TUNA PUTTANESCA PASTA

When it comes to pasta, I usually go for the white-sauce-based. For whatever reason I would rather eat for the cheesy and creamy sauces in an al dente noodles. I am not really fond of the Filipino version of pasta - like spaghetti. Most of the Filipinos do their red sauce (Spaghetti sauce, for instance) sweeter than the sauce I am familiar and grew up with.

 

I have three favorite ingredients when I am doing a red sauce pasta, the canned peeled tomatoes (which comes very conveniently in supermarket), pitted olives (I usually go with the black to add some drama in the pasta rather than green) and basil leaves. Since the holidays are coming, especially for the Filipinos, this recipe is a perfect treat for the family. For those who are on a diet, I used tuna instead of pork or beef (but what the heck, give your diet a break and just enjoy some guilt).

 Ingredients

 1/4 cup Vegetable oil (from the canned tuna)

1 cup Onion, finely chopped

6 cloves Garlic, minced

2 cans Diced Tomatoes (I used Hunts for this recipe)

1 cup Black Olives, pitted, chopped

2 Tbsp Tomato Paste (for this I used Del Monte)

2 cans Tuna in Vegetable Oil, drained

1/2 cup Basil Leaves, chopped

Salt and Pepper to taste

Parmesan Cheese, for toppings

Procedure:

1. In a frying pan, heat vegetable oil under medium fire. Saute garlic for 1 - 2 minutes or until fragrant.

2. Saute onion for 2 - 3 minutes or until translucent. Add chopped pitted black olives and continue sauteing for another minute.

3. Add in tuna and cook for 5 minutes. Break tuna chunks in smaller pieces.

4. Pour out canned diced tomatoes. Stir until well blended. Let it simmer for another 5 minutes.

5. Place in chopped basil leaves and season with salt and pepper.

6. Remove from heat. You can add in your precooked noodles or just top it. Finish it by sprinkling generous amount of Parmesan cheese. Now it is ready to serve.

Note:

By the way, this recipe is good for a 400-grams of pasta. It will double in weight after cooking.