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Italian

Cacio e pepe

Vegetarian

Three-ingredient Roman pasta where finely grated pecorino and toasted black pepper are emulsified with starchy cooking water into a creamy sauce.

Cacio e pepe is an Italian pasta dish from Italy, ready in about 20 minutes and made with dried pasta, pecorino romano and black pepper. It serves 4 and is rated intermediate to cook.

Start cooking
pasta cacio e pepe (cheese and pepper)
Photo: Popo le Chien / Wikimedia Commons · CC-BY-SA-3.0
Prep
5 min
Cook
15 min
Total
20 min
Serves
4
Level
Intermediate
Calories
529

Ingredients

4 servings

For the cooking water

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    Boil the pasta (opens in a new tab) in less water than usual (so it is starchier), lightly salted — pecorino (opens in a new tab) is already salty.

    Pasta boiling in a pot of water
    How it looks · Photo: Gianpiero Ferraro on Pexels

  2. Step 2

    Toast the cracked pepper (opens in a new tab) in a dry wide pan for a minute until fragrant, then add a ladle of pasta (opens in a new tab) water and let it bubble.

  3. Step 3

    In a bowl, mash the pecorino (opens in a new tab) with a few spoonfuls of warm (not boiling) pasta (opens in a new tab) water into a smooth, thick cream.

    • 2 min
    Potatoes being mashed
    How it looks · Photo: Mateusz Feliksik on Pexels

  4. Step 4

    Transfer the pasta (opens in a new tab), 1–2 minutes short of done, to the pepper (opens in a new tab) pan and finish cooking it there, tossing and adding water. Take off the heat, wait 30 seconds, then stir in the cheese cream, tossing vigorously until glossy. Serve immediately.

    • 3 min
    • medium heat

About this dish

Origin
Lazio (Rome), Italy · Well documentedMore food from Italy
Dish
Lunch · Dinner · Pasta · Main courses
Cooking method
Boiled, Toasted
Taste
peppery, salty, creamy, umami
Diet
Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · No nut ingredients · High-protein
All labelsVegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Lacto-vegetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · Egg-free · No nut ingredients · No added sugar · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free · High-protein
Worked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for
Everyday · Budget-friendly
Cook more with
Dried pasta · Pecorino Romano
Techniques
Toasting · Boiling · Spice roasting (dry-roasting)

Allergens

  • Contains: Milkfrom pecorino romano
  • May contain: Eggsfrom dried pasta
  • Contains: Wheatfrom dried pasta
  • Contains: Glutenfrom dried pasta

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

529 kcal per serving

Calculated

1 serving ≈ 142 g · recipe makes 4

Where the energy comes from

  • Protein 20%
  • Carbohydrate 59%
  • Fat 21%
Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
NutrientPer servingPer 100 g*
Energy529 kcal373 kcal
Protein25.9 g18.2 g
Carbohydrate76.9 g54.2 g
Net carbohydrate73.4 g51.7 g
Sugars3 g2.1 g
Added sugars0 g0 g
Fibre3.5 g2.5 g
Fat12.3 g8.7 g
Saturated fat7.1 g5 g
Trans fat——
Cholesterol42 mg29 mg
Sodium870 mg613 mg
Salt equivalent2.2 g1.5 g
Vitamins & minerals per serving
Potassium
274 mg
Calcium
452 mg
Iron
3.7 mg
Magnesium
71 mg
Vitamin A (RAE)
39 µg
Vitamin C
0 mg
Vitamin D
0.2 µg
Vitamin B12
0.4 µg
Folate (DFE)
394 µg

How these numbers were made

  • Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
  • *Per 100 g of combined raw ingredients; the cooked dish may weigh more or less.
  • “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
  • Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

Good to know

Tips

  • Grate the cheese as finely as possible — a microplane is ideal.
  • If the sauce clumps, it was too hot: add a splash of cooler water and keep tossing.

Common mistakes

  • Adding cheese to a sizzling pan, which turns it into stringy lumps.

Storage

  • Does not keep; make it just before eating.

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated

Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

Built from the recipe’s own sections. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

What the dish is built around

Main ingredient

Used in steps 1, 3, 4

Reviews & corrections

Reviews come from signed-in cooks and appear after a moderator checks them. We never show made-up ratings.

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