Pasta and potatoes were my favorite during my childhood. It is a poor, traditional dish that is still eaten in some trattorias and everywhere at home. Everybody likes it. The pasta used in Rome is broken spaghetti.
Grandma Violetta always made it for me. Hers was very soupy, like all Roman soups.

Grandma Violetta's pasta and potatoes Roman style

  • Preparation time: 40 minutes
  • Ingredients 4 servings
  • Difficulty: Easy recipe

  • Ingredients
  • 4 ½ oz (120 grams) of broken spaghetti
  • 4 medium sized potatoes
  • 3 tablespoons of tomato purée
  • ½ onion
  • Extra virgin olive oil to taste
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • Grated pecorino cheese to taste
  1. Instructions
  2. Wash, peel, and cube the potatoes.
  3. In a saucepan with some oil, simmer the chopped onion over low heat for about five minutes.
  4. Add the tomato purée and cubed potatoes and cook for another five minutes.
  5. Add about a US liter and a half of hot water and continue cooking.
  6. Break the spaghetti to 1 1/2 inches long.
  7. After about twenty minutes and when the potatoes are almost cooked, toss in the pasta and cook it.
  8. Turn off the heat and let the soup rest for a few minutes. Salt.
  9. Serve with a drizzle of oil and grated pecorino cheese.

Tips to ensure the success of the dish:

  • If you want to make the soup creamier, mash one potato with a fork before adding the broken spaghetti.
  •  The Roman recipe also calls for the use of guanciale. I, on the other hand, prefer it totally vegetarian.

 Nonna Violetta