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Spaghetti Alla Putanesca

A tomato-based pasta with olives, capers, anchovy, habanero, and mushrooms, topped with Parmesan.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 13 ingredients
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Why it works: Olive and tomato are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 15,539 recipes. Both carry 3-hexenal, which smells apple, fruity. The science ↓

Spaghetti Alla Putanesca

Ingredients

Directions

Make the sauce

  1. In a large skillet, heat the oil and add the onion.

  2. Sauté until golden.

  3. Add the tomatoes and let cook for a few minutes.

  4. Add the other ingredients and cook until done.

Cook and serve

  1. Cook the spaghetti al dente.

  2. Drain and transfer to a large serving bowl.

  3. Toss the spaghetti with the sauce.

  4. Serve and add grated Parmesan.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

575Calories
45 gProtein
33 gFat
30 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 13 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Anchovy100g210
Olive Oil1 tbsp (14g)119
Parmesan Cheese1 oz (28g)110
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Plum1 medium (66g)30
Tomato1 medium (123g)22
Mushroom1/2 cup sliced (35g)15
Chili1 tsp (2.7g)8
Black Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Oregano1 tsp dried (1.8g)5
Olive1 large (4g)4
Capers1 tbsp (9g) drained2
Salt1 tsp (6g)0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Olive + tomatotop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together15,539 recipes

    Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).

  2. Olive + caperstop 3% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together1,688 recipes

    Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).

  3. Plum + tomatotop 6% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together1,480 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).

  4. Olive + mushroomtop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together4,571 recipes

    Shared aroma: trans,trans-2,4-nonadienal (fatty, green).

  5. Tomato + mushroomtop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together2,719 recipes

    Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-one (mushroom, metallic).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Olive oil
Carries the heat and flavor of the aromatics and helps the onion brown evenly.
Onion
Sweetens and builds the savory base of the sauce as it turns golden.
Plum tomatoes
Provide the liquid and acidity that form the body of the sauce.
Anchovy
Melts into the sauce to add deep savory flavor without tasting distinctly fishy.
Olives
Add salty, briny flavor and a meaty texture to the sauce.
Capers
Add sharp, salty bursts of acidity that cut through the rich tomato base.

The step that matters

Sauté the onion until golden. Cooking the onion until golden browns its sugars, giving the sauce sweetness and depth. Pale, underdone onion leaves the sauce tasting flat and sharp.

Swap the plum

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (olive, onion, tomato, capers, mushroom, anchovy, pepper):

  1. Avocadofits better
  2. Lemonfits better
  3. Limefits better
  4. Plumthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against olive, onion, tomato, capers, mushroom, anchovy, pepper. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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