Japanese Style Peperoncino or Peperoncini

My Japanese friend Yuki Watanabe has been a wealth of recipes.  I have always always thought good pasta should have some meat: be it ground beef or shrimp, as examples.  But with beets? Or turnips?

So here is Yuki’s version of what he calls Japanese style Peperoncino or sometimes spelled Peperoncini

Heat a pot of water, add salt and olive oil for the pasta of your choice” Spaghettini or Linguini or Spaghetti.  Yuki used about 300 grams of spaghettini or an inch in diameter bundle good for two hungry men

While water is heating, prepare Sauce:

• ·         2 Tbsp Olive Oil
• ·         4 cloves of garlic minced
• ·         1 cup of red beet or turnip, cut into an inch-sizes
• ·         1 ½ tbsp of crushed red chili pepper (not ground but still round in shape)  These are sold in packets in the South Asian section of the supermarket
• ·         1 ½ cup water
• ·         1/1 tbsp of Aji-No-Moto (MSG) - optional
• ·         1 cup of dried seaweed
• ·         1 ½ tbsp Yamasa (Japanese) soy sauce
• ·         ½ cup fresh parsley leaves

In a separate frying pan (with a high lip), low heat olive oil, then drop 4 minced garlic cloves.  While garlic is slowly toasting, slice red beet or turnip , about a cup, into 1 inch sizes, rinse  – set aside

Drop chili pepper in the frying pan mix.  After 5 minutes, add 1 ½ cups of water. 

 
Raise heat from low to medium.  After a couple of minutes, dropped cut beet or turnip.  Raise heat temporarily to high until boiling for a few minutes then back again to medium.  Add 1 1/2 tbsp soy sauce.   Cover with lid.  This will soften  the beet or turnip.

Back to pasta pot – drop the pasta and cook till desired firmness

While both pot and pan are in the stove, pluck fresh parsley leaves  to be an optional topping for the dish

Check beet for softness and when tender, take out lid, reduce the broth to half

Go back to pasta pot.  Check pasta for doneness, strain, and drop into the frying pan mix.  The pasta will absorb the reduced broth.

Taste test and add 1 tbsp more of soy sauce if desired.

Serve with parsley topping.  Salt, pepper, soy sauce or lemon are optional condiments.

Great with canned Tome sardines (in oil and chili) or canned Tome mackerel (in oil and chili).

Sarap!

Mark Bittman of The New York Times has a similar article see: Pasta Aglio, Olio e Peperoncino