I am a big fan of Italian food and love the flavors from fresh herbs. You would often see me make recipes with them. Here are some of my simple recipes with fresh herbs:

  1. Basil flavored Tomato Soup
  2. Rosemary flavored potato wedges
  3. Lemongrass flavored Thai Green curry

When I found really fresh tomatoes, basil, and thyme leaves on my weekly farmer’s market hauls, my first thought was to make Spaghetti Arrabiata. Love the tanginess of fresh tomatoes with the slight sweetness of the onion and the freshness from basil and thyme leaves. It is the best pasta option there and the best part is that it gets ready in about 15-20 minutes.

PREPARATION TIME: 5 minutes
COOKING TIME: 15 minutes
SERVINGS: 2-3 people
DIFFICULTY SCALE: Medium

INGREDIENTS: 

  1. Spaghetti – 300 gms
  2. Onion (Pyaz) – 1, large
  3. Tomatoes – 3, medium
  4. Garlic – 2 pods
  5. Basil Leaves – a handful
  6. Thyme leaves – 3-4 sprigs
  7. Chilli Flakes – 1 teaspoon
  8. Parmesan Cheese shavings – ¼ cup, optional
  9. Olives – 2-3, for garnish
  10. Olive oil – 2 tablespoons
  11. Salt – to taste

UTENSILS/EQUIPMENT:

  1. Nonstick pan
  2. Big boiling pan
  3. Grater

RECIPE:

  1. Nicely wash the tomatoes and make small diagonal cuts on them on top.
  2. In a big boiling pan, add water and salt and allow the water to come to a boil.
  3. Drizzle some olive oil and add in the spaghetti. Cover the pot.
  4. Add in the tomatoes as well.
Boiling_pot_with_spaghetti_and_tomatoes
Boiling pot with spaghetti and tomatoes

5. The tomatoes would take about 5 minutes to cook. Take a strainer and take them out of the pot.

Remove_tomatoes_from_the_boiling_water
Remove tomatoes from the boiling water

6. In a non-stick pan, add in a tablespoon of olive oil.
7. Finely chop an onion and add it to the pan. Also, add in two crushed garlic pods.

Add_chopped_onions_in_a_pan
Add chopped onions in a pan

8. In the meantime, peel the tomatoes and roughly chop them. You could also puree them if you like.
9.  Add the chopped tomatoes to the pan after the onions start sweating a little and turn transparent.
10. Now season them with some chilli flakes and thyme. Add in a few chopped basil leaves too.

Chopped_Tomatoes_and_herbs
Chopped Tomatoes and herbs

11. Add in salt and mix well. Allow the tomatoes to squish too. Add some boiling water from the pasta pot. This would add some starch to the pan and will allow the tomatoes to cook faster.
12. Once the spaghetti is boiled in about 12-15 minutes, remove it from the boiling water.
13. Drizzle some olive oil on it and let it rest for about 5 minutes.

Add_boiled_spaghetti
Add_boiled_spaghetti

14. Toss the spaghetti into the tomato sauce. Grate some parmesan on top of the pasta.
15. Remove the thyme twigs and garnish with a few olives and fresh tomatoes.

Spaghetti Arrabiata is ready, serve hot!

Spaghetti_Arrabiata
Spaghetti Arrabiata