Ingredients
- Anchovy Fillets 125 g, drained weight
- Milk
- Spaghetti or Bucatini 450 g
- Salt a little
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil 80 ml
- Garlic 2 cloves
- Chilli Flakes ½ tsp
- Flat Leaf Parsley a large bunch
- Fried Breadcrumbs 60 g
For the breadcrumbs
- Stale Country Bread 2-3 slices, crusts removed
- Milk
- Water
- Olive Oil
Cook It
- Moisten the bread with milk and water and let it sit for about an hour. Heat 2 Tbs of olive oil in a heavy-bottomed pan and cook the bread chunks on a high heat for about 30 seconds, then turn the heat down and cook the bread very slowly – it should take about 25 minutes. The chunks should be crisp and coloured on the outside but moist on the inside.
- Soak the anchovies in a little milk for about 15 minutes. Put the pasta on to cook in plenty of boiling salted water.
- Gently heat thew olive oil – you mustn’t get it too hot or it will spoil the favour of the oil – and cook the whole garlic cloves for a couple of minutes, until golden. Discard the garlic and take the pan off the heat. Drain the anchovies, cut them up and add them to the oil with the chilli flakes. Heat gently, helping the anchovies melt by mashing them with a wooden spoon.
- When the pasta is almost ready, roughly chop the parsley and gently reheat the anchovy sauce. You can incorporate a few tablespoons of the pasta cooking water to stretch it a little if you want to. Toss the drained spaghetti with the sauce, parley and breadcrumbs, and serve.
