so much for stopping by Simply Sated. I hope you love this recipe as much as I do. Please come by soon, I will be adding new recipes often.Scott R. Anderson
Hi, I found this recipe this morning from Google and I am Italian and I surely appreciate your frankness and honesty. This recipe looks very much like the one my Italian Grandmother used to make for me, but she also put in a dabble of white wine. Also thanks for not saying to rinse the pasta under running water as some of the recipes stated, especially one recipe from Audry Hepburn who supposedly lived in Italy for a while and ate this dish every week. UGH.....Her recipe called for rinsing the pasta under warm water.....UGH....all the taste went down the drain...Thanks Susi......Joanne/WineLady Cooks
Thank you so much for sharing this post. This pasta dish was often a summer favorite in our family, my grandmother used the tomatoes growing in her garden. As you put it so well, this is simplicity at its best!.Pinned/shared.JoanneSusie Gall
Thank you for your sweet comments, Joanne and thanks for stopping by Simply Sated. I hope my recipe lives up to your even somewhat to your grandmother's recipe.Tara
Looks so delicious, sharing!!Susie Gall
Thank you Tara and thanks for stopping by Simply Sated.Patricia
Simple and lovely! This is beautiful!Susie Gall
Thanks for your sweet comments, Patricia. Please come back soon, I'll be posting a couple of recipes every week.Katerina
Simple and tasty! My kind of meal!Susie Gall
Thank you Katerina, and thanks for stopping by Simply Sated.kris
do you use plum tomatoes mostly or will any kind do? also..peeled? seeded? hope not as this sounds so simple without that!Susie Gall
Hello Kris. I used fresh farmers market tomatoes for this recipe, but your favorite tomato would work well. I did peel the tomatoes since I prefer peeled tomatoes, but my husband never peels the tomatoes he uses, so it really is personal preference. I gently squeezed some of the extra juice out of the tomatoes but didn't actually seed them. Roma or cherry tomatoes will work great, also. Thanks for stopping by Simply Sated and please come again, soon.Val
This SPAGHETTI Pomodoro recipe is so easy to do & it's very light & tasty. Sometimes I add a FEw cooked PRAWNs right at the end of cooking. One of my favorite meals now.Susie Gall
The addition of the prawns sounds like a great idea. I love how simple and delicious this dish is and make it so often for my husband and me. Thanks so much for visiting Simply Sated and for taking the time to write such a sweet comment.